Wastewater with a Future: Excursion to the Vienna-Simmering sewage treatment plant
07 July, 2025
A field trip to a sewage treatment plant in Simmering, Vienna, gave students on the Bachelor’s program in Sustainable Environmental and Bioprocess Engineering a hands-on insight into complex technology and ecological responsibility.
On May 20, 2025, students from the Bachelor’s program in Sustainable Environmental and Bioprocess Engineering at the University of Applied Sciences Technikum Wien visited the sewage treatment plant of the City of Vienna, which is operated by ebswien GmbH in Simmering and is one of the largest and most modern of its kind in Europe.
During the excursion, the students gained impressive insights into the highly developed technology of wastewater treatment and forward-looking processes for recovering energy and resources. The wastewater treatment plant has been relying on innovative solutions for sustainable urban water management for years.
Many thanks to the ebswien team for the exciting tour and the professional exchange!
Vienna sewage treatment plant in Simmering, larger than the Vatican
Vienna has a large sewage treatment plant in Simmering, which is responsible for treating all of Vienna’s wastewater.
500 million liters per day, or around 6,000 liters per second, are produced in Vienna. Vienna Kanal operates a 2,500-kilometer sewer network under the city for safe disposal at the city’s main wastewater treatment plant in Simmering. The site of this sewage treatment plant covers an area of 490,000 square meters, making it larger than the Vatican.
Biological treatment stages
The two biological treatment stages work according to nature’s model. As in natural watercourses, microorganisms known as activated sludge live in the aeration tanks. The supply of oxygen from the air, known as “aeration,” causes the biological degradation of the dissolved contaminants (carbon, nitrogen) contained in the wastewater, while the addition of a precipitating agent accelerates the degradation of phosphorus. The wastewater treatment plant thus makes an important contribution to human health and the environment.
After 20 hours, the purified water flows into the Danube
The wastewater from Vienna leaves the plant after 20 hours, after a final check in the analysis building—and is so well purified that it does not affect the water quality of the Danube.
Further Links:
Bachelor’s program in Sustainable Environmental and Bioprocess Engineering
Master’s program in Ecotoxicology & Environmental Management
Faculty of Life Science Engineering
Symposium on Sustainability: Innovations for a Green Future
The City of Vienna’s wastewater treatment plant in Simmering, operated by ebswien
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