Abstract
Water is fundamental to our existence and has increasingly been put under pressure by soaring population growth, urbanization, agricultural farming and climate change; all, of which impact the quantity and quality of our water resources. Water utilities (WUs) are challenged to provide clean, safe drinking water when faced with aging, costly infrastructure, a price of water that is not reflective of its true value and the need for infrastructure to remain resilient in a time when threats of floods and droughts are pervasive. In the linear take-use-discharge approach, wastewater is treated only to be returned to waterways and extracted again for treatment before drinking. This can no longer sustain our water resources as it is costly, energy-intensive and environmentally unsound. Circular economy (CE) has been gaining attention in the water industry to tackle this. It follows the 6Rs strategy of reduce, reuse, recycle, reclaim, recover and restore to keep water in circulation for longer and reduce the burden on natural systems. The aim of this study is to determine what the economic and operational system effects of CE are on WUs, informing them of CE’s potential to change their business operations and business model while highlighting its associated challenges. Based on a review of literature, input from expert interviews (Q4 2019) and case studies, an economic view of the urban water system is qualitatively modeled, on top, of which a circular water economy system is designed using a causal loop-diagramming system mapping tool. Digitalization, water reuse and resource recovery were determined to underpin circularity in water, providing operational benefits through efficiencies and diversification of revenue streams. However, issues of investment and a missing enabling legal framework are slowing the rate of uptake. On this basis, CE represents both a challenge and an opportunity for the water industry.
Highlights
As a basic human right and public good fundamental to life, the importance of water cannot be overstated
The global thirst for water has been exacerbated by the compounding effects of population growth; increased agricultural activity; urbanization, which has seen 75% of Europe’s population living in cities and urban areas; and erratic weather caused by climate change
This study explored the economic and operational system effects of a Circular economy (CE) on Water utilities (WUs)
Summary
As a basic human right and public good fundamental to life, the importance of water cannot be overstated. When not well managed, competing interests for water has the potential to cause wars and leave sectors economically vulnerable, especially those that provide basic services. The global thirst for water has been exacerbated by the compounding effects of population growth; increased agricultural activity; urbanization, which has seen 75% of Europe’s population living in cities and urban areas; and erratic weather caused by climate change. Additional pressure on our renewable freshwater resources (groundwater, rivers, lakes and reservoirs.) stem from energy production and mass tourism, which consume 15% and 9% of resources, respectively, while water leakages can contribute up to 60% of distributed water loss [5]; representing gross operational inefficiencies and potential for savings. The decreasing trends in water abstraction observable in Western and Northern Europe can be attributed to improvements in water efficiency and management of water supplies yielding a 19% decrease between 1990 and 2017 [6]
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