Psyttaleia

Infobox Greek Isles
name = Psyttaleia
native_name = Ψυττάλεια
skyline =
sky_caption =

---

coordinates = coord|37|56|26|N|23|35|17|E|display=inline,title|region:GR_type:isle
chain = Saronic Island
isles =
area = .375
highest_mount =
elevation =
periph = Attica
prefect = Piraeus
capital = Uninhabited
population = 0
pop_as_of = 2001
postal =
telephone =
license =
website =

Psyttaleia ( _el. Ψυττάλεια) is an uninhabited island in the Saronic Gulf a few miles off the coast of Piraeus, Greece. It covers an area of 0.375 square kilometers. The island currently houses the largest sewage treatment plant in Europe,el icon [http://www.ase.gr/content/gr/Announcements/CompaniesPress/press_date.asp?dt=21/12/2006 Athens Stock Exchange] , "Elliniki Technodomiki TEB AE", Retrieved on 2007-06-08.] el icon [http://www.themeliodomi.gr/act_const.html Themeliodomi] , "Environmental protection works", Retrieved on 2007-06-08.] [http://www.andritz.com/ANONIDZ1E2343D42F7590ED/ep-news?count=3&id=37144 Andritz] , "Andritz to supply sewage sludge drying system for Athens, Greece", Retrieved on 2007-06-08.] with a projected daily maximum drying capacity of 750 tons of sewage.el icon [http://news.antenna.gr/articleDetail/0,3091,159407,00.html Antenna News] , "Karamanlis in Psyttaleia", Retrieved on 2007-06-08] Administratively it is part of the Municipality of Piraeus.

History

In 480 BC, before the naval battle of Salamis, the Persians installed a guard of soldiers and noblemen. After the Greek victory, the Persian fleet retreated towards Phaliron and the guard was abandoned. Aristides, the Athenian strategos, landed on the island and executed all Persians. During that time, the island was called Lypsokoutála (Λυψοκουτάλα - lit. "half-spoon"), due to the fact that it resembled a half-spoon when seen from the Aegaleo mountain. In modern history, the island was briefly transformed into a naval prison, in accordance with the French model of the time.

ewage treatment plant

Since the 1990s, the Saronic Gulf was starting to become polluted by industrial and residential sewage from Athens and Piraeus. In order to protect the ecosystem and due to considerations for negative implications on tourism, a sewage treatment plant was installed on the island which started operation on November 1994.el icon [http://www.eydap.gr/index.asp?a_id=205 EYDAP AE] , "Psyttaleia Sewage Plant", Retrieved on 2007-06-08] This included the primary treatment, which prevents the waste from entering the sea, but did not provide a permanent solution for the resulting sludge. Temporary solutions of exporting the sludge and of neutralizing it through oxidization proved insufficient over the years.

On June 1, 2007, the sludge treatment plant was put into operation, with two production lines of a total waste drying capacity of 500 tons per day, which matches today's daily sewage influx. Another two production lines started operation a month later, raising the total capacity to more than 750 tons per day. It is estimated that the remaining sludge of 150 to 160,000 tons, that was accumulated on the island over the years when only the primary treatment was active, will be converted to biofuel in the first six months of operation. The resulting biofuel will be used mostly in industry, especially in cement production companies and electricity power plants.el icon [http://www.ethnos.gr/article.asp?catid=5348&subid=2&pubid=113506 Ethnos] , "Psyttaleia "breathes", Retrieved on 2007-06-08] On October 5, 2007, environment vice-minister Themistoklis Xanthopoulos announced that there won't be one kilo of sludge left in the following 5 months, that full operation has been completed, and that stern auditors such as the European Court of Auditors have exclaimed the quality of the plant. [el icon [http://www.skai.gr/master_story.php?id=61779 Skai News] , "Ούτε 1 κιλό λυματολάσπης στην Ψυττάλεια" ("Not a kilo of sludge in Psyttaleia"), Retrieved on 2007-10-05.]

Other structures and services

In the northeastern part of the island, which is not occupied by the sewage treatment plant, there is a lighthouse and a station of the Hellenic Coast Guard Vessel Traffic Service system. coord|37|56.620|N|23|35.664|E

References

External links

* [http://www.pireasnet.gr/ Official website of Municipality of Piraeus] en el icon
* [http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=res&cd=36&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fsid.cvut.cz%2Fcz%2Fu218%2Fpeoples%2Fhoffman%2FPREDMETY%2FCOVP%2FCOV%255CWWT-Semestral%2520projects%255C2005-6%255CWWTP%2520of%2520Psyttalia-a.doc&ei=NXppRp-sNpeUnQPV7b3fAQ&usg=AFQjCNGeTagA54jaI0D2Ad0MTaHdHTkcoA&sig2=7jmDvd3_IMIOmJ7JvZ0z2g Wastewater Treatment Plant in Psyttalia by Evangelia Orfanoudaki]