Roadmap development and preliminary applications to foster the transition to the circular economy in the water sector: the case study of Corleone

Circular economy (CE) has gained considerable attention in the last years, among private and public sector actors, politicians and policymakers, citizens and media, and scientific communities. Despite its pivotal role in all anthropic activities, the water sector has missed a specific conceptualization and CE definitions. Several strategies, actions, and initiatives should be implemented under a roadmap application to foster the CE transition in the water sector. A roadmap enables decision-makers to plan and execute a pathway to achieve desired objectives through a roadmapping process. The main objectives are related to fulfilling a vision for a water-smart society. According to the definition proposed by Water Europe, a water-smart society is: “a society in which the true value of water is recognized and realized, and all available water sources are managed in such a way that water scarcity and pollution of groundwater and surface water are avoided. Water and resource loops are largely closed to foster a circular economy and optimal resource efficiency, while the water system is resilient against the impact of climate change events” (Water Europe, 2017). This chapter describes an example of a structure that should be adopted for the roadmap exercise, and it also presents some preliminary results of application to the case study of water reuse performed in Corleone (Italy).