Brno University of Technology was the only university to participate in the Small Municipalities Day conference this year, where representatives of ministries and municipal leaders regularly meet.

The Faculty of Civil Engineering and its two spin-off companies, VODA BRNO, s.r.o. and ConWe s.r.o., presented technologies improving drinking water and wastewater management.

"It was very busy at our stand, especially during breaks in the technical programme when participants had the opportunity to see the exhibition. The Astacus technology for water pipe cleaning attracted a lot of attention, as everyone sees quality drinking water as a priority - especially now during the dry years. Mayors often left saying that they would discuss the possibility of using this technology in their councils," said Jan Ručka, founder of VODA BRNO, describing the interest in the news.

The spin-off CONWE designs and builds natural wastewater treatment plants and was founded by Michal Kriška-Dunajský, who has been involved in ecological water management for a long time. A high-quality treatment plant will save a small municipality hundreds of cubic metres of drinking water as well as operation and maintenance costs. All purification processes take place on an entirely natural basis, no energy or chemicals are needed. The ecosystem of the treatment plant itself also benefits, adding an important green element to the surroundings with the ability to retain water and promote biodiversity in the landscape.

At the conference, Radovan Šomplák from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering presented POPELKA, an advanced system for optimising the collection of municipal waste.