Wastewater treatment

SWaM is responsible for the supervisory guidance of small-scale wastewater treatment facilities, in other words facilities for up to 200 persons. Our guidance is aimed at authorities dealing with supervision (municipalities) and supervisory guidance (county administrative boards).

We do not decide how other authorities are to act in individual cases. We also do not provide advice to property owners as to which wastewater treatment facility they should choose. Property owners who are dissatisfied with a municipal decision are to appeal to the county administrative board.

The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, Naturvårdsverket, guides county administrative boards and municipalities on

• treatment facilities designed for more than 200 persons
• facilities designed for treatment of wastewater from actitivities other than households
• sewage sludge and other waste from treating wastewater.

The publication Wastewater treatment in Sweden, published by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, gives an overview of the subject.

The Swedish Environmental Code sets the environmental standards for the country. 

The municipalities provisioning of water and wastewater is regulated by the Public Water Supply and Wastewater Systems Act (SFS 2006:412). 

If, out of consideration of the protection of human health or the environment, water supply or sewerage needs to be arranged in a wider context (often defined as 20 to 30 households) the municipality shall see to that the need is provided for through a public water supply and sewerage facility.

SWaM's general recommendations for small-scale wastewater treatment systems (HVMFS 20016:17) provide guidance for municipal authorities regarding the enforcement of environmental and health safety requirements for small-scale systems.

Approximately 940 000. A small-scale system is defined as a system serving up to 200 persons.

The local municipality is in charge. It is up to each municipality as to how it prioritizes this supervision given that some municipalities have sufficient resources while others do not.

Supervision is conducted on a regular basis by inspectors at the municipal level, partly through register reviewal and partly through on-site visits.

Sweden follows the European Standards EN 12566-X.

The Swedish National Board of Housing, Building and Planning is responsible for the standards since prefabricated sewage treatment facilities are considered as building products.

Treatment facilities that are not prefabricated are usually built with respect to the publication Faktablad 8147 Små avloppsanläggningar or to the technical reports EN 12566: part 2 "Soil infiltration systems” and part 5: "Pretreated Effluent Filtration systems".

Municipalities use injunctions and prohibitions to encourage property owners to upgrade illegal facilities, but if the owners do not take action, they risk having to pay fines.

The property owner needs to apply for a permit. The application process requires a variety of information such as a site plan showing property boundaries and access roads for sludge-collecting vehicles, trucks, and details regarding the system’s resource management.

Application requirements (in Swedish) are described on our website. They are general recommendations for small-scale wastewater treatment. The application requirements can vary from municipality to municipality.

The local municipality is responsible for reviewing applications, approving them, and ensuring that the installation is in compliance with regulations.