– The arrow is pointing up for the purification results of the water from our facility, says Rune Berntsen, the operations manager at Salten Smolt. Salten Smolt is part of the Salten Aqua Group and is responsible for the salmon from roe to smolt.

 The smolt facility in Vik has two purification solutions from Mivanor, MivaMag, and MivaBio. Rune can confirm that they have excellent results from these purification solutions, ensuring that their purification results are well within the requirements set by authorities for discharge permits, something he is very satisfied with.

 SEEKING TO MINIMIZE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
– Salten Smolt works to minimize the environmental impact of production and strives for sustainable operations that are in harmony with the environment. A crucial part of our monitoring is documentation, water sampling, and experiments, which in turn help us have good control over our discharges and ensure that we meet the established requirements, says Rune.

 – Water samples taken from January until we concluded this season's production in September show that the purification solutions work, and the water quality in our discharges is getting better and better, he adds.

 MEETING SPECIFIC CHALLENGES
Mivanor has delivered a combination of two purification solutions: biological purification through MivaBio and chemical/mechanical purification through MivaMag.

 With these purification solutions, Salten Smolt avoids the release of pollutants such as suspended matter, nitrogen, phosphorus, and BOD into the environment and the river. The solution also significantly reduces water turbidity.

– Mivanor was one of the few operators that could assist us with a highly relevant issue, namely the removal of phosphorus and nitrogen from our discharge. In addition to being a local company, our existing collaboration with Mivanor was positive, says Managing Director Børge Andreassen, who was involved in the procurement process for the purification solution.

 ELIMINATING PREVIOUS RISKS
Producing smolt requires a considerable amount of water. The water used in production becomes contaminated with feed residues, feces, and other particles. Before Salten Smolt invested in the purification system from Mivanor, they used a drum filter for water purification.

 – The previous solution we had was associated with the same operational challenges, says Berntsen. – There could be issues like holes in the filter. Now, with MivaMag and MivaBio purifying the water in two processes, we have eliminated the risk of that type of problem, and we are very satisfied with that.

 A NUTRIENT-RICH RIVER
– We have engaged NINA, the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, to conduct research on benthic organisms in freshwater. They take samples and check how benthic organisms thrive in the river next to us. The feedback we have received is that there is a lot of life in the river, in addition to an increasing population of brown trout. This must mean that it is a nutrient-rich river with favorable conditions, says Berntsen.

 When asked what Berntsen believes is the most important action they take to be environmentally responsible:

– We will continue the good water purification, focus on purifying the water used in production, and avoid using too many chemicals in cleaning. Water containing chemicals is collected in tanks and sent to Iris for proper treatment. Today, we use almost only hot water for cleaning.

 GOOD COLLABORATION
MivaMag and MivaBio are set up in a combination consisting of a long container and two module buildings located close to the factory.

 Berntsen finds the collaboration with Mivanor to be excellent, and he particularly highlights the dialogue Salten Smolt has with process engineer Espen Hansen at Mivanor. His task is to visit and inspect the plants as needed.

– Espen ensures that the plants operate as they should and that the machines are set up correctly. It's an extra layer of security for us and our operations, says Berntsen.

 Rune is an active customer with a lot of insights and goals for his own operation, which is very healthy for the development of our products and adaptations we make at Salten Smolt.

 We are very pleased to have customers who are proactive and want to push us further by challenging the solutions and providing feedback if they see anything that can be improved," says Espen Hansen. He is a process engineer at Mivanor and is part of the team that continuously works with our customers on improvements to ensure they always have access to BAT, Best Available Technology, and to ensure that emissions are always well within the limits set by the County Governor of Nordland.