Waste Water Management in Seaside Tourism Areas: The Rimini Seawater Protection Plan

Abstract

The Hera Group and the Council of Rimini are the leading players in what is currently Italy’s biggest sewer system renewal project. With a budget of 154 million euros, it includes a series of major works throughout the Rimini area, to be completed over a 10-year time frame. HERA’s Piano di Salvaguardia della Balneazione (abbreviated to PSBO)—or Seawater Protection Plan—involves not only the Rimini Town Council but also Romagna Acque and Amir. It is based on an environmental strategy that foresees separation of the sewer system (into rainfall runoff and sewage) and the construction of large rainfall collection basins. The aim is to eliminate all discharges into the sea by 2020 via the completion of 11 projects at sewer ducts and waste water treatment plants. In this sense, the Seawater Protection Plan (PSBO) represents a turning point. It will allow for complete elimination of ‘no bathing’ orders, a problem that has affected Italy’s seaside holiday capital for many years. The main sources of the problem are the combined rain runoff/sewer system and the population pressure along the coastal hotel strip. The sewer problem is infrastructural. It dates back to the economic boom years, when the Rimini-centred tourism industry started to take shape. This is why it is essential to act now to ensure that the sewer system remains sustainable. The Riviera now has 16 million overnight stays a year against a permanent residential population of about 146,000 (in the town of Rimini alone). At present, there are 11 discharge points along the Rimini coastline between Torre Pedrera and the River Marano.