RT Journal Article
T1 Insights into the environmental performance of nature-based wastewater technologies towards water and carbon neutrality
A1 Feijoo Moreira, Helena
A1 Estévez Rivadulla, Sofía
A1 González García, Sara
A1 Moreira Vilar, María Teresa
K1 Wastewater
K1 Life Cycle Assessment
K1 Irrigation
K1 Carbon capture
K1 Water neutrality
AB Water reuse has become a promising strategy to address water scarcity and reduce pressure on natural water resources, particularly for irrigation practices. However, the implementation of water reuse for irrigation requires careful planning to address potential challenges, such as water quality concerns, public acceptance and the environmental impacts of treatment processes. To support informed decision-making, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) serves as a powerful tool for evaluating the environmental implications of different water reuse strategies.This study presents a comparative analysis of several biological treatment systems across different regions of the Iberian Peninsula, including membrane bioreactors, filtration systems, constructed wetlands, and advanced oxidation processes. In addition to assessing the environmental performance of these technologies, this research work also links the LCA outcomes with the concepts of water and carbon neutrality in wastewater treatment plants.The results indicate that, among the four processes, only one achieves a positive water balance: the bio-filter system, which is also the best performing technology in most LCA categories. In contrast, the membrane bioreactor combined with integrated fixed film activated sludge shows worse performance, largely due to its high energy consumption. Regarding carbon neutrality, operating constructed wetlands requires approximately 0.79 ha of cropland to offset greenhouse gas emissions. This is significantly lower than the estimated 16.7–566 ha needed for non-nature-based solutions, which are not designed for carbon capture
PB Elsevier
SN 1095-8630
YR 2026
FD 2026-01-19
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10347/45279
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10347/45279
LA eng
NO Feijoo, H., Estévez, S., González-García, S., Moreira, M.T., 2026. Insights into the environmental performance of nature-based wastewater technologies towards water and carbon neutrality. Journal of Environmental Management, 399,  128657.
NO This research has been partially supported by the project ‘Sustainable management of water resources in irrigated agriculture in the SUDOE area (I-ReWater-S1/2.5/E0136)’ co-funded by the programme INTERREG SUDOE, the project TED2021-130309B-I00 funded by MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and the European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR and the BIORECER (No 101060684) project, funded by the European Commission HORIZON-CL6–2021-ZEROPOLLUTION-01. S. Estévez also thanks to the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities for financial support (Grant reference PRE2020-092074). H. Feijoo, S. Estévez, S. González and M.T. Moreira, authors belong to the Galician Competitive Research Group (GRC ED431C 2025/19) and to the Cross-disciplinary Research in Environmental Technologies (CRETUS Research Center, ED431G 2023/12)
DS Minerva
RD 24 abr 2026