The Government of Castilla-La Mancha, through the Ministry of Sustainable Development, has highlighted the investment effort to strengthen the water management of the integral water cycle in the province of Toledo, with an investment of 17.8 million euros in new hydraulic infrastructures such as wastewater treatment plants in the municipalities of Quero, El Toboso, and Sonseca.
On Monday, the resolution of the Ministry of Sustainable Development approving the construction project of the wastewater treatment plant (EDAR) of Quero (Toledo) was published in the Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha (DOCM), and tomorrow those of El Toboso (Toledo) and Sonseca (Toledo) will be published, as reported by the Regional Government in a press release.
The Minister of Sustainable Development, Mercedes Gómez, has reported significant progress that translates into «new hydraulic infrastructures designed for the future, which represent an improvement in sustainability and environmental protection, but also a further step in the socio-economic development of the municipalities.» Therefore, as she indicated, once the periods of public information have been resolved without receiving any objections, the construction projects of these three treatment plants are approved. In the case of Quero and El Toboso, the works are already awarded; while in Sonseca, the project is in the bidding process.
These infrastructures, co-financed with European funds from the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism (RRM) in the projects of Quero and El Toboso, and funds from the FEDER Program 2021-2027 of Castilla-La Mancha in Sonseca, are part of the regional Purification Program promoted by the Water Agency of Castilla-La Mancha, which seeks to improve the sustainable water management in the region and ensure proper treatment of wastewater, in compliance with European regulations.
Mercedes Gómez has recalled that the wastewater treatment plant of Quero has an investment of 3.7 million euros and is designed to serve 6,000 equivalent inhabitants with a daily purification volume of 650 cubic meters, while for the El Toboso plant, the investment reaches 4.5 million euros for 4,400 equivalent inhabitants and a volume of 1,099 cubic meters.
In both cases, the minister has indicated that between 15 and 17 months are planned for their construction and commissioning, in addition to another 12 months corresponding to the exploitation period included in the contract. These projects are managed through the public entity Infrastructures of Water of Castilla-La Mancha (IACLM).
SONSECA WWTP IN TENDER
On the other hand, the construction of the wastewater treatment plant in Sonseca has an investment of 9.6 million euros and will benefit the entire population of this municipality of more than 11,100 inhabitants, as it is «designed with the latest technology and prepared for future population growth, so it will have a purification capacity for 33,333 equivalent inhabitants.»
In addition to the construction, which started in 2022 with the drafting of the project, the contract includes the operation of the infrastructure for one year, after which the entity IACLM will take over the management of these new purification facilities.
The Minister of Sustainable Development has referred to the province of Toledo, with 46 treatment plants managed by Infrastructures of Water of Castilla-La Mancha, to which more projects will be added in 2025 such as the WWTP of Cebolla, Montearagón, Mesegar, Villanueva de Alcardete, Quero, El Toboso, and Los Yébenes, as well as the start of the works of the Sonseca plant.
In 2025, the minister reiterated, there is a forecast to complete 15 new purification facilities that will be added to the 240 managed by IACLM for 504,000 inhabitants of Castilla-La Mancha. They will have an investment this year of 45 million euros, for the proper treatment of wastewater.