EPM Models Aburra Valley Sewerage System To Increase Flood Resilience And Mitigate Climate Change

Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM), Colombia’s multi-utility public services provider, delivers electricity, drinking water, and sanitation services to over four million residents in the Aburrá Valley. As rapid urbanization increased municipal runoff into the Medellín River, the need to modernize the sewerage system became urgent. To protect vital water sources and improve wastewater management, EPM launched a phased project to evaluate and upgrade its infrastructure—spanning 56 basins and more than 5,000 kilometers of networks across 422 square kilometers.

Using advanced hydraulic modeling, EPM is analyzing how water flows through the sewerage system to inform decisions about operations, maintenance, network expansion, and environmental impact mitigation. According to Jackeline Correa, business operations professional at EPM, the project is key to understanding wastewater collection and transport processes. Now in its second phase, EPM is calibrating and modeling 2,900 kilometers of network—roughly 60% of the system—to identify vulnerable areas, anticipate challenges during extreme rainfall, and implement effective, data-driven maintenance strategies.