NEW LEGISLATION ON RECLAIMED WATER FOR AGRICULTURE: REMARKS AND FUTURE SCENARIOS OF “CIRCULAR CITIES”

Sustainability in the water sector is a major concern, and compliance with the current legislation alone does not seem to be enough to face major challenges, like climate change or urban population growth. Recently, at European level, EU Partnership on Circular Economy has dealt to find workable ideas focused, among others, on the topics of EU legislation. In fact, cities play an essential role in the development of a circular economy. The Municipality of Prato is the Ital-ian representative in the EU Partnership on Circular Economy. Within the part-nership, the Municipality of Prato leads the debates regarding wastewater reuse. This study aims to describe the role of Prato within the EU Partnership on Circu-lar Economy, as well the recent evolution on EU legislation about reuse of treat-ed wastewater for irrigation and agriculture purposes. In particular, we will focus on recent approved regulation on minimum requirements for water reuse. The Partnership contributed with proposals and a shared position in order to amelio-rate the first proposal. Within this framework, at city level, an integrated ap-proach in terms of water supply and wastewater treatment is recommended, in order to protect environment and biodiversity, together with the safeguard of cit-izens’ health and wellbeing.