The final meeting of the BEER4ALL and mobiMET projects was held this Tuesday in Madrid, bringing together stakeholders from the scientific community, public institutions, and the business sector to review progress and ongoing challenges in sustainable water reuse. The Info Day Innovative Strategies for Creating a Circular Economy in Wastewater Regeneration focused on the development of advanced technologies aimed at converting conventional wastewater treatment plants into fully fledged biofactories.

Dr Abraham Esteve Núñez, lead researcher of the Bioe Group and coordinator from Metfilter of both research and innovation initiatives, presented the key scientific and technological outcomes achieved. The proposed solutions combine biotechnological and electrochemical approaches with innovative modular systems, enabling more sustainable reclaimed water production and enhanced recovery of valuable resources from wastewater. These advances align with circular economy principles and the new European directive on water reuse.

The sessions included contributions from researchers and representatives of the University of Alcalá, EMASESA (water company), Mahou-San Miguel, the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (Miteco), CEOE (Spanish Confederation of Employers’ Organizations), Canal de Isabel II (Madrid Water and sanitation company), DAQUAS (Spanish Urban Water Association), sustainable arquitecture studio Satt, the Madri+d Knowledge Foundation, the Community of Madrid and aguasresiduales.info. Participants highlighted the need for a cross-disciplinary and collaborative approach to effectively tackle the challenges of sustainable water management.

Dr Raffaella Meffe, Deputy Director of IMDEA Water, took part in a roundtable discussion addressing the opportunities and challenges associated with urban and industrial wastewater regeneration. The discussion explored regulatory aspects of water reuse, the importance of innovation, and the role of public–private partnerships as key catalysts for transformation in the water sector.

The event concluded with closing remarks by José Luis Belinchón Carmona, Technological Innovation Manager for the Community of Madrid, who emphasized the critical role of institutional backing in driving technological change.

Innovative Strategies based on biotechnology and electrochemistry for producing valuable products from brewery wastewater (BEER4all) Project CPP2021-008852 funded by MICIU/AEI /10.13039/501100011033 and by the European Union NextGenerationEU/ PRTR.

New strategies for the sustainable production of reused water by means of modular electroactive wetland: METlands (mobiMET) Project CPP2021-008936 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by the European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR