Commission to assess whether to halt Žiežmariai wastewater treatment operations

A commission formed by Lithuania’s Environmental Protection Department (EPD) will evaluate whether to suspend the operations of the Žiežmariai municipal wastewater treatment facilities, managed by the company Kaišiadorių vandenys, and whether such a move would disrupt wastewater management in the municipality, the EPD announced on Tuesday.

The decision follows repeated pollution incidents this year. According to acting EPD director Eglė Paužuolienė, the department responds to every confirmed case of pollution, but recurring incidents indicate that the operator’s efforts to address the root causes are insufficient.

On July 17, the EPD requested that the Kaišiadori district municipality provide information on inspections, instances of surface runoff entering the sewage system, disconnected properties, and planned preventive measures.

After heavy rainfall on Monday, EPD’s Kaunas branch inspected the Žiežmariai facilities and visually confirmed signs of activated sludge discharge. Samples were taken by the Environmental Protection Agency’s laboratory, and potential pollution will be assessed once test results are available.

Pollution incidents at the plant occur during heavy rain when large volumes of surface runoff enter the system. The Žiežmariai facilities are designed to treat municipal wastewater and are not adapted to handle mixed flows, leading to disruptions in the treatment process and the discharge of activated sludge along with the effluent.

This year, the EPD has responded six times to reports of insufficiently treated wastewater from the Žiežmariai facilities entering the Strėva River. In five cases, pollutant concentrations in the wastewater exceeded permitted levels.