Author(s)

J. M. Moreno & L. D. Chabalina

Abstract

The remarkable development of reuse of water in Spain has taken place not only because of the necessity to extend water supplies, but also due to the requirements to improve the management in water treatment. Water supply consumption has increased, along with the increase of population that has taken place in numerous urban zones. As a result, traditional supplying sources are insufficient to satisfy the demand, which is in permanent expansion. This paper will analyze from an economical point of view, the effects of the Directive 91/271/EEC in Spain, as well as the new rule that appears in the Order in Council of December 8, 2007 in which the legal regime of treated water reuse is established. Furthermore, costs of reused and recycled water by means of different treatment systems will be discussed, as well as the environmental costs associated to them. Keywords: treated water reuse, economic analysis, environmental and economic costs, legal regime. 1 Introduction The increase reached by water supplies, as well as the increase of population which took place in numerous urban areas, have caused that the traditional supplying sources are insufficient to satisfy the demand, which is in permanent expansion. Environmental limitations and plurianual droughts have led numerous towns to use treated water as an additional water source to take advantage of it, in case drinkable water quality was not necessary. At the same time, sanitary and environmental requirements of continental and marine water quality are rising, in addition to the requirements of location and treatment levels which are more and more strict. For that reason, recycled water has been turned into an alternative www.witpress.com, ISSN 1743-3541 (on-line)

Keywords

treated water reuse, economic analysis, environmental and economic costs, legal regime.