Circular Water and Wastewater Management in State College, Pennsylvania

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.12797/AdAmericam.25.2024.25.08

Keywords:

circular economy, CE, water, wastewater, State College

Abstract

In recent years, great attention has been paid to activities aimed at implementing a circular economy (CE) in the management of water resources around the world. One of the possibilities for the practical implementation of CE, based on the sustainable management of primary and secondary resources (waste), is the circular management of water and wastewater generated in urban wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). This work presents examples of good practices in the implementation of CE in the college town of State College, Pennsylvania (United States of America). There are two WWTPs here – one belonging to Penn State University (Water Reclamation Facility) and another operated by the municipality (University Area Joint Authority). Both facilities implement CE goals through various initiatives dedicated to water, raw materials and energy recovery. The scope of these activities include using reclaimed water for irrigation of green areas, production of renewable energy, as well as recovery of biogenic components by processing sewage sludge in compost. This approach, where the university and municipality propose solutions in the environmental and social areas, is consistent with the idea of building social responsibility of units, which is a path to sustainability. Further actions to implement the CE model are expected to counteract ongoing climate change in various regions.

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Author Biography

  • Marzena Smol, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poland

    Is the Head of the Division of Biogenic Raw Materials at the Mineral and Energy Economy Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences (IGSMiE PAN). She completed a master’s degree in Environmental Protection at Jan Długosz University in Częstochowa and a master’s degree in International Project Management at the Częstochowa University of Technology. She completed the PhD in technical sciences – Environmental Engineering, 2015, Częstochowa University of Technology. Manager and contractor in national and international projects in the field of biogenic raw materials management in the context of the implementation of the principles of sustainable development (SD), circular economy (CE) and the strategies for the Green Deal in the water and sewage, fertilizer and agri-food sectors. Founder of the Division of Biogenic Raw Materials at IGSMiE PAN, member of the Scientific Council of IGSMiE PAN. She participated in the work on the preparation of the Roadmap Transformation towards circular economy in Poland (Ministry of Development). Holder of i.e. the Polish Minister’s Scholarship for Outstanding Young Scientists (2020 2023), the Bekker scholarship (2019), the Kosciuszko Foundation scholarship (2022).

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Published

30-12-2024

Issue

Vol. 25 (2024): Focus on the Kosciuszko Foundation

Section

Focus on the Kosciuszko Foundation

License

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Smol, Marzena. “Circular Water and Wastewater Management in State College, Pennsylvania”. Ad Americam, vol. 25, Dec. 2024, pp. 139-4, https://doi.org/10.12797/AdAmericam.25.2024.25.08.