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Annual Cumulative Precipitation Map of Spain. Adapted from the Spanish State Meteorology Agency (http://www.aemet.es).
Source publication
Water scarcity is a major problem that affects a greater number of countries every year. A possible solution is using recycled water systems. However, to implement the use of recycled water, public acceptance is needed. In this study, we propose a perceptive-axiological model (PAM) to understand the reasons for public acceptance or rejection of rec...
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... were selected by proportional random sampling by sex and age in the two Spanish communities with the most extreme values of water stress. Galicia is the rainiest region in the country and Murcia is the driest (Fig. 2). During October 2019, the average rainfall in Galicia was 197 l/m 2 , considerably higher than the 29 l/m 2 of rainfall in ...
Context 2
... were selected by proportional random sampling by sex and age in the two Spanish communities with the most extreme values of water stress. Galicia is the rainiest region in the country and Murcia is the driest (Figure 2). During October 2019, the average rainfall in Galicia was 197 l/m 2 , considerably higher than the 29 l/m 2 of rainfall in Murcia. ...
Citations
... These effects persisted when controlling for socio-demographics and general environmental attitudes. However, some studies showed that a general perceived scarcity risk increased water conservation intentions but reduced interest in innovative water reuse technologies like recycled wastewater [71][72][73]. The authors proposed that water reuse may seem too unconventional under high perceived threat conditions. ...
Water scarcity is a growing global challenge, requiring effective management strategies to ensure sustainable water use, particularly in regions like West Dorset, U.K., where rising prices and environmental pressures make sustainable consumption practices essential. This study develops and empirically tests an integrated theoretical framework combining Prospect Theory (PT) and Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) to examine the mechanisms driving household water conservation. Using structural equation modelling on data from 429 residents in West Dorset (response rate 78.3%), we investigated how water pricing (WP) and perceived water risk (PWR) influence sustainable water consumption through individual innovativeness (II) and community engagement (CE), with environmental regulations (ERs) as a moderator. The results revealed significant positive effects of WP and PWR on individual innovativeness, which, in turn, strongly predicted community engagement. The relationship between these factors and sustainable water consumption was significantly moderated by ERs. This study makes three key contributions: Firstly, it empirically validates an integrated PT-SCT framework in water conservation behavior. Secondly, it identifies the crucial mediating role of II in translating price and risk perceptions into community action; and lastly, it demonstrates how regulatory frameworks can enhance or inhibit conservation outcomes. These findings inform policy recommendations for tiered pricing structures, community-based conservation initiatives, and adaptive regulatory frameworks. This study provides a comprehensive model for understanding and promoting sustainable water consumption in water-stressed regions worldwide.
... Importantly, environmental self-identity was not (in the Netherlands) or less (in Spain) predictive of acceptance of decentralized wastewater systems than the social identity framing. On the one hand, these findings go against previous studies on pro-environmental behavior (Steg & de Groot 2012;Van der Werff et al. 2013a) and initial findings on the acceptance of the products obtained from decentralized wastewater systems Vila-Tojo et al. 2022), which suggest personal pro-environmental identity to be a key predictor of these outcomes. Indeed, studies suggest that environmental self-identity is generally more predictive of individual pro-environmental behavior than group pro-environmental identity (Wang 2023). ...
Decentralized wastewater treatment systems can help mitigate the water crisis. Their successful implementation depends not only on their technological design but also on the level of public support. We aim to assess how a pro-environmental social identity framing in which we present a decentralized wastewater treatment system as an environmentally responsible neighborhood initiative may increase public support of these systems. Two experimental studies examined the impact of pro-environmental social identity framing on public acceptance of decentralized wastewater systems in Groningen (the Netherlands) (n = 92) and Santiago de Compostela (Spain) (n = 208). As expected, pro-environmental social identity framing increased public acceptance in both studies, irrespective of the extent to which people identify with their neighborhood. Specifically, participants in the pro-environmental social identity framing condition displayed more positive attitudes, more positive and less negative emotions, and higher voting intentions toward the decentralized wastewater systems compared to those in the control condition. These results suggest that connecting such systems to shared neighborhood identities can be an effective strategy for overcoming barriers to their implementation. Our study offers valuable insights for policymakers, community leaders, and environmental advocates to craft messages to promote the adoption of decentralized wastewater systems.
... For example, in residential communities, the focus group phase could be adapted into neighborhood meetings to address local concerns, and the workshop could include more context-specific examples that make the benefits of decentralized systems relatable. Implementing this protocol in diverse cultural settings would also require careful attention to local norms, trust in authorities, and perceptions of water reuse (Vila-Tojo et al., 2022). Tailoring the intervention to address these factors would enhance acceptance, making the findings more generalizable across different contexts. ...
Decentralized wastewater treatment systems are a potential solution to the water crisis. However, in addition to advanced technology, successful implementation of these systems requires broad public willingness to use them. This paper presents the results of a three-phase psychosocial intervention with the users of a business building where a decentralized wastewater treatment plant was installed. The intervention, motivated by complaints from users due to their lack of knowledge about the existence of the plant, aimed at understanding and improving users’ perceptions of the building’s decentralized system. In the first phase, we conducted a focus group with a sample of workers (n = 6) to understand their knowledge and perception of the building’s decentralized wastewater treatment system. Once the main obstacles and facilitators were identified, we designed a second phase where a group of employees (n = 46) were exposed to environmental priming to improve attitudes toward the decentralized plant installed in the building. Finally, in the third phase, a bidirectional informative session was proposed, conducted by experts, to another group of workers (n = 25). Findings suggest that implementing specific psychosocial strategies, such as promoting environmental awareness and providing informative sessions, along with incorporating potential users throughout the process, contributes to better acceptance of the decentralized wastewater treatment plant. This work presents a real case in a pilot plant that can serve as a guide for addressing psychosocial resistance in similar projects.
... With the increasing prominence of water scarcity and water pollution, the recycling of wastewater is receiving more attention [102,103]. Recycling of beneficiation wastewater can not only effectively reduce the amount of fresh feed water and wastewater discharge, but also make full use of the residual useful reagents to reduce the demand for additives. This way of treating wastewater aligns well with the concept of sustainable development in green mining [104]. ...
The large amount of wastewater containing various pollutants generated during the tungsten beneficiation process has become a bottleneck for the sustainable development of tungsten mining enterprises. Typical pollutants mainly include suspended solids (SSs), silicate ions, metal ions, and residual organic reagents. The direct discharge of untreated tungsten beneficiation wastewater can cause serious harm to the ecological environment, while recycling can significantly affect flotation indicators. In this paper, the sources and characteristics of typical pollutants were analyzed, and various purification techniques were outlined, including coagulation, adsorption, chemical precipitation, oxidation, and biological treatment methods. Among these techniques, coagulation is particularly effective for the removal of SSs, while adsorption and chemical precipitation are recommended for the removal of soluble ions. For residual organic reagents, oxidation methods have demonstrated high treatment efficiencies. The mainstream methods for wastewater recycling were summarized, including centralized recycling, as well as internal recycling at certain stages. For tungsten beneficiation such a complex process, where the quality of wastewater varies greatly between different stages, it is suitable to recycle the wastewater after appropriate treatment at a specific stage. Furthermore, this study provided a perspective on the future directions of tungsten beneficiation wastewater treatment, serving as a reference for related research and industrial practices.
... Our study shows that moral obligation is the main motivation in the consumption of sustainable clothing and the choice of a vegetarian lifestyle. This may be because people feel a moral obligation to act against environmental threats for which they feel responsible (Vila-Tojo et al., 2022). Under these circumstances, deontological aspects focused on the fulfilment of duty are activated (Böhm & Pfister, 2005;Vilas & Sabucedo, 2012), and pro-environmental behaviour is considered morally obligatory, even if it involves personal costs. ...
... Nuestro estudio muestra que la obligación moral es la principal motivación en el consumo de ropa sostenible y la elección de un estilo de vida vegetariano. Esto puede deberse a que las personas sienten la obligación moral de actuar ante amenazas ambientales de las que se sienten responsables (Vila-Tojo et al., 2022). Bajo estas circunstancias se activan aspectos deontológicos centrados en el cumplimiento del deber (Böhm & Pfister, 2005;Vilas & Sabucedo, 2012) y se considera la conducta proambiental como moralmente obligatoria, aunque conlleve costes personales. ...
This paper sets out to analyse the role of axiological variables — values, pro-environmental identity and moral obligation — in pro-environmental behaviours. To do this, we carried out two studies with a non-experimental cross-sectional design: the first on sustainable clothing consumption ( n = 480; 70.6% women; M age = 26.62, SD = 10.63) and the second on the adoption of a vegetarian lifestyle ( n = 217; 73.5% women; M age = 32.04, SD = 10.75). The data were collected in Spain by means of an online questionnaire using the snowball technique. In both studies, regression analysis showed that pro-environmental identity and moral obligation predict both sustainable clothing consumption and vegetarian lifestyle. Moral obligation is the main predictor of both pro-environmental behaviours. The axiological variables explain 53% of the variance for sustainable clothing consumption and 41% of the variance for a vegetarian lifestyle, highlighting that the axiological route is key to reversing our impact on the environment.
... The plant will have a maximum capacity of 130 million gallons when completed [26] ذ Popular opposition has caused delays in several water recycling projects. Hence, comprehending the factors behind the acceptance and refusal of recycled water is a crucial matter [33][34][35][36].One key challenge in establishing reuse activities, especially drinking water recycling schemes, is the negative public perception [30,37]. Public attitude, acceptance, and support are essential for the functioning, efficiency, and effectiveness of the system for wastewater reuse [38][39][40]. ...
... In addition, China is among the 13 countries most impacted by water shortages, with over 660 cities facing this issue due to the country's fast economic growth and urbanization in recent decades [14,[72][73][74][75]. It is evident from Figure 2 that the usage of water reuse surveys in emerging regions like Latin America, Asia, Europe, and Africa is limited and needs further exploration [33,47,[76][77][78][79][80][81][82][83][84]. For example, Arab homeland countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia., Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, and Palestine have less research; in the future, the number of publications could rise because Arab countries are primarily situated in arid to semiarid environments and face severe water scarcity challenges due to growing populations, urbanization, and climate change impacts such as decreasing precipitation [73,[85][86][87][88][89]. ...
Many locations worldwide are encountering significant obstacles to achieving economic and social sustainability due to the increasing disparity between water availability and demand resulting from population expansion. Therefore, many countries are looking for alternative water sources to increase their water supply. Water reuse has become a practical and effective method for addressing water scarcity. A systematic review and meta-analysis of water reuse are necessary to provide guidance for future studies on the impact of water reuse and to assist managers in optimizing the usage of water reuse technology for improving workplace and organizational results. This is the initial systematic review to investigate the correlation between public acceptance and water reuse. This systematic research aims to provide a comprehensive analysis and summary of public acceptance regarding water reuse surveys. The study compiled data from 85 original research papers published between 2018 and August 1, 2023. The information included details such as keywords, Geographic location, Cloud of words co-occurrence, sample size, publication peer years, published journals, and affiliations. In addition to this, it evaluated potential avenues for future research in this area and offered recommendations for enhancing the public's acceptance of water reuse.
... A literature review was conducted to identify the dimensions of NCW and water quality that influence refugees' well-being and develop the research model. The dimensions examined included environmental factors, mental health, physical health, education, and income [51][52][53][54][55]. ...
This study aims to explore the dimensions of non-conventional water (NCW) resources, including wastewater treatment and greywater, and their impact on the well-being of refugees in the context of Alzatari refugee camps in Jordan. The research employs the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as a conceptual framework. To look into the connections between NCW, attitudes, subjective norms, and the well-being of public health, education, the environment, and income, the study uses statistical methods like descriptive analysis with SPSS, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and mediation analysis with SEM-AMOS. The findings demonstrate that attitudes and subjective norms play mediating roles in the relationship between NCW and the well-being of refugees. The study highlights the importance of addressing these factors, as they significantly influence decision-making processes and perceptions of NCW. Additionally, the analysis reveals that income well-being does not exhibit a significant relationship in the context of refugee camps. Where environmental, Health, Education and mental health were the most affected factors. In conclusion, the analysis of refugee attitudes supports the theoretical conclusion of the TPB model, which emphasizes the interaction between well-being and sustainable technological characteristics. These insights contribute to our understanding of some of the water technology development requirements in vulnerable regions and facilitate the sustainable management of water resources in refugee camps. The study provides valuable information for the development of strategies to address water scarcity while safeguarding the well-being and livelihoods of refugees in asylum areas.
CC BY 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
... Importantly, people's decision-making processes toward a technological product are complex, which is reflected in three aspects of our research context. First, the decision-making process might be influenced by various factors, such as features of sewage treatment technology, the infrastructure to supply recycled water, government policy and guidance, the social environment (social norms), and the price of recycled water (Chen et al., 2013;Glick et al., 2019;Hartley et al., 2019;Leong and Lebel, 2020;Iftekhar et al., 2021;Hopson and Fowler, 2022;Vila-Tojo et al., 2022;Zhang et al., 2022). Hence, the investigation of the acceptance of recycled water should embrace the significant factors from a comprehensive perspective. ...
... Second, people often develop behavioral intentions based on their cognitive understanding and emotional attitudes (Wester et al., 2016;Li et al., 2022). For example, people may have negative affection toward recycled water (e.g., disgust) due to their stereotype of recycled water, or positive affection, due to their environmental awareness (Hou et al., 2021a;Vila-Tojo et al., 2022). Therefore, both the cognitive and emotional mechanisms should be carefully considered when investigating the adoption of recycled water. ...
... Despite recycled water is regarded as the most significant global resource facing environmental issues, as for now, there are still relatively few water recycling projects underway, and recycled water is still repugnant and ostracized by the public worldwide (Liu et al., 2022a;Vila-Tojo et al., 2022). For example, Australia, the US, Saudi Arabia, and China all face the problem of low public acceptance of recycled water (Gao et al., 2019;Barnes et al., 2021;Hou et al., 2021b;Santos et al., 2022). ...
Introduction
The development of advanced sewage technologies empowers the industry to produce high-quality recycled water, which greatly influences human’s life and health. Thus, this study investigates the mechanism of individuals’ adoption of recycled water from the technology adoption perspective.
Methods
Employing the mixed method of structural equation modeling and artificial neural network analysis, we examined a research model developed from the extended Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) framework. To examine the research model, this study employs a leading web-survey company (Sojump) to collect 308 valid samples from the residents in mainland China.
Results
The structural equation modeling results verified the associations between the six predictors (performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, environmental motivation, and price value), individuals’ cognitive and emotional attitudes, and acceptance intention. The artificial neural network analysis validates and complements the structural equation modeling results by unveiling the importance rank of the significant determinants of the acceptance decisions.
Discussion
The study provides theoretical implications for recycled water research and useful insights for practitioners and policymakers to reduce the environmental hazards of water scarcity.
... (3) To address water scarcity in Heilongjiang, it is crucial to assess the potential of using non-conventional water resources and understand the factors that influence their utilization [55]. One effective strategy for managing water scarcity is to integrate nonconventional water resources into the unified water resources supply system [56]. Nonconventional water resources can serve as a sustainable alternative and enhance water supply in vital industries. ...
Analyzing the development trend of non-conventional water resources and identifying the main influencing factors is the initial step toward rapidly increasing the utilization and allocation of these resources in a rational and scientific manner. This will help relieve pressure on water resources and improve the ecological environment. This study introduces the concept of comparison testing and employs advanced Dematel and Random Forest models to identify two sets of optimal indicators from a pool of nine. Based on the two best indicator sets, three prediction models—BP neural network, Particle Swarm Optimization-optimized BP neural network, and Genetic neural network—were used to forecast the future potential of non-conventional water resource use in Heilongjiang Province. The findings reveal that economic indicators are the most significant factors influencing Heilongjiang Province’s utilization of non-conventional water resources. The findings of this study help us understand the extent of development in utilizing non-conventional water resources.
... Publications have explored individual residents' perspectives on factors influencing their willingness to adopt recycled water, and some significant influences have been identified (Moya-Fernández et al. 2021;Vila-Tojo et al. 2022). However, these studies generally have not considered the impacts of the stage of recycled water development. ...
... However, these studies generally have not considered the impacts of the stage of recycled water development. Previous researches have revealed residents harboring significant negative stereotypes about recycled water (Hou et al. 2021a), with risk perception playing a substantial negative role in influencing their acceptance (Vila-Tojo et al. 2022). This is consistent with the findings in group decisions. ...
Recycled water contributes to sustainable development by providing a unified approach to wastewater treatment and rational water supply. However, the environmental benefit-sharing feature of recycled water may encourage some residents to show “free-rider” behavior. In this study, the evolutionary game model was applied to a game system consisting of two types of people, environmental preference and risk aversion. We analyzed internal and external factors and conducted a numerical simulation to seek both players’ behavior evolutionary and stabilization trends. The study found that interventions are indispensable during recycled water use’s initial and intermediate stages. Moreover, interventions should be tailored to different stages. In the initial stage, the benefits of co-use and the recycled water scientific information should be advertised. In the intermediate and mature stages, it is necessary to increase the trust coefficient or knowledge base of decided people who belong to early adopters of the recycled water diffusion system.
