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The Project

Why circular water needs a life cycle view — and what AWARE sets out to do.

The problem

The circular economy (CE) emphasizes sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing, and recycling materials and products, in contrast to the linear “take-make-dispose” model. The water sector is recognized as one of the largest untapped areas for the CE. The Water Circular Economy (WCE) can decouple economic growth from water use and pollution — a critical need, since failure to adopt WCE practices could result in a 40% shortfall in water supply by 2030 compared to projected demand.

However, circularity alone does not guarantee reduced environmental, economic, or social impacts compared to linear systems. A holistic evaluation is needed through Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA), which integrates:

While international standards exist (ISO 14040–44, ISO 14075, UNEP guidelines), no specific LCA/LCC/S-LCA rules currently exist for water circularity activities.

The AWARE objective

AWARE develops a method based on LCSA that complies with existing international standards while providing tailored rules specifically for Water Resource Recovery and Reuse (WRR&R) initiatives — enhancing the scientific robustness, consistency, reproducibility, and comparability of LCSA studies in this field.

Five specific objectives

  • S.O.1

    Developing the LCSA Method

    A detailed LCSA method for WRR&R, with standardized rules and indicators, with special emphasis on the water-energy-food-ecosystems nexus.

  • S.O.2

    WRR&R Case Studies

    A comprehensive, equitable comparative assessment of WRR&R interventions across different geographical, temporal, and technological contexts.

  • S.O.3

    Social & Economic Aspects

    Identifying the social and economic factors crucial for the acceptance of water circularity interventions.

  • S.O.4

    Stakeholder Engagement & Web App

    A simplified version of the method available through a publicly accessible web application, for preliminary screening of alternative solutions.

  • S.O.5

    Dissemination & Exploitation

    Communication strategies to secure end-user uptake of the method.

Novelty

While LCSA is grounded in established international standards, its application in the WRR&R field has been limited, with results often not comparable due to inconsistent data. AWARE introduces a novel, tailored LCSA method for WRR&R that currently does not exist — improving data quality, consistency, reproducibility, and comparability.