Sri Lankan delegation completes technical visit to Germany on sewage sludge mgt.

A Sri Lankan delegation recently concluded a successful one-week technical visit to Germany aimed at developing a sustainable sewage sludge management concept for a Board of Investment (BOI) industrial zone.

 The visit, organized by the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Sri Lanka (AHK Sri Lanka) under the Export Initiative Environmental Protection (EXI), was funded by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMUKN).

Held from October 6 to 10 in Stuttgart and Karlsruhe, the program brought together four BOI officials and two private sector representatives for an intensive capacity-building and knowledge sharing mission. 

Throughout the week, participants engaged with leading German, research institutions, experts, and technology providers, exploring innovative and environmentally responsible approaches to wastewater and sewage sludge management. 

Key visits included the Main Sewage Treatment Plant Stuttgart-Mühlhausen, the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology (IGB), the Institute for Sanitary Engineering, Water Quality and Waste Management (ISWA) at the University of Stuttgart, the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), and the Renningen Sewage Treatment Plant.

Moreover, Thermo-System, a German high-quality provider for solar sludge drying introduced the delegates to their world-class technology. Through on-site demonstrations and discussions, the delegation gained practical insights into sludge drying, phosphorus recovery, and circular economy applications, which could support Sri Lanka’s move toward cleaner and more efficient industrial wastewater and sewage sludge treatment systems. 

“This visit provided valuable exposure to German expertise and innovation, offering a foundation for adapting sustainable sewage sludge management models in Sri Lanka,” said Sabrina Kolb, Project Manager at AHK Sri Lanka. 

AHK Sri Lanka expressed its appreciation to all partner organizations including Baden-Württemberg Ministry for the Environment, Climate and Energy Sector, , Chambers for GreenTech, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) Stuttgart (IHK Stuttgart), engineering4environment, and Zukunft – Umwelt – Gesellschaft (ZUG) gGmbH for their collaboration and support.