Domestic wastewater generation, treatment, and agricultural reuse

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Abstract

Safely managed wastewater is critical to water-related sustainable development. With a focus on the domestic wastewater component of SDG 6.3.1, this study reports that household activities worldwide generate 267.5 billion m 3 yr − 1 of wastewater, of which 63% (168.8 billion m 3 yr − 1 ) is collected in sewers and septic tanks, and 54.7% (146.3 billion m 3 yr − 1 ) is treated. In comparison, 45.3% (121.2 billion m 3 ) is released to the environment in untreated form, either uncollected (98.7 billion m 3 yr − 1 ) or collected but untreated (22.5 billion m 3 yr − 1 ). The monitoring of and progress on safely managed wastewater remain strongly uneven between the Global North and Global South and between geographic regions and income groups. While there is clear progress in the agricultural reuse of treated wastewater, untreated water reuse requires more attention. Considerable challenges remain because of terminology, informal irrigation, and the usefulness of reporting reuse volumes or areas for health-based targets.

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