Tianjin Jingu Wastewater Treatment Plant Phase III (450,000 m³/d, Sludge-Water Co-treatment)

Project overview Phase III of the Jingu Wastewater Treatment Plant sits in Balitai Town, Jinnan District, Tianjin, next to the Lüping·Baliwan ecological green belt. It is a municipal priority project and the largest single city wastewater treatment project built in China in the past five years. Built and operated by the Tianjin company of China Energy Engineering Group's Gezhouba Eco-Environmental company, it represents a total investment of CNY 3.807 billion and comprises one wastewater treatment plant and one sludge treatment plant, serving about 650 km2 and some 3 million residents. The wastewater plant is designed for 450,000 m3/d; the sludge plant for 700 t/d and hosts one of the largest sludge thermal drying and incineration systems built in northern China. Process Wastewater treatment follows a "modified Bardenpho + high-efficiency sedimentation + denitrification deep-bed filter + catalytic ozonation" train. Ozonation with catalytic oxidation is placed after biological nutrient removal to absorb load shocks from industrial discharges and first-flush stormwater. Effluent meets Tianjin's local Class A standard, more than 40% stricter than the national Grade I-A limit. Sludge is centrifuge-dewalled, thermally dried and incinerated. Dewatered sludge never touches the ground: it is piped directly from the water side to the adjacent sludge plant, so water and sludge are treated as one system and secondary pollution is avoided at source. Odour control combines whole-process and biofilter deodorisation; primary clarifiers are covered and the extracted air is treated centrally. The plant is semi-buried - "treatment underground, greenery above" - and blends into the surrounding green belt. Construction and operation The wastewater plant switched from commissioning to commercial operation on 31 December 2024; the sludge plant followed in July 2025, putting Phase III fully into commercial service and relieving pressure on the city's central wastewater system. According to Tianjin Daily (December 2025), the project treats 450,000 t of wastewater a day and supplies 120 million t of reclaimed water a year for ecological replenishment, equivalent to eight West Lakes. A smart platform in the central control room consolidates plant-wide data for unified dispatch, optimising the whole train and cutting energy use. Not disclosed The construction start date, design parameters of individual units and online effluent monitoring data have not been published; no estimates are made here. Sources 1. Enorth: "Tianjin Jingu project of China Energy Engineering Gezhouba Eco-Environmental fully enters commercial operation", 15 July 2025, http://news.enorth.com.cn/system/2025/07/15/058552622.shtml 2. Tianjin Daily: "Treating sludge and water together, turning waste into value - visiting the country's largest single sludge-water co-treatment project of the past five years", 29 December 2025, https://www.cggc.cn/art/2025/12/29/art_7442_2529044.html 3. People's Daily app: "Jingu WWTP Phase III expected to supply 73 million t of reclaimed water a year for ecological replenishment", 23 March 2025, https://www.cggc.ceec.net.cn/art/2025/3/23/art_7442_2527124.html 4. China Economic Net: "Accelerating the green transition, painting an ecological backdrop", 11 April 2025, http://tech.ce.cn/xxfw/202504/t20250411_1977632.shtml Image: aerial view of the Phase III plant, circular secondary clarifiers in the foreground, primary clarifiers, biological tanks and the sludge plant behind (commercial operation stage, July 2025; image source: Enorth)