Water protection
For many years, water protection has been a top priority for the general public, governments and Vattenfall.
In general, we have minimal direct impact on the quality of the water near our facilities.However, because many of our power plants and electricity network transformers are located close to protected water areas, we have a high level of preparedness. Here are some examples of what we do.
Treating waste water
Several of our power plants use lake, sea or river water for cooling water. We monitor the discharge and effects of the heated water to minimise its impact on the local environment. In addition, all waste water is delivered directly to municipal sewage treatment plants or cleaned on-site before being discharged.
Sweden
River regulation can alter many things about a river, including its course and natural flows. This alteration often affects spawning grounds or the fish’s ability to reach them. Vattenfall runs a number of projects to compensate. For example, we have constructed small streams to help the sea trout reproduce where trout spawning grounds have been damaged. Vattenfall also cultivates trout and salmon – about 1.3 million fish are released into the sea and rivers every year.
Germany
Vattenfall’s operations affect the water balance of land and watercourses near open-cast lignite mines in eastern Germany. For each tonne of lignite extracted, about six cubic metres of water is removed from the soil. We clean this water, and then add it to the natural water flow of the local watercourses. In addition, this water is used in our lignite-fired power plants.
Jump directly to: Top of text , Search , Main navigation , sub navigation , meta navigation , Top of page
