Urban wastewater treatment makes up a critical infrastructure. Safe sanitation and pollution prevention are necessary for well-functioning cities and societies. However, even in the Global North, these functions are only partially delivered. If building of a circular society is the goal, wastewater infrastructures must be transformed supportive of sustainable resource recovery. This calls for renewal of the technologies and business models adopted by wastewater companies and resource recovery industries. Cities and the state are to enable and incentivise these changes.
The FRACTURES project asks how ageing of wastewater infrastructures come to demand critical attention in Finland; and how cities and companies respond to the development pressures. Focusing on experimentation, policymaking and infrastructure planning, the project analyses politics and policymaking at different governance levels. Based on the lessons learned and transition pathways co-created with experts and stakeholders, recommendations will be provided regarding the steps through which urban metabolisms can make to count for the making of circular cities and societies.