Port of Açu: Ambipar and Anglo-American Develop Water Reuse Project

Ambipar, Anglo-American, and the Port of Açu have partnered to treat the water used in the Minas-Rio pipeline system. This system transports iron ore from Conceição do Mato Dentro, in Minas Gerais, to the port in São João da Barra, Rio de Janeiro.

The water reuse project is one of the largest in the country, with an estimated capacity to supply up to 1,000 m³ of treated water per hour. Ambipar is responsible for the supply system of potable and industrial water and wastewater treatment at the Port of Açu.

The largest deep-water industrial port complex in Latin America has seven deep tubular wells with a total flow rate of approximately 400 m³ per hour, five water treatment stations for the removal of iron and manganese, 10 km of water pipelines, and a wastewater treatment plant with a capacity of up to 100 m³ per hour.

In addition to Ambipar, 26 other companies are located at the site, which handles 40% of the country’s oil exports.

Fernando de Barros, Head of Water Solutions at Ambipar, highlights the challenge climate change imposes on companies in managing water resources rationally and dealing with increasingly frequent water crises. “[This] reinforces the importance of environmental solutions for the better use of water resources,” he says. “Among the technologies applied by the company to assist the industrial sector are filtration systems, reverse osmosis, ultrafiltration, and physicochemical treatments. In addition, Ambipar specializes in the removal, dewatering, and valorization of sludge generated in treatment processes.”

According to the study “Environmental Practices and Biotechnology,” conducted by the Innovation Survey of IBGE in partnership with ABDI (Brazilian Agency for Industrial Development) and UFRJ (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro), environmental practices have been gaining more traction among companies. Out of nearly 10,000 in the industrial sector (with 100 or more employees), 89.1% carried out at least one environmental initiative or practice in 2023.

75.1% of the companies surveyed adopted recycling and reuse practices. Initiatives related to energy efficiency (61.5%), water resources (57.1%), atmospheric emissions (46.3%), and land use (23.9%) followed closely.

Source: Metrópoles

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