Water Supply and Sanitation in a Green Economy Society: The Case of Finland

Abstract

A green economy specifically considers the welfare of the environment and is closely aligned with sustainable development—in both, the use of natural resources should be less than their natural production. In this article, the concept of a green economy is discussed from the viewpoint of water services, a crucial part of a sustainable society, with the objective of enhancing knowledge about sustainable and resilient water services that will meet society’s future demands. Drawing from a literature review and a stakeholder workshop attended by 68 experts, it seeks to answer three research questions: (a) What are appropriate and sustainable urban water supply and sanitation policies for a society that is adopting the basic principles of a green economy? (b) What should be the role of water supply and sanitation in a green and circular economy and what are the current challenges to meeting this objective? and (c) What actions are needed in the Finnish water and sanitation services (WSS) sector to effectively meet the requirements of a green and circular economy? The results are applied to the specific case of Finland, and recommendations and conclusions for the Finnish society and its water services are presented.