Society and businesses are moving towards a circular economy; a concept that has emerged in response to drawbacks of the conventional ‘take-make-consume and dispose’ model of growth, and the shift towards sustainable development.
Underpinning the circular economy is the principle of decoupling economic growth and development from the consumption of finite resources; this requires a transition to renewable resources and less dependence on finite resources.
For the water sector – all institutions and individuals responsible for managing the water cycle – transitioning to a circular economy presents an opportunity to accelerate and scale-up recent scientific and technological advances that support greater efficiency in the sector.
Water, sanitation and wastewater utilities (‘water’ utilities) can become engines for the circular economy. Water utilities have an opportunity to start to see water as a medium of valuable resources and more significantly have an important role to play as resource stewards.
