Knowledge Agora



Similar Articles

Title Circular Economy in Wastewater Management-The Potential of Source-Separating Sanitation in Rural and Peri-Urban Areas of Northern Finland and Sweden
ID_Doc 16504
Authors Lehtoranta, S; Laukka, V; Vidal, B; Heiderscheidt, E; Postila, H; Nilivaara, R; Herrmann, I
Title Circular Economy in Wastewater Management-The Potential of Source-Separating Sanitation in Rural and Peri-Urban Areas of Northern Finland and Sweden
Year 2022
Published
Abstract Current practices in wastewater management lead to inefficient recovery and reuse of nutrients and can result in environmental problems. Source separation systems have been shown to be an efficient way of recovering nutrients and energy from wastewaters, both in rural and urban context. Studies on nutrient recovery potential and life cycle impacts of source separation systems are mainly limited to small systems (for example a few households) while the impacts of upscaling source separation to a regional level have hardly been studied, especially in sparsely populated areas where the cost of the connection to a main treatment plant is higher. This study examines the regional nutrient balance of two source separation scenarios-black water separation and urine diversion-and compares them to the existing conventional wastewater system. The analysis comprises three sparsely populated regions of northern Finland and Sweden, including rural, peri-urban and urban areas. In addition, climate impacts are assessed based on existing life cycle assessment (LCA) studies. According to the results, by source separation it is possible to achieve a significant increase in the recovery rate of phosphorus (41-81%) and nitrogen (689-864%) compared to the conventional system. Depending on the region up to 65% of the mineral phosphorus and 60% of mineral nitrogen fertilisers could be theoretically replaced. Furthermore, the climate and eutrophication impacts would decrease with the implementation of such systems, but an increase in acidification may occur. However, even if the benefits of source separation systems are undisputed in terms of nutrient recovery, the implementation of such systems would to a large extent require an entire system change of the wastewater treatment sector and a wide paradigm change towards a circular economy.
PDF

Similar Articles

ID Score Article
22787 Colella, M; Ripa, M; Cocozza, A; Panfilo, C; Ulgiati, S Challenges and opportunities for more efficient water use and circular wastewater management. The case of Campania Region, Italy(2021)
25736 Rufi-Salis, M; Petit-Boix, A; Leipold, S; Villalba, G; Rieradevall, J; Moline, E; Gabarrell, X; Carrera, J; Suarez-Ojeda, ME Increasing resource circularity in wastewater treatment: Environmental implications of technological upgrades(2022)
6201 Callesen, GM; Pedersen, SM; Carolus, J; Johannesdottir, S; López, JM; Kärrman, E; Hjerppe, T; Barquet, K Recycling Nutrients and Reducing Carbon Emissions in the Baltic Sea Region-Sustainable or Economically Infeasible?(2022)Environmental Management, 69, 1
23020 Kruopiene, J; Ziukaite, M Situation Analysis and the Potential for Circularity of the Wastewater Sector in Lithuania(2022)Sustainability, 14.0, 9
12847 Gunnarsson, M; Lalander, C; McConville, JR Estimating environmental and societal impacts from scaling up urine concentration technologies(2023)
21493 Haddaway, NR; Johannesdottir, SL; Piniewski, M; Macura, B What ecotechnologies exist for recycling carbon and nutrients from domestic wastewater? A systematic map protocol(2019)Environmental Evidence, 8.0, 1
16596 Ramm, K; Sielska, M The use of reclaimed water in the local urban cycle - a case study(2023)
12240 Estévez, S; González-García, S; Feijoo, G; Moreira, MT How decentralized treatment can contribute to the symbiosis between environmental protection and resource recovery(2022)
13805 Lima, PD; Lopes, TAD; Queiroz, LM; McConville, JR Resource-oriented sanitation: Identifying appropriate technologies and environmental gains by coupling Santiago software and life cycle assessment in a Brazilian case study(2022)
22710 Tzanakakis, VA; Capodaglio, AG; Angelakis, AN Insights into Global Water Reuse Opportunities(2023)Sustainability, 15.0, 17
Scroll