Urban Wastewater Management Research Articles

Microalgal competence in urban wastewater management: phycoremediation and lipid production

The present study was conducted to assess the strain aptness, phycoremediation potential and lipid yield in microalgae Chloroccocum humicola and Oscillatoria sp. Results revealed that microalgae treated with different concentration of wastewater (25%, 50%, 75% and 100%) recovered nutrients (Nitrogen: 50.55–85.90%, Phosphorus: 69.98–93.72%) and removed heavy metals (24.17–88.10%) from wastewater. Microalgae C. humicola showed significant reduction in physico-chemical parameters of wastewater at 25% and 50% respectively with considerable increase in lipid production (1.61 folds) at 50% wastewater concentration. In order to counterbalance the wastewater induced toxicity, both microalgae exhibited stimulated antioxidants viz., proline (1.26–4.04 folds), ascorbic acid (1.01–9.21 folds), cysteine (1.44–4.92 folds), catalase (0.99–3.63 folds), superoxide dismutase (1.15–1.43 folds) and glutathione reductase (1.43–6.67 folds) at different wastewater concentrations. Further, Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy spectral elucidation of Chloroccocum humicola at 50% reflected high lipid peak in the regions 3000–2800 cm−1 as compared to Oscillatoria sp. Thus, growth characteristics, biochemical responses and lipid yield presented the suitability of the Chloroccocum humicola to be used in phycoremedation, resource recovery as well as lipid production, which may be further utilized as potent feedstock for third generation energy demand.

Closing Water and Nutrient Cycles in Urban Wastewater Management: How to Make an Academic Software Available to General Practice

Appropriate sanitation is crucial to alleviate pressures on environmental and human health hazards. Conventional (sewered) sanitation systems are often not viable in rapidly developing urban areas, where over 70% of the world population is expected to live in 2050. Freshwater is polluted and valuable resources such as nutrients and organics are lost. At present, many alternative sanitation technologies and systems are being developed with the aim to alleviate these pressures through (1) independency from sewers, water, and energy, therefore better adapted to the needs of fast and uncontrolled developing urban areas; and (2) contribute to a circular economy through the recovery of nutrients, energy, and water for reuse. Unfortunately, these innovations hardly find their way into practice because there exists a lack of data and knowledge to systematically consider them in strategic planning processes. To this end, we have developed SANitaTIon system Alternative GeneratOr (SANTIAGO)—a software that provides a comprehensive list of potential technologies and system configurations and quantifies their local appropriateness as well as their resource recovery and loss potentials. The aim is to provide a manageable but diverse set of decision options together with information needed to rank the alternatives and to select the preferred one in a structured decision making process. To make this software useful for practice, an easily accessible interactive user interface is required that (1) facilitates data collection and input; and (2) the exploration and presentation of results. As a first step in creating this user interface, we develop a framework that summarizes (1) the requirements that arise from practical applications of SANTIAGO, and (2) a comprehensive user understanding on the basis of 21 interviews with international practitioners caught in five personas: capacity developers, engineering experts, planners, researchers, teachers and trainers. This framework aids the development of any academic software into a tool useful for practice and policy makers. Here specifically, it enables contribution to sustainable development goals 6 (clean water and sanitation), and 11 (sustainable cities and communities).

Acute riverine microplastic contamination due to avoidable releases of untreated wastewater

Wastewater discharge to rivers is a controversial practice that compromises water quality, aquatic habitats and human health worldwide. Here we show how untreated wastewater laced with microplastics and raw sewage is routinely discharged into UK river flows that are too low to disperse the microplastics downstream. These ‘dry weather’ spills lead to acute microplastic contamination of river bed habitats. Many aquatic fauna feed in the benthic zone, the quality of which affects the entire riverine ecosystem. All microplastic types accumulate to high concentrations on the channel bed until flushed downstream by floods. These findings pose fundamental questions about the sustainable management of urban wastewater. Treating the wastewater would shut down the major source of microplastic fragments and microbeads in such rivers and prevent their transport to the ocean. Riverine microplastic transport is primarily partitioned between: (1) continuous transport at low concentrations of synthetic fibres from treated wastewater effluent; and (2) episodic flood-driven transport of the full microplastic assemblage entrained from contaminated channel beds. Focusing only on the buoyant non-flood microplastic load can produce highly unrepresentative assessments of riverine microplastic contamination. Climate warming and urban population growth will intensify the microplastic burden on many river ecosystems as summer baseflows decline and wastewater fluxes increase.

Urban water resource management: experience from the revival of Rajokri lake in Delhi

<abstract> <p>Water bodies are critical in maintaining and sustaining ecosystems. However, urban water bodies are often ignored during development projects, and comprehensive plans for their revival and rejuvenation are not seen as priorities. This paper describes the rejuvenation project for a dry water body at Rajokri, Delhi, India. A "scientific wetland with active biodigester" (SWAB) system was developed to treat domestic wastewater, which was then used to fill the lake. The SWAB effectively removed about 89% removal of oil and grease, 86% biological oxygen demand (BOD), 85% chemical oxygen demand (COD) and 86% of total suspended solids (TSS) when the respective inlet concentrations were 18 ± 1.14 mg/L, 124 ± 2.9 mg/L, 480 ± 11.9 mg/L and 116 ± 1.82 from the raw wastewater. The SWAB system provides completely natural treatment with zero electrical consumption. The revival of the water body using a decentralized wastewater treatment system has immensely helped in management of urban wastewater, ground water recharge and enhanced ecosystem and biodiversity values. The project demonstrates the integration of socio-cultural, societal, ecological, ecosystem and technological aspects for the revival of the lake.</p> </abstract>

ВЛИЯНИЕ ДОЖДЕВЫХ САДОВ НА КАЧЕСТВО ГОРОДСКОЙ СРЕДЫ (НА ПРИМЕРЕ Г. ОДЕССА)

The article deals with the problems of sustainable development of the urban environment, which in addition to urban and architectural aspects include the problems of urban ecology. One of the important issues that needs to be addressed is the management of urban wastewater. In the long run, it is necessary to invest in sustainable infrastructure, upgrade urban systems and plant green spaces. Stormwater management allows you to apply a comprehensive approach to solving this problem, and to increase economic efficiency city. However, investments in this problem are of a long-term nature, and alternative solution of the problem could be the arrangement of rain gardens in urban space. The main purpose of this study is to comprehensively analyze rain gardens as part of a sustainable urban development strategy. The methodological basis of the study was a number of scientific works related to the study of issues related to the improvement of urban planning, ecology of urban areas, as well as the study of the theory of cultural landscape and the theory of the ecological frame of the city. The article deals with the world examples of gardens, the main task of which is rainwater harvesting. Based on the analysis of world experience, we can conclude that rain gardens can be designed as a separate object of landscape architecture or as an element of urban space. Modern research has shown that bio-drainage structures (consisting of large gardens and parks) can be effective for improving water quality and maintaining hydrological function, even when the air temperature drops below zero. Studies show that, with proper site analysis, careful design and responsible plant selection, bio-drainage systems can work well even in regions with cold climates. In addition to performing their basic functions, rain gardens have an aesthetic component - they are beautiful elements of decoration, walkings paths in the park, city streets, roads and public buildings.

Microalgae bioremediation: A perspective towards wastewater treatment along with industrial carotenoids production

Carotenoids are natural pigments known for their various health benefits for humans together with various other applications in diverse industries. Considering the high market value of carotenoids in the food and health sector, sustainable production of these metabolites for commercial applications is the need of time. Among various microbial alternatives, microalgae are considered as a rich source of carotenoids along with other metabolites and received special attention. However, commercial microalgae production is not fully developed and diversity of data is available regarding the cost-effectiveness of algal biomass production. Recent studies employing novel technologies and methods, coupled with the utilization of wastewater for algal cultivation are providing an innovative way forward. Implementation of wastewater for the cultivation of microalgae offers an economical, sustainable, and environmentally friendly method of resource utilization and urban wastewater management. This review intends to highlight the potential of microalgae species using wastewater for the production of different categories of carotenoids. The review will discuss the integrated approach that can be implemented for the biosynthesis of these value-added products along with wastewater treatment. Different techniques and factors which can be utilized for the upstreaming and downstreaming of the algal carotenoids will also be addressed in detail along with their challenges. Possible recommendations for the coupling of microalgae with wastewater as an effective method of waste remediation and as a source of potential products are also proposed.

East Calcutta Wetlands, India: integrating sanitation, engineering and ecology

The East Calcutta Wetlands are an indispensable heritage of the city of Calcutta, India, and globally recognised as a partly natural, partly man-made ecosystem that sets an example in sustainable wastewater reuse. The 2017 UN World Water Development Report emphasised the vital role of the East Calcutta Wetlands in treating the city’s municipal sewage through biological methods, without the aid of a mechanical sewage treatment plant but with the help of the community, whose livelihood is connected to this work. Considering that, globally, only 20% of wastewater is treated, the looming water crisis raging through many Indian cities, increasing calls for conservation and proper utilisation of water sources such as rivers and wise use of water/wastewater, it is relevant to examine the dynamics of these wetlands. They afford timely lessons for urban wastewater management and sustainability of a tropical city with ample sunshine. The wetlands are an outcome of engineering innovation connected to a drainage outfall system. This paper examines the context of that innovation and the lessons they hold out for the urban future.

Sustainability Study of In-situ Hydroponic Vetiver System for Urban Wastewater Management in Developing Countries: A Theoretical Review

Urban wastewater management is a crucial challenge in the small and medium towns situated in the developing countries worldwide. These towns are also facing an increasing gap between infrastructure and population growth. A conventional approach to curb these problems is the application of cost-intensive electro-mechanical sewerage technologies, as adopted in developed countries. The first part of this paper derives a set of indicators to framework a sustainable urban wastewater treatment system by reviewing the current state of wastewater management in developing countries, for example, the sample case study being India. The second part evaluates the potential performance of the proposed alternative in-situ hydroponic vetiver system (HVS) against those set of sustainability indicators by reviewing the worldwide performance of the HVS. The objective of this paper is to assess the potential viability of the HVS as a sustainable and cost-effective alternative for developing countries. The current analysis can aid in mainstreaming the use of HVS in policy making and urban planning.

Effects of nitrogen recycling by human urine fertilization on butterfly pea (Clitoria ternatea) plant in green wall system on AIT campus

The use of wastewater (urine) as a fertilizer was shown to potentially reduce the campus wastewater load and contribute to saving in expensive wastewater treatment, while dealing with it as valuable resource. If one assumed that this wastewater fertilizer (arguably, one of the best agriculturally acknowledged fertilizers), was applied at odor appropriate and physiologically sustainable rates (Nitrogen Loading Rate (NLR) of up to 0.73 g N m-2 week-1 equivalent to 104.28 mL urine m-2 week-1 applied for 16 weeks) and considered total available area for potential green walls, it could be stated that the entire urine stream generated daily on campus (varying from 2.2 to 4.5 m3) could be accommodated on campus green walls as a valuable resource with significant benefits. In the studies on monitored plant physiological parameters under various conditions, it was observed that urine fertilizer positively affected to the food production, inflorescences and health of butterfly pea (Clitoria ternatea) plant as well as could say that it was the most suitable plant for green wall. Further integration of urban wastewater management and agriculture (urban food production) into this scenario can make it even more attractive and economically sustainable.

Strategic planning of the integrated urban wastewater system using adaptation pathways

Emerging threats such as climate change and urbanisation pose an unprecedented challenge to the integrated management of urban wastewater systems, which are expected to function in a reliable, resilient and sustainable manner regardless of future conditions. Traditional long term planning is rather limited in developing no-regret strategies that avoid maladaptive lock-ins in the near term and allow for flexibility in the long term. In this study, a novel adaptation pathways approach for urban wastewater management is developed in order to explore the compliance and adaptability potential of intervention strategies in a long term operational period, accounting for different future scenarios and multiple performance objectives in terms of reliability, resilience and sustainability. This multi-criteria multi-scenario approach implements a regret-based method to assess the relative performance of two types of adaptation strategies: (I) standalone strategies (i.e. green or grey strategies only); and (II) hybrid strategies (i.e. combined green and grey strategies). A number of adaptation thresholds (i.e. the points at which the current strategy can no longer meet defined objectives) are defined to identify compliant domains (i.e. periods of time in a future scenario when the performance of a strategy can meet the targets). The results obtained from a case study illustrate the trade-off between adapting to short term pressures and addressing long term challenges. Green strategies show the highest performance in simultaneously meeting near and long term needs, while grey strategies are found less adaptable to changing circumstances. In contrast, hybrid strategies are effective in delivering both short term compliance and long term adaptability. It is also shown that the proposed adaption pathways method can contribute to the identification of adaptation strategies that are developed as future conditions unfold, allowing for more flexibility and avoiding long term commitment to strategies that may cause maladaptation. This provides insights into the near term and long term planning of ensuring the reliability, resilience and sustainability of integrated urban drainage systems.

Ecotoxicity and antibiotic resistance of wastewater during transport in an urban sewage network.

Urban wastewater (UWW) management usually entails biological and physicochemical monitoring due to its potential impact on the quality of the receiving environment. A major component of a sewage system is the pipe network leading the water to the treatment plant. Up to now, few studies have been conducted on the diverse phenomena that may affect the characteristics of the water during its transportation. In this study, ecotoxicity and potential antibiotic resistance were used in a global method to assess the change of UWW quality in a sewage system and determine if sewer pipes can act as a bioreactor spread. Three bioassays were conducted to assess the ecotoxicity of the samples and the concentration and relative abundance of two classes of integrons (as a proxy for antibiotic resistance) were measured. The results of the bioassay battery do not show a pattern, despite the fact that differences were noticeable between upstream and downstream samples. Antibiotic resistance appeared to decrease during transport in the pipe as the concentration and relative abundance of integrons decreased during several campaigns. This result should be confirmed in other sewer networks but already provides useful information for the management of urban sewage system.

Sustainable solutions for urban wastewater management and remediation

Sustainable development with environmental protection is one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century. There is a growing consideration of the sustainable development and environmental management in new industrial cities. Investigational aspects were carried out in El Obour city as Egyptian new industrial city for estimating the current wastewater problems as well as applying mitigation actions. Industrial inventory was constructed for selected industrial sectors as food, chemical and textile sectors including water consumption, materials and energy resources. Wastewater samples from different factories and lifting stations were analyzed for estimating the industrial effluent loads. The obtained data revealed that food sector represents the highest load for BOD and TSS with values of 80 ton BOD/day and 2.33 ton SS/day. For selected industrial sectors, cost-effective technology is applied to reduce the loads on the centralized wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) as well as on the lifting stations. Inorganic polymeric ferric chloride (POFC) coagulant gives higher removal efficiency for TSS and COD without pH control. Moreover, the chemicals cost for treating wastewater is reduced by 40 % with using POFC instead of conventional coagulants.

The effect of household income on residential wastewater output: Evidence from urban China

Whether and how governmental pollution regulations change pollution production behaviors remain uncertain. Based on the STIRPAT model, this paper confirms that from 2005 to 2015, the Chinese government's wastewater treatment service strengthened the positive relationship between income and wastewater output, that is, more wastewater treatment service led to more wastewater output. Thus, the current system for wastewater treatment fees must be redesigned so that residents can compensate for the cost of wastewater service. Additionally, the installation of smart water meters and awareness campaigns regarding water-saving and recycling are also helpful for urban wastewater management.

Energy Issues in Sustainable Urban Wastewater Management: Use, Demand Reduction and Recovery in the Urban Water Cycle

Urban water systems and, in particular, wastewater treatment facilities are among the major energy consumers at municipal level worldwide. Estimates indicate that on average these facilities alone may require about 1% to 3% of the total electric energy output of a country, representing a significant fraction of municipal energy bills. Specific power consumption of state-of-the-art facilities should range between 20 and 45 kWh per population-equivalent served, per year, even though older plants may have even higher demands. This figure does not include wastewater conveyance (pumping) and residues post-processing. On the other hand, wastewater and its byproducts contain energy in different forms: chemical, thermal and potential. Until very recently, the only form of energy recovery from most facilities consisted of anaerobic post-digestion of process residuals (waste sludge), by which chemical energy methane is obtained as biogas, in amounts generally sufficient to cover about half of plant requirements. Implementation of new technologies may allow more efficient strategies of energy savings and recovery from sewage treatment. Besides wastewater valorization by exploitation of its chemical and thermal energy contents, closure of the wastewater cycle by recovery of the energy content of process residuals could allow significant additional energy recovery and increased greenhouse emissions abatement.

Effects of in-sewer dosing of iron-rich drinking water sludge on wastewater collection and treatment systems

The use of coagulants and flocculants in the water and wastewater industry is predicted to increase further in the coming years. Alum is the most widely used coagulant, however, the use of ferric chloride (FeCl3) is gaining popularity. Drinking water production that uses FeCl3 as coagulant produces waste sludge rich in iron. We hypothesised that the iron-rich drinking water sludge (DWS) can potentially be used in the urban wastewater system to reduce dissolved sulfide in sewer systems, aid phosphate removal in wastewater treatment and reduce hydrogen sulfide in the anaerobic digester biogas. This hypothesis was investigated using two laboratory-scale urban wastewater systems, one as an experimental system and the other as a control, each comprising sewer reactors, a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) for wastewater treatment, sludge thickeners and anaerobic digestion reactors. Both were fed with domestic wastewater. The experimental system received in-sewer DWS-dosing at 10 mgFe L−1 while the control had none. The sulfide concentration in the experimental sewer effluent decreased by 3.5 ± 0.2 mgS L−1 as compared with the control, while the phosphate concentration decreased by 3.6 ± 0.3 mgP L−1 after biological wastewater treatment in the experimental SBR. The dissolved sulfide concentration in the experimental anaerobic digester also decreased by 15.9 ± 0.9 mgS L−1 following the DWS-dosing to the sewer reactors. The DWS-doing also enhanced the settleability of the mixed liquor suspended sludge (MLSS) (SVI decreased from 193.2 ± 22.2 to 108.0 ± 7.7 ml g−1), and the dewaterability of the anaerobically digested sludge (the cake solids concentration increased from 15.7 ± 0.3% to 19.1 ± 1.8%). The introduction of DWS into the experimental system significantly increased the COD and TSS concentrations in the wastewater, and consequently the MLSS concentration in the SBR, however, this did not affect normal operation. The results demonstrated that iron-rich waste sludge from drinking water production can be used in the urban wastewater system achieving multiple benefits. Therefore, an integrated approach to urban water and wastewater management should be considered to maximise the benefits of iron use in the system.

Decentralized Management of Urban Wastewater for Rural Agricultural Utilization

In Bengaluru nearly 50% of the wastewater is treated. But the utilization of the treated water is not accounted efficiently, and the quality is being questioned. The treated water is not acceptable for irrigation due to presence of heavy metals and water parameters (such TDS and BOD) in unacceptable range. As tertiary treatment is expensive, experts suggest an alternative of employing constructed wetlands. In an intensely occupied city like Bengaluru a decentralized system is necessary. Hence the study focuses on finding optimal location for constructing wetlands, on wastelands surrounding Bengaluru urban. Weighted overlay analysis is performed to find the optimal location based on parameters such as slope, soil texture and land use. The results obtained are optimal locations to construct wetlands and approximated calculation of output capacity.

Mainstream Ammonium Recovery to Advance Sustainable Urban Wastewater Management.

Throughout the 20th century, the prevailing approach toward nitrogen management in municipal wastewater treatment was to remove ammonium by transforming it into dinitrogen (N2) using biological processes such as conventional activated sludge. While this has been a very successful strategy for safeguarding human health and protecting aquatic ecosystems, the conversion of ammonium into its elemental form is incompatible with the developing circular economy of the 21st century. Equally important, the activated sludge process and other emerging ammonium removal pathways have several environmental and technological limitations. Here, we assess that the theoretical energy embedded in ammonium in domestic wastewater represents roughly 38-48% of the embedded chemical energy available in the whole of the discharged bodily waste. The current routes for ammonium removal not only neglect the energy embedded in ammonium, but they can also produce N2O, a very strong greenhouse gas, with such emissions comprising the equivalent of 14-26% of the overall carbon footprint of wastewater treatment plants. N2O emissions often exceed the carbon emissions related to the electricity consumption for the process requirements of WWTPs. Considering these limitations, there is a need to develop alternative ammonium management approaches that center around recovery of ammonium from domestic wastewater rather than deal with its "destruction" into elemental dinitrogen. Current ammonium recovery techniques are applicable only at orders of magnitude above domestic wastewater strength, and so new techniques based on physicochemical adsorption are of particular interest. A new pathway is proposed that allows for mainstream ammonium recovery from wastewater based on physicochemical adsorption through development of polymer-based adsorbents. Provided adequate adsorbents corresponding to characteristics outlined in this paper are designed and brought to industrial production, this adsorption-based approach opens perspectives for mainstream continuous adsorption coupled with side-stream recovery of ammonium with minimal chemical requirements. This proposed pathway can bring forward an effective resource-oriented approach to upgrade the fate of ammonium in urban water management without generating hidden externalized environmental costs.

How Urban Storm- and Wastewater Management Prepares for Emerging Opportunities and Threats: Digital Transformation, Ubiquitous Sensing, New Data Sources, and Beyond - A Horizon Scan.

Ubiquitous sensing will create many opportunities and threats for urban water management, which are only poorly understood today. To identify the most relevant trends, we conducted a horizon scan regarding how ubiquitous sensing will shape the future of urban drainage and wastewater management. Our survey of the international urban water community received an active response from both the academics and the professionals from the water industry. The analysis of the responses demonstrates that emerging topics for urban water will often involve experts from different communities, including aquatic ecologists, urban water system engineers and managers, as well as information and communications technology professionals and computer scientists. Activities in topics that are identified as novel will either require (i) cross-disciplinary training, such as importing new developments from the IT sector, or (ii) research in new areas for urban water specialists, for example, to help solve open questions in aquatic ecology. These results are, therefore, a call for interdisciplinary research beyond our own discipline. They also demonstrate that the water management community is not yet prepared for the digital transformation, where we will experience a data demand, i.e. a "pull" of urban water data into external services. The results suggest that a lot remains to be done to harvest the upcoming opportunities. Horizon scanning should be repeated on a routine basis, under the umbrella of an experienced polling organization.

Performance Simulation and Assessment of an Appropriate Wastewater Treatment Technology in a Densely Populated Growing City in a Developing Country: A Case Study in Vientiane, Laos

The fast-growing population in Vientiane, the capital of Laos, has resulted in increasing domestic wastewater generation, which directly impacts the urban water environment due to the lack of a suitable wastewater treatment system. This study aims to assess six wastewater treatment alternatives based on two technologies—trickling filter and activated sludge—used for on-site, decentralized, and centralized wastewater treatment systems to support decision-making for selecting the most suitable and practical alternative for wastewater treatment in Vientiane. To determine the most appropriate treatment system, the wastewater treatment process simulation with BioWin and the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) method are applied to assess the removal efficiencies for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), and total suspended solids (TSS), as well as to rank the six wastewater treatment technologies based on the following four environmental criteria: (1) land requirement, (2) electricity use, (3) sludge production, and (4) CO2 emissions. The BioWin results illustrate that the capacity of each alternative is similar in terms of domestic wastewater treatment efficiency, while differing in terms of environmental impacts. In addition, the alternative ranking shows that a centralized wastewater treatment system with a trickling-filter process is more suitable than on-site and decentralized wastewater treatment systems based on their environmental impacts. This finding provides evidence for decision-makers to select a suitable alternative for wastewater treatment in order to promote access to safe sanitation and sustainable urban wastewater management in Vientiane, Laos.

From ‘government’ to ‘governance’: A quantitative transition analysis of urban wastewater management principles in Stellenbosch Municipality

Water demand continues to increase amid shrinking natural water sources in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. This holds true for Stellenbosch Municipality, which is situated in the Western Cape. The prevailing draught, coupled with rainfall projections predicting that the region will be in a high-risk draught category by 2040, prompted municipal authorities to devise alternative water sources, such as urban waste water recycling (UWWR), to augment its water supplies. This water management approach is a component of integrated urban water management (IUWM), which stems from the water ‘governance’ paradigm. Research on the transition process from a ‘government’ to a ‘governance’ UWWR paradigm is limited both in the global south and in South Africa. Hence, the main objective of this study was to investigate the action knowledge required for a sustainable transition from a ‘government’ to an IUWW ‘governance’ paradigm in the context of Stellenbosch town. The study adopted a transdisciplinary research methodology, while the transformative research paradigm guided the research. Quantitative data collection from a single case study, namely Stellenbosch town, was through the administration of a questionnaire distributed to purposefully sampled participants. ANOVA statistical tools analysed the data. The study ascertained that transitioning frameworks considered in this study could guide a transition process of migrating from conventional urban wastewater management government towards IUWM governance principles in Stellenbosch town and other global south locations.