Welser Hütte - WWTP

5. 8. 2026

Wastewater Treatment

Wastewater Treatment Plants

Wastewater Treatment Plants

From miniature-scale work in the workshop to installation at an elevation of 1,740 meters above sea level.

The journey of the wastewater treatment plant for the Welser Hütte mountain lodge began in the workshop at Patria Kobylí with the construction of the individual segments of the WWTP. These included a two-chamber rough mechanical pre-treatment unit, a six-stage anaerobic separator, three biological treatment lines based on mechanical filtration with attached growth cultures, and a storage shaft with a mechanism for intermittent flooding of the subsequent filtration bed, which was constructed directly at the construction site. The final structure downstream of the filter was a combined pumping station and excess sludge dewatering facility, from which the treated wastewater is pumped to the existing solar evaporation facility for treated water. A total of 7 structures were manufactured at the production facility for subsequent transport and installation; in the case of the separator structure in particular, the work was almost miniature in scale due to the dimensions of the individual chambers. But this wasn’t our first time manufacturing such structures, so we handled even this demanding task with ease. All structures were designed for subsequent transport by helicopter and, upon completion, were carefully weighed before transport.

The journey wastewater treatment plant from the factory to the transshipment point in Grünau im Almtal was made using two trucks, and unloading at this furthest point—the farthest the trucks could reach—went smoothly. From there, the tanks had to be transported individually along a narrow forest road—which was still paved—to the next transfer point in the dry riverbed of the Alm River near the Almtalerhaus mountain hut. This location was selected as the closest possible landing site for a helicopter and thus served not only as a transfer point but also as a temporary heliport.

All construction materials—not only our tanks, but also backfill material, filter bed material, parts of the piping systems, and the necessary tools—were transported in this manner. Similarly, an excavator for carrying out preparatory earthwork was transported to the site, though fourteen days earlier.

In this environment, the helicopter also functions as a construction crane, and it must be said that the skill of both pilots in positioning the individual tanks with an accuracy of just a few centimeters—even in strong winds—is truly astonishing.

After the individual tanks have been installed, interconnected, and fitted with internal equipment, and after the filter membrane, drainage piping, and glass tuff-based filter aggregate have been installed, all that remains is to complete the earthwork, and the WWTP will go straight into full operation.

And if your helicopter happens to fly away, the commute to work is just under seven kilometers in length—but with a 1,000-meter elevation gain!

Ing. Antonín Vondruška