Three pipes out

Three Pipes Out is the name of the source separation sewage system that transports the waste from residents in Oceanhamnen, Helsingborg, into RecoLab. RecoLab develops sustainable systems in a development plant, showroom and testbed.

For residents

Are you moving into the new residential buildings in Oceanhamnen? If so, you can look forward to being an environmental hero, every day. Your apartment has a three-part sewage system that makes it easier for you to recycle correctly.

The sewage system is managed in Reco Lab’s development facility. As a result, what you flush or rinse away becomes part of a larger environmental solution.

Three pipes out – A source separated sewage system

The residential building which you will be living in is connected to three separate waste pipes. One vacuum pipe for the toilets, one pipe for baths, dishwashing and washing machines and one pipe for ground food waste. Because of this setup, your everyday waste is divided and handled in a smarter way.

• The collection of cleaner food waste for anaerobic digestion into biogas and biofertilizer that can be used as a fertilizers on farmland.
• Vacuum toilets use less water and make it easier to extract biogas and nutrients from concentrated toilet and food waste.
• With a separate collection of bathwater and water from washing dishes and clothes the heat from the shower or bath, dishwasher and washing machine can be immediately recycled in the building through a system of heat exchange.

Taken together, these systems help reduce overfertilization, limit climate impact and save water. In fact, you help recycle three times more phosphorous and seven times more nitrogen per year compared to homes with traditional systems.

At the same time, this contributes to several of the global goals in Agenda 2030, such as:

As a result, the systems also contribute to several goals within Agenda 2030. Specifically Clean water and sanitation, Sustainable cities and societies, Sustainable energy for all and Sustainable consumption and production. In other words, the system will not only contribute to the city of Helsingborg’s environmental goals for the H+ area, but also to the climate- and environment work that is being carried out on a national level.

In other words, your new home is part of a much bigger environmental shift — not only in Helsingborg, but nationally and globally.

Food waste grinder benefits:

• The recycling rooms for other waste stays cleaner
• Greater amounts of food waste will be collected to digest into biogas. The residue will become biofertilizers to be used on farmland
• There will be a decrease in heavy transports in residential areas
• As a consequencw, there will be a decreased loss in the handling chain and thus an increased production of biogas and biofertilizers.

The benefits of vacuum toilets:

• Handling of sewage water at the treatment plant will be more energy efficient thanks to more concentrated flows. With new treatment techniques the emission of greenhouse gases at the treatment plants are reduced
• Biogas production will increase since the anaerobic digestion process can take place immediately without pre-treatment at the plant
• Compared to traditional toilets, they use much less water
• Cleaner raw material compared to the current sewage water and sewage waste.
• Increased circulation of nutrients back to the agricultural sector, especially of phosphorous- and nitrogenbased fertilizers. Both nutrients are prepared with fossile resources and needs to be replaced with more sustainable ecocycle products.
• More energy efficient pharmaceutical treatment thanks to the sewage water being kept separate from other waste
• Positive experiences of vacuum systems in households have been seen in both Germany and the Netherlands.

Collaborative project

The work with Three Pipes Out and RecoLab is a collaboration between the City of Helsingborg, Nordvästra Skånes Vatten och Avlopp (NSVA), Sweden Water Research and Nordvästra Skånes Renhållning (NSR).