Wageningen University has appointed Dr. Ir. J.B. van Lier as Professor of Anaerobic Wastewater Treatment for Reuse and Irrigation. He joins the Biological Recycling Group. Professor Van Lier’s chair is sponsored by the Stichting Lettinga Associates Foundation.
Jules van Lier, whose appointment is retroactive as of October 1, 2005, concentrates his research on the application of cost-effective purification technology, which strives to produce water that meets certain quality requirements, taking into consideration the wishes of the next water user in the recycling process. The application of this technology is especially interesting for third world countries and countries in a transition economy, where freshwater is a scarce commodity. An important field of research is the embedding of anaerobic purification technology in city water recycled for agricultural purposes. At this moment, agricultural irrigation consumes the most water worldwide. In a number of countries this is more than 80% of the freshwater supplies. Recently the FAO discovered that in 50 developing countries almost 10 percent of the annual irrigation water is not purified and thus has serious consequences for public health and the environment.
Anaerobic purification is an outstanding technology which is capable of removing most pollution from drainage water, city drainage as well as industrial drainage, at a low cost. Water recycling in industry requires a biological system that can be used under more and more extreme conditions. Van Lier’s research will concentrate on gaining more scientific insights in the field of anaerobic processes in such situations. In addition to the desired water quality, the purification process also produces energy in the form of methane gas. As a result of Van Lier’s appointment, Wageningen University now occupies a prominent role in the field of Anaerobic Water Purification Technology worldwide.
Jules van Lier (Beesel, 1963) studied biology and environmental hygiene in Nijmegen and Wageningen and received his PhD in 1995 in Wageningen under the supervision of Prof. Lettinga. Presently, he is professor and senior-researcher in the Environmental Technology Department at the Wageningen University. In addition, he is scientific advisor to the Stiching Lettinga Associates Foundation. Van Lier is also chairman of the Anaerobic Digestion Specialist Group, which a member of the International Water Association (WA).
For more information, contact Prof. Jules van Lier, tel. +31 (0) 317 483243, e-mail Jules.vanlier@wur.nl, or Bouke de Vos, Information Officer, Wageningen UR, tel. +31 (0) 317 480180, e-mail bouke.devos@wur.nl.