A critical assessment of the applicability of EU regulation 2020/741 for the development of a risk management plan for hydroponic water reuse

Abstract

The article focuses on the development of a risk management plan for small-scale water reuse system in Weißenberge, Germany. The reuse system comprises of wastewater treatment ponds, cloth filter, activated carbon biofilter, sandfilter, UV disinfection and a hydroponic tomato cultivation. Multi-stakeholder consultations, pre-validation and preliminary monitoring led to a low-risk perception during the risk assessment. Technical and non-technical barriers before and after the point of compliance resulted in a high level of safety confirmed during the operation. Remaining challenges in implementing EU regulation 2020/741, such as validation monitoring are discussed. Experiences made during the operation of the water reuse system as well as a review of scientific publications indicate that hydroponic cultivation does not have any increased risk compared against other cultivation methods.