Closing the Cycle by Reusing Treated Wastewater: The Role of Prato in the European Debate on the Circular Economy

Circular economy policies in the management of water, especially at the urban level, are relevant to overcome water scarcity issues and to accelerate the transition to more sustainable practices. To stimulate the transition to a circular economy, in 2015, the European Commission adopted a “Circular Economy Package”, which includes priorities for legislative revision. More recently, by launching the European Green Deal, the European Commission aimed to boost the efficient use of resources by moving to a circular economy and stopping climate change. Water issues were included in the European debate, involving cities in processes of legislative revision. At the European level, the Urban Agenda for the EU was established with the aim of favouring the discussion on the circular economy at the city level. The Municipality of Prato represented Italy in the EU partnership on circular economy. Prato is one of the largest Italian industrial districts and one of the most important textile production centres in the world. The local centralized water treatment plant also plays one role as the best circular practice within the textile district. This paper describes the role of the Municipality of Prato at the European level in the process of legislative revision in terms of wastewater reuse.