Review of Circular Economy in urban water sector: Challenges and opportunities in India

Increasing urbanization and rapid depletion of resources have forced authorities to shift from traditional linear system of take-make-use-dispose to circular system of resource conservation. Circular Economy (CE) is a sustainable development approach that works on the waste management strategy of reduce, reuse, recycle, and recover. Considerable work has been performed on CE in various sectors such as in electronic sector, construction sector, automotive sector, etc. However, CE in the water sector is gaining rapid attention, because of imbalance in water resources and the prevailing linear approach. The aim of this study is to review the world-wide growth of CE concept in the water sector from an economic, environmental, social, and technical perspective. 98 publications were selected by systematic literature review and categorized in economic, environmental, social, and technical criteria including a combination of multiple criteria. In this study, the world-wide status of CE implementation in the water sector is assessed and strategies to encourage and enhance CE implementation are proposed. The six BS8001:2017 principles and 6Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle, reclaim, recover, restore) of waste management are critically analyzed for deriving recommendations and successful implementation of CE in water sector. Finally, challenges and opportunities to implement CE in the water sector in India are discussed. [Display omitted] •Worldwide growth of Circular economy (CE) in the water sector is reviewed.•Confluence of 6Rs and BS8001:2017 principles is needed for CE implementation.•Challenges and opportunities to implement CE strategies in India are discussed.•Framework needs to be developed to monitor CE implementation in water sector.