Sustainability Report 2021
SUMMARY
Presentation
Message from
Management
The Águas do
Brasil Group
Integrity and
Transparency
Fostering
Universal Access
to Sanitation
Water Security
and Climate
Change
Efficient
Water
Our Utility
Companies
About this
Report
GRI
Summary
Corporate
Information
Cycle
WATER ABSTRACTION BY
SOURCE (2021 - MEGALITERS)
303-3
Surface water
123,313
Groundwater
6,826
Third-Party Water
63,811
Total
193,950
Treated wastewater volume (2021)
303-4
103,881,454 m³
The National and State Water Resources Policies instituted
by Federal Law 9,433/97 and State Law 3,339/99,
respectively, allow for the billing of water resources as a
water management instrument. Billing is the economic
system of water resources policies. It aims to demonstrate
to water users the monetary value of this natural resource
and make them aware of its finiteness, encouraging its
efficient use.
Águas do Brasil Group operates in states that are advanced
in implementing water resources policy, in which billing
has been introduced at the federal and state levels. The
company honors the payment of water use charges, either
through the abstraction of raw water or the release of
treated effluents in springs subject to such charges.
The proceeds finance the programs and interventions
contemplated in the water resources plans, including
sanitation. They are reinvested in the watershed they relate
to, aiming to improve the quality and quantity of water for
future uses. In 2021, the Group paid BRL 8,769,507.24 for the
use of water resources from state watersheds, contributing
to their improvement.
Waste management 103-2, 103-3 | 306
The Group manages all its solid waste according to
the Solid Waste Management Plan (PGRS) developed
internally. Thus, all utility companies have their PGRS
prepared in accordance with the corporate document and
a technical manager who manages the waste generated
and disposed of monthly. The topic is managed with a
focus on circularity, aiming to connect the waste generated
with the production of other chains so that such waste can
be more nobly used.
The most significant waste generated comes from the
processes of capture, treatment, and discharge of effluents.
Even if not considered hazardous in its characterization, the
most critical waste is the sludge from water and wastewater
treatment due to the large and persistent volume
generated. Material inputs refer mainly to the chemicals
and raw materials used in the treatment processes. The
outputs comprise the result of the production and treatment
processes, such as grating waste, sludge, sand, chemical
product packaging, and all the administrative processes that
support the Group's core business.
Innovation projects developed for waste management
in partnership with Universidade Estadual do Norte
Fluminense (UENF) and Universidade Federal Fluminense
(UFF), include:
composting of wastewater treatment plant sludge,
previously sent to the landfill;
•
agricultural use of sanitary sewage sludge-derived biochar;
analysis of the ecotoxicity of compost obtained from
wastewater treatment plant sludge, using effective
microorganisms during the composting process;
⚫ biotechnologies applied to the bioconversion of waste
from water and sewage treatment plants for application
in agriculture.
Agricultural fertilization
Nova Friburgo started to give a new
destination to the sludge generated in the
city's wastewater treatment plants. Since
June 2021, part of the waste has been sent
for composting and turned into fertilizer. The
organic fertilizer resulting from the process
will be used to recover degraded areas and to
plant trees. In addition to being a cleaner and
more environmentally friendly destination,
the proposal presents a significant reduction
in transport and disposal costs.
Sustainability Report 2021
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