WS2 | Urban Resilience through Mainstreaming Circularity in Wastewater Management
Session Details
| Moderator: | Saiba Gupta |
| Date/Time: | 09.10.2024, 14:15 – 16:15 |
| Location: | Margarete-Bieber-Saal |
Description
Adopting a circular economy approach to wastewater management is globally recognised as a potential solution for reducing stress on freshwater resources and improving natural water quality. This involves strengthening wastewater treatment infrastructure, maximizing the reuse of treated wastewater especially for non-potable purposes, and minimizing the quantum of untreated wastewater. This session will bring in experiences from India and other countries on planning for mainstreaming treated domestic wastewater reuse, especially in urban areas. The desired outcomes from this session include tangible learnings from global experiences to enable a shift towards circularity in wastewater management, in alignment with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targets 6.3 and 6.6 and SDG 13 on climate action.
The session will be organized in collaboration between the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) and the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA). Representatives from CEEW and NIUA will present a context-setting presentation, followed by a panel discussion involving up to five experts from national and international organizations, including policy think tanks, academics, and action research institutions. CEEW and NIUA will moderate the session. The target audience will include professionals working in the climate change adaptation and water sustainability sphere. This will include but not be restricted to policy-makers, academicians, researchers, water managers, public policy experts, funders/investors in this space, representatives of non-governmental organizations, and students enrolled in water resources, sustainable development, and climate change studies.
This session will bring in experiences from India and other countries on planning for mainstreaming treated domestic wastewater reuse, including drivers, barriers and enablers for the same. Based on the diverse expertise of the panel, the session aims to generate valuable insights on the following aspects, amongst others:
- Governance models for strengthening wastewater management and reuse
- Sustainable financing options for implementing treated wastewater reuse projects
- Technological advancements for optimizing treatment and energy efficiency
- Use of data and information for effective monitoring and evaluation
- Institutional capacity-building and behavioral change experiments leading to public acceptance of treated wastewater
The desired outcomes from this session include tangible learnings from global experiences to enable a shift towards circularity in wastewater management, in alignment with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targets 6.3 and 6.6 and SDG 13 on climate action.