The Future of Water: A Collection of Essays on “Disruptive” Technologies that may Transform the Water Sector in the Next 10 Years

Abstract

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A Research Agenda for the Future of Urban Water Management: Exploring the Potential of Nongrid, Small-Grid, and Hybrid Solutions

“…2,46 In the 21st century, the focus on sustainability appears to be contributing to a shift towards incorporating urban water management into the evolving circular economy. [47][48][49][50] The circular economy involves resource recovery from wastewater, primarily water, energy, and nutrients, as an additional service while balancing service goals and overall resource efficiency, such as energy demand for alternative technologies. 2 Water reuse opportunities are usually found at household and industry level as substitution of other water sources, 51 at city level for recreational and ecological purposes and cooling, 52 and at landscape level for streamflow augmentation 53 and agricultural irrigation.…”

“…5 However, incremental changes are not sufficient to meet such current and future challenges in the urban water sector as rapid urbanization, urban sprawl, eutrophication, climate change, resource scarcity, and aging infrastructure. 6 Alternative urban water systems have been studied in research, [7][8][9] discussed in policy, [10][11][12] and implemented in practice. [13][14][15] Alternative solutions include potable and non-potable water reuse, 16 source separation, decentralization, 17 and the modularization of treatment systems comprising small-scale, mass-produced, standardized, and automated technology components.…”

“…Alternative urban water systems have been studied in research, − discussed in policy, − and implemented in practice. − Alternative solutions include potable and nonpotable water reuse, source separation, decentralization, and the modularization of treatment systems comprising small-scale, mass-produced, standardized, and automated technology components. , These alternative solutions address pressing urban water challenges by closing loops, recovering valuable resources, and involving infrastructures that can easily adapt to changes in boundary conditions such as population size.…”

Potential Transformative Changes in Water Provision Systems: Impact of Decentralised Water Systems on Centralised Water Supply Regime

“…Some interviews were conducted with Belgian stakeholders due to the geographic position of this case study area (Figure 1), the similarities (e.g., large share of rural settlements and geographic parables), and a recent transformative process with regard to the large-scale introduction of rainwater systems. The interviewed stakeholders include market and technology developers (10), water utility employees (9), regional water authority employees (3), policymakers and lobbyists (3), residents that use decentralised water services (5), housing corporation developers (4), researchers (5) and project managers of decentralised projects (4). Finally, the scope of action of most interviewees were that of national (16) and provincial (14) level.…”

[The renewability of the groundwater resource in clean-up interventions: legal assumptions and technical implications of environmental sustainability]

“…Attualmente, circa 4 miliardi di persone vivono in condizioni di scarsità d'acqua ed in contesti territoriali di carenza idrica: quasi 1 miliardo di persone non ha accesso ad acqua potabile sicura e 1 milione di morti all'anno è da ricondurre a malattie trasmesse dall'acqua (Daigger et al 2019). L'Unione internazionale per la conservazione della natura 30 stima che entro il 2050 la domanda di acqua possa inoltre aumentare del 55 %.…”