Mid Sweden University

Climate change, agricultural activities and urban development affect the availability of freshwater and concerns about water scarcity are increasing. Water scarcity can negatively impact local businesses, the municipal economy, and general well-being. Research is needed at national and local level to identify how water reuse within the framework of industrial symbiosis can increase, to mitigate and adapt to water scarcity. This study examines water reuse activities in Sweden's industrial sector through interviews with three groups of actors, active in areas with either a low risk of water scarcity or a high risk of water scarcity. Through interviews with industries, municipalities, and water and sewage companies (WASCs), this study gathers perspectives on incentives and barriers to water reuse, as well as the role of legislation for circular and sustainable water management. The findings are that interviewees in regions facing a high risk of water scarcity are primarily motivated to reuse water by the need to mitigate climate change, due to experiences such as droughts. Interviewees in low-risk areas are primarily motivated to reuse water to achieve resource efficiency, adapt to an increasing population, or enable expansion of production. In general, industries and WASCs emphasize the importance of sustainability visions or targets, and economic opportunities as key incentives for water reuse, while municipalities emphasize the need to take environmental or social responsibility. Despite the found incentives for water reuse, the study identifies barriers such as ambiguities in legislation, limitations in environmental permits, and expensive infrastructure development which hinder further development of water reuse in Sweden’s industrial sector. Overcoming these barriers, for example through national policies, could bring positive effects on achieving sustainable development and circular economy.