New water treatments leading to more ecological swimming pools
Ozone, ultraviolet radiation, active oxygen... These new pool water treatments make ecological swimming pools more affordable.
What can make pools more environmentally-friendly? New pool water treatments and filtration systems! These new pool innovations make ecological swimming pools more affordable.
Ecological pools are already here! (And have been for a long time)
Over the last 25 years, the water consumption of a swimming pool has been divided by 2 (1) and the energy consumption of filtration systems has been divided by 4 (2). The FPP (the French Pool and Spa Professional Association) estimates that a swimming pool accounts for only 1.2% of annual CO₂ emission by a French household (3). Contrary to popular belief, pools are far from being environmentally-harmful!
The FPP defines swimming pools as “watertight artificial basins used for water sports, the water of which is filtered, disinfected and disinfecting, renewed and recycled, as is all the equipment needed for their operation.” This means that pools can never be 100% ecologically-friendly as their maintenance requires the use of chemicals and energy-consuming filtration equipment.
But their use can be minimized since many pool innovations concern water treatment.
Sustainable development trends in the swimming pool sector
Less harmful water treatment products
It is impossible to do without pool treatment products that stop it “turning”. Letting bacteria, viruses, fungi and human organic wastes proliferate can be fatal. According to the WHO, dirty water and insufficient cleaning and hygiene cause 2 million deaths a year (4).
However, the use of chlorine, largely widespread, can cause respiratory distress and irritations, splashes around the pool can affect the environment, and bromine is corrosive. This is why new alternatives reducing the use of these products have appeared. See a selection below.
Ozone
Sterilization with ozone, already used to treat drinking water, destroys harmful micro-organisms immediately. This process has virtually no impact on the environment and, unlike chlorine and its chloramines, does not create any by-products.
Salt electrolysis
This process, which automatically creates a chemical water treatment product, consumes little energy. There is no need to store toxic products and there are no by-products to destroy. We had already devoted a full article to this topic.
Ultraviolet radiation
UV-C radiation acts directly on the DNA of micro-organisms to block their development. This solution reduces the consumption of more traditional chemical products by 80 to 90%. No special handling precautions are required.
Active oxygen
This treatment does not attack the skin and mucous membranes. It uses an entirely natural molecule which dissolves in water releasing oxygen. This process has an immediate effect but is not long-lasting and must be used in conjunction with another water treatment product.
Higher performance filtration management
The reduction in pool water treatment products and energy consumption requires higher performance equipment. There are more and more possibilities in this field, boosted by home automation applications in the swimming pool sector. Automation, adaptation of the products used as well as the filtration system (discussed in this article) make it possible to choose a more ecologically-friendly approach, with the big advantage that a major part of pool maintenance is executed by the system.
Ensuring the correct balance of a pool by regular testing and the logical use of water treatment products makes it possible to reduce consumption by 30%! An irrefutable argument synonymous with growth in the ecological swimming pool market.
(1) FPP: Piscine basse consommation : économies d'eau
(2) FPP: Piscine basse consommation : économies d'énergie
(3) FPP: Livre blanc de la filière piscine et spa
(4) OMS: Faits et chiffres sur la qualité de l’eau et la santé
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