Sustainable Wastewater Treatment for Hospitals / SWaTH is a 3-year project co-funded by the Erasmus+ programme of the European Union, Key Action 2: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices. The Project is carried out under the centralized activity “Capacity-building in the Field of Higher Education” / AC–A02–2019–CBHE.

The Project Consortium brings together 11 organizations from five European and South Mediterranean (Region 3) countries – France, Sweden, Finland, Spain, and Lebanon.

The motive of the Project is to bring together European Higher Education Institutions and European factories that own and supply cutting-edge developments, extensive international experience, and innovative learning practices and Higher Education Institutions from Partner countries in the Southern Mediterranean – Region 3 (particularly Lebanon) that need and demand the same practices, expertise, and developments.

SWaTH, coordinated by the University of Balamand – Lebanon, is a national project that will:

• Train 35 Lebanese scientists by participating in many specially designed training courses and workshops.
• Provide 185 scholarships to Lebanese students to refine their scientific knowledge in topics related to waste management.
• Evaluate the methods currently used in Lebanon for hospital wastewater treatment and compare them to best practices in various European countries.
• Assess the social and environmental impacts of wastewater treatment through social and Environmental Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) studies.
• Establish a leading Center/Laboratory in Lebanon for the characterization and analysis of wastewater.

Incorporating the systematic approach, SWaTH is broken down into 5 coherent workpackages (WPs) as follows:

1. WP1 Preparation - This workpackage creates a comparative analysis of the methods currently used in Lebanon for hospital wastewater treatment and European best practices. WP1 aims to identify gaps and needs of improvement as well as skills and competencies that need to be acquired and/or developed to improve the capacity of faculty members in Partner countries in line with international and European waste management standards and policies.
2. WP2 Development - This workpackage addresses the issue of sustainable waste management. WP2 aims to conduct Social and Environmental Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) studies in addition to establishing a leading center/laboratory in Lebanon for the characterization and analysis of wastewater.
3. WP3 Quality Plan – This workpackage is at the heart of the Project where the quality assurance and evaluation of the project will be carried out throughout its lifespan. WP3 aims to elaborate fundamental texts (e.g. e-forms, policies, templates, etc.), to design self-assessment reports, and to analyze and develop corrective actions if necessary.
4. WP4 Dissemination and Exploitation – This workpackage aims to publicize the Project by increasing visibility of ongoing and upcoming activities and outcomes through the website, the mobile app, and social media platforms. WP4 also helps to maximize the impact of activities on target groups. Furthermore, WP4 is designed to boost the sustainability of the Project as well as to advertise and promote successful experiences and best practices.
5. WP5 Project Management – This workpackage aims to guarantee the achievement of all planned activities according to the deadline, budget, and scope. For this reason, different committees and councils will be formed and the consortium will have a hierarchical structure that ensures an effective communication and cooperation.

For the description of SWaTH in the Erasmus+ Project Results Platform please click here.