OCTOPUSprinciple reduces wastewater management costs through network optimization and clustering

SCIENCE FOR SOCIETY Safe access to water and sanitation is a basic human right and is set as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6. However, more than half of global wastewater is not treated, thus polluting the environment and posing a health risk to society. Cost is a significant barrier to water treatment in many emerging economies because of the building and maintenance expenses of treatment facilities. We present a novel approach that reduces wastewater management costs by merging water treatment systems of individual settlements into larger networks: an OCTOPUSdesign. Given the limited economic resources in many countries with low wastewater treatment, OCTOPUS helps to better plan and realize safe access to water and sanitation.

Automated summary

Safe access to water and sanitation is a basic human right, but over half of global wastewater remains untreated, posing risks to the environment and public health. Cost is a major barrier to water treatment in emerging economies. The OCTOPUS design offers a novel approach by merging individual settlement water treatment systems into larger networks, reducing wastewater management costs and improving access to safe water and sanitation.