Jeroen Rijkea,b*,Jacomien den Boera, Toine Smitsb,c
aHAN University of Applied Sciences, Ruitenberglaan 26, 6826 CC, Arnhem, Netherlands bVHL University of Applied Sciences, Larensteinselaan 26a, 6882 CT, Velp, Netherlands
cRadboud University, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, Netherlands Keywords — River management, circular economy, sediment, biomass, plastic
Introduction
Driven by the premises that the circular economy (CE) provides economic and business value without compromising the finite stock of natural resources, it is rapidly gaining popularity in various domains such as consumer goods, construction and logistics. Based on a review of a variety of emerging theories such as cradle to cradle, the performance economy and biomimicry, the Ellen Macarthur Foundation (2015) has developed three principles for the CE as a basis for sustainable development:
1. Preserve and enhance natural capital by controlling finite stocks and balancing renewable resource flows.
2. Optimise resource yields by circulating products, components, and materials at the highest utility at all times in both technical and biological cycles.
3. Foster system effectiveness by revealing and designing out negative externalities.
Building on insights from the Netherlands, Indonesia and Vietnam, we explore in this contribution how the principles of the CE can be applied to river management and examine what are currently the key drivers and challenges to do so.
Method
This work presents preliminary findings that are drawn from four cases:
Case NL1: the development of a vision for sustainable development in the Rivierklimaatpark IJsselpoort, the Netherlands. This vision is currently under construction. Three workshops were organised with key stakeholders (Rijkswaterstaat, Province of Gelderland, Natuur- monumenten, municipality of Rheden) to discuss how the CE principles could be used to contribute to sustainable development of the project area on the short, medium and long term and what needs to be resolved in order to achieve this.
Case NL2: an inventory of technologies that are applied for using dredging materials as a resource for building flood protection works in the Netherlands. One workshop and 11 interviews
were held to examine what technologies are currently being applied in the Netherlands and what are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for these.
Case IN: the development of a ‘sediment recycling factory’ near Bandung, Indonesia. Two workshops were organised in Indonesia and one in the Netherlands to discuss the challenges related to sediment management in the ‘Bandung’ Basin, the potential added value of sediment recycling and related challenges for doing so. Case VN: the development of amphibious housing from recycled plastic in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Four meetings were organised with academics and the private sector to explore the added value and feasibility of low cost amphibious houses with a floating platform from recycled plastic in areas in the Mekong Delta that are prone to seasonal flooding.
The drivers and challenges that have emerged during the workshops and meetings are summed up for each individual case. Subsequently, we have categorised the barriers using a transition governance framework that was developed (Farrelly et al., 2012) and tested in the context of urban water cycle management and that was later also applied to river management in the Netherlands (Rijke, 2014). This framework has proven to function as a checklist for identifying whether the required enabling factors for a transition are available in a certain context (ibid). As such, we have used it to determine what is needed to make progress for applying the CE principles to river management.
Results
Drivers
Five types of drivers were identified to adopt the CE principles to river management (Table 1).
1. Societal value creation (NL1, IN, VN) 2. Reduced life cycle cost (NL1, NL2, VN) 3. Superior strength/durability of
construction materials (NL2, VN) 4. Pollution control (IN, VN) ________________
* Corresponding author
Email address: j.rijke@han.nl (Jeroen Rijke)
5. Community ownership of sustainable development (NL1, IN, VN)
Challenges
Table 1 provides an overview of the availability of the enabling transition governance factors for adopting the CE principles in each of the cases. For this, eight enabling transition factors as proposed by Farrelly et al (2012) are used: 1) Vision (narrative, metaphor, images), 2) Policy framework and institutional design, 3) Economic incentives and justification, 4) Regulation and compliance, 5) Leadership, 6) Capacity building and demonstration, 7) Public engagement, 8) Research partnerships with policy and practice. Three cases (NL2, IN and VN) clearly revealed technology readiness as a ninth factor. Table 1 refers to these factors as 1-9.
Table 1. Overview of the availability of enabling transition governance factors NL1 NL2 IN VN 1 Area centred, is developing Material focused, is developing No Material fo- cused, refers to ‘plastic soup’ 2 Not actively
supportive Not actively supportive, Not actively supportive Not actively supportive 3 Yes, but value chain disconnect ed Yes, but value chain disconnect ed Unclear Financial mechanism needed to support upfront investment 4 At times
impeding At times impeding Disfunctio-nal Unknown 5 Driven by public sector Driven by private sector Driven by internationa l research partnership Driven by private sector 6 Ongoing Ongoing Ongoing Ongoing 7 Not yet No Not yet Not yet 8 Living Lab Project
based Living Lab Project based 9 N/A Pilot stage Ideation
stage Feasibility study stage Table 1 indicates that there are many challenges to adopt the CE principles to river management. Three key challenges stand out:
1. A clear vision of what it means and how to adopt CE to river management is at best under construction from a single material point of view (e.g. plastic in VN, sediment in NL2). The challenge to develop a clear vision is affected by a discrepancy between the systems that are central to the CE (value chains) and those to river management (e.g. watersheds, floodplains, dike rings and jurisdictions). Although this is acknowledged in NL1, this has not yet resulted in an integrated vision.
2. Implementation of CE in river management requires new policy and regulatory frameworks that are better equipped to
support recycling and reuse of natural resources and waste (all cases). Accordingly, there needs to be a rethink of roles and responsibilities of actors involved in the management natural resources, waste, infrastructure and floodplains. In all cases it was suggested that experimentation and collaborative learning are important for this.
3. Finally, it should be noted that adopting the CE for river management is not a governance issue alone. Lack of technology readiness is explicitly mentioned in three cases
Conclusion
Although the CE principles are more widely adopted in other domains of water management (e.g. stormwater harvesting and reuse, wastewater recycling, wastewater nutrient mining), the CE provides a relatively new perspective on river management. The cases highlight that CE thinking may provide a variety of benefits for communities, asset managers and pubic authorities in river areas. However, the implementation of this concept is not without challenges and further work needs to be done to remove these challenges and take stock of the looming benefits of the CE. Based on our study, we conclude that there is a need for experimentation space in order to support the development of a vision for how to adopt the CE in river management.
Acknowledgements
This work is made possible through funding provided by the Kenniscentrum Natuur- en Leefomgeving (Case NL1), SIA KIEM- VANG (Cases NL2 and IN), and Erasmus+ (Case VN).
References
Ellen Macarthur Foundation (2015) Delivering the circular economy - a toolkit for policymakers. Farrelly, M., Rijke, J., Brown, R. (2012) Exploring
operational attributes of governance for change, WSUD2012, Melbourne, Australia.
Rijke, J. (2014) Delivering change: Towards fit-for- purpose governance for adaptation to flooding and drought. CRC Press/Balkema.
SESSION IIIA TOWARDS MULTIFUNCTIONAL SELF-SUSTAINING RIVERS