Stadtentwässerung Dresden

Stadtentwässerung Dresden GmbH (SEDD) is the municipal wastewater company serving the Saxon state capital of Dresden, Germany. It is a joint venture owned 51 percent by the City of Dresden and 49 percent by Gelsenwasser AG, and it is responsible for wastewater disposal across the city. Its core duties include collecting and conveying sewage from households, commerce and industry through the sewer network to the treatment plant, collecting and treating rainwater, emptying non-sewered pits, purifying wastewater at the treatment plant, returning treated water to watercourses, and disposing of or recycling residues such as screenings, grit and sewage sludge. The company also builds, maintains and rehabilitates the sewer network and treatment plants, maintains second-order watercourses, and monitors treatment plants and industrial/commercial dischargers. The company operates one of the largest infrastructure systems in eastern Germany. Its sewer network is described on its own website as 1,850 kilometres long, while the German Wikipedia article cites a total of 1,700 kilometres; about two thirds of the drained urban area uses a combined system and one third, mainly on the city outskirts, uses a separate system. The central treatment plant is located in Dresden-Kaditz and is designed for 740,000 population equivalents, making it the largest wastewater treatment plant in eastern Germany outside Berlin. The company employs roughly 400 people, including about 40 apprentices, with about two thirds of the workforce in technical operations and one third in commercial or management roles. SEDD presents itself as a modern, quality- and environment-conscious utility. It states that protecting water bodies is in its DNA and that it continuously reviews its processes for efficiency and ecological performance. It holds certifications in quality management, environmental management, occupational health and safety, and information security, including DIN EN ISO 9001:2015, the Technical Safety Management Wastewater certificate, and EMAS environmental management. It also runs public-facing activities such as guided tours, a school laboratory, and a wild bird rescue station, and it supports urban tree watering through the "Gießkannenheld:innen Dresden" initiative. In June 2025 the Dresden city council adopted a new wastewater fee statute, and from 1 January 2026 Dresden residents pay a higher fee for the first time after five years of stability. The company is also expanding its Kaditz facilities substantially and has largely completed a ten-kilometre pipe to the treatment plant, the Industriesammler Nord, built quickly so that microchip factories in northern Dresden can discharge their wastewater directly to Kaditz.

Stadtentwässerung Dresden GmbH (SEDD) is the wastewater utility for the Saxon state capital of Dresden, Germany. It operates as a joint venture in which the City of Dresden holds 51 percent and Gelsenwasser AG holds 49 percent. The company is responsible for wastewater disposal in Dresden, a task that encompasses the collection and conveyance of sewage from households, commerce and industry through the sewer network to the treatment plant; the collection and treatment of rainwater; the disposal of fecal matter from non-sewered pits; the purification of wastewater at the treatment plant; the return of treated water to watercourses; and the disposal and/or recycling of residues from wastewater treatment such as screenings, grit and sewage sludge. It also builds, maintains and rehabilitates the sewer network and treatment plants, maintains second-order watercourses, and monitors treatment plants and industrial and commercial dischargers. The company's infrastructure is among the largest in eastern Germany. Its sewer network is described on its own website as 1,850 kilometres long, while the German Wikipedia article cites a total of 1,700 kilometres. About two thirds of the drained urban area is served by a combined system, in which a single sewer under the street collects both sewage and rainwater and conveys it to the treatment plant; one third, mainly on the city outskirts, uses a separate system in which rainwater is collected in a separate sewer and returned to local watercourses. Numerous overflows to rivers and streams protect the network from collapse during heavy rain. In recent years significant extensions and rehabilitation of the sewer network have been carried out. Together with stormwater overflow basins in Johannstadt and Kaditz, parts of the Dresden sewer network are used as storage volume; these underground stores reduce the discharge of untreated mixed water into watercourses, and the retained water is treated at the Dresden-Kaditz treatment plant after the rain ends. The central treatment plant is located in Dresden-Kaditz and is designed for 740,000 population equivalents, making it the largest wastewater treatment plant in eastern Germany outside Berlin. The company operates a number of treatment plants of different sizes and catchment areas, including some operated on behalf of other municipalities. The company employs roughly 400 people, including about 40 apprentices; about two thirds of the workforce work in the technical area and one third in commercial or management roles. SEDD emphasizes quality, environmental and safety standards. It states that clear structures, transparent processes and a continuously developed management system form the basis of its operations, and that compliance is regularly checked through internal and external audits and independent certification. It is certified under various national and international standards, including quality management, environmental management, occupational health and safety, and information security. Its certificates include DIN EN ISO 9001:2015, the Technical Safety Management Wastewater certificate, and EMAS environmental management, along with an environmental statement. The company also engages the public through guided tours, a school laboratory, a wild bird rescue station, renewable electricity generation, and the "Gießkannenheld:innen Dresden" initiative, which seeks locations and watering groups for free 1,000-litre water tanks to help save trees in the city. In June 2025 the Dresden city council adopted a new wastewater fee statute with a large majority. From 1 January 2026 Dresden residents pay a higher fee for the first time after five years of stability. The company is also expanding its Kaditz facilities on a large scale and has largely completed a ten-kilometre pipe to the treatment plant, the Industriesammler Nord, built very quickly so that microchip factories in northern Dresden can discharge their wastewater directly to Kaditz. The chair of the supervisory board became Eva Jähnigen, the city's environment mayor (Umweltbeigeordnete), after Hartmut Vorjohann moved to the Saxon state government.

• Dresden city council adopts a new wastewater fee statute with a large majority.

• Dresden residents pay a higher wastewater fee for the first time after five years of stability.

• The ten-kilometre Industriesammler Nord to the treatment plant is largely completed, enabling microchip factories in northern Dresden to discharge wastewater directly to Kaditz.

• Eva Jähnigen becomes chairwoman of the supervisory board after Hartmut Vorjohann moves to the Saxon state government.

Municipal wastewater utility focused on reliable, environmentally sound and certified wastewater disposal for Dresden.

• Wastewater collection and conveyance

  Collection and conveyance of sewage from households, commerce and industry through the sewer network to the treatment plant.

• Wastewater treatment

  Purification of wastewater at the central Dresden-Kaditz treatment plant and other plants.

• Rainwater collection and treatment

  Collection and treatment of rainwater, including separate systems on the city outskirts.

• Sewage sludge disposal and recycling

  Disposal and/or recycling of residues from wastewater treatment such as screenings, grit and sewage sludge.

• Sewer network construction, maintenance and rehabilitation

  Construction, maintenance and rehabilitation of the sewer network and treatment plants.

• Maintenance of second-order watercourses

  Maintenance of second-order watercourses.

• Monitoring of industrial and commercial dischargers

  Monitoring of treatment plants and industrial and commercial wastewater dischargers.

• Fecal disposal from non-sewered pits

  Disposal of fecal matter from pits without drainage connections.

1. 1Stadtentwässerung Dresden – official websitestadtentwaesserung-dresden.de
2. 2Über uns – Stadtentwässerung Dresdenstadtentwaesserung-dresden.de
3. 3Zertifikate – Stadtentwässerung Dresdenstadtentwaesserung-dresden.de
4. 4Unsere Anlagen – Stadtentwässerung Dresdenstadtentwaesserung-dresden.de
5. 5Stadtentwässerung Dresden – Wikidatawikidata.org
6. 6Stadtentwässerung Dresden – Wikipedia (German)de.wikipedia.org