The European waterways are facing significant environmental challenges, particularly from the discharge of untreated wastewater coming from recreational boating. At the forefront of addressing this issue is our newest portfolio company, Fluss. Fluss has developed the FlussGuard, a compact and affordable wastewater purification system designed especially for recreational boats.  

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The problem Fluss is trying to solve was initially experienced by Gert himself, now one of the co-founders. Gert, who lives on a boat, found it curious that there wasn’t a viable solution for washing away wastewater in an environmentally friendly way. He raised this problem with TU Delft, with the aim that a solution would be developed. And indeed, Lucas, one of the co-founders of Fluss, developed the technology of the now-named FlussGuard for his graduation project at TU Delft.  

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Untreated wastewater from boats significantly contributes to poor water quality, leading to the closure of swimming locations, posing health risks to the public, but also damaging and killing water life. Research shows that untreated toilet water significantly degrades water quality. Currently only 17% of Dutch inland waters meet the European quality standards, which needs to be changed.  

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Fluss’s solution, the FlussGuard, utilizes a method that ‘disinfects’ the toilet water making it safe to discharge the wastewater overboard, without any harmful chemical byproducts. The system is energy-efficient, fully automatic, and requires no manual intervention from boat owners. By providing a fully automated and certified purification method, Fluss ensures compliance with the new regulations.

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With over 160,000 boats (with a toilet) in the Netherlands alone, the market potential for Fluss is substantial. The FlussGuard will not only help boat owners comply with the EU Framework, but also significantly reduce the environmental impact of boating.  

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The founding team of Fluss includes Ignis Trollmann, Lucas Veel and Gert Nutzel. Their combined backgrounds in environmental engineering, business development and scientific research equips them with the necessary skills needed to bring this solution to the market.  

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If you would like to learn more about Fluss, check out their website here!

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