A review of how decision support tools address resource recovery in sanitation systems

Daniel Ddiba; Kim Andersson; Sarah Dickin; Elisabeth Ekener; Göran Finnveden

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118365

A review of how decision support tools address resource recovery in sanitation systems

J Environ Manage. 2023 Sep 15:342:118365. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118365. Epub 2023 Jun 13.

Authors

Daniel Ddiba¹, Kim Andersson², Sarah Dickin³, Elisabeth Ekener⁴, Göran Finnveden⁵

Affiliations

¹ KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Department of Sustainable Development, Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Teknikringen 10B, SE-100 44, Stockholm, Sweden; Stockholm Environment Institute, Linnégatan 87D, Box 24218, Stockholm, 104 51, Sweden. Electronic address: ddiba@kth.se.
² Stockholm Environment Institute, Linnégatan 87D, Box 24218, Stockholm, 104 51, Sweden. Electronic address: kim.j.andersson@hotmail.com.
³ Stockholm Environment Institute, Linnégatan 87D, Box 24218, Stockholm, 104 51, Sweden. Electronic address: sarah.dickin@sei.org.
⁴ KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Department of Sustainable Development, Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Teknikringen 10B, SE-100 44, Stockholm, Sweden. Electronic address: elisabeth.ekener@abe.kth.se.
⁵ KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Department of Sustainable Development, Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Teknikringen 10B, SE-100 44, Stockholm, Sweden; Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology, Environmental Sustainability Assessment and Circularity, Belvaux, Luxembourg. Electronic address: goran.finnveden@abe.kth.se.

PMID: 37320927
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118365

Abstract

Globally, there is increasing interest in recovering resources from sanitation systems. However, the process of planning and implementing circular sanitation is complex and can necessitate software-based tools to support decision-making. In this paper, we review 24 decision support software tools used for sanitation planning, to generate insights into how they address resource recovery across the sanitation chain. The findings reveal that the tools can address many planning issues around resource recovery in sanitation including analysis of material flows, integrating resource recovery technologies and products in the design of sanitation systems, and assessing the sustainability implications of resource recovery. The results and recommendations presented here can guide users in the choice of different tools depending on, for example, what kind of tool features and functions the user is interested in as well as the elements of the planning process and the sanitation service chain that are in focus. However, some issues are not adequately covered and need improvements in the available tools including quantifying the demand for and value of resource recovery products, addressing retrofitting of existing sanitation infrastructure for resource recovery and assessing social impacts of resource recovery from a life cycle perspective. While there is scope to develop new tools or to modify existing ones to cover these gaps, communication efforts are needed to create awareness about existing tools, their functions and how they address resource recovery. It is also important to further integrate the available tools into infrastructure planning and programming processes by e.g. customizing to relevant planning regimes and procedures, to move them beyond research and pilots into practice, and hopefully contribute towards more circular sanitation systems.

Keywords: Biowaste; Circular economy; Decision support tools; Resource recovery; Sanitation economy; Sanitation systems.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Communication
Decision Support Techniques
Sanitation*
Software
Technology*
Waste Disposal, Fluid* / methods