Circular Oriented Eco-Innovation: An Analysis Based on Water Mining Circular Ecosystems
This communication analyses the role of eco-innovation towards the Circular Economy (CE) from a dynamic perspective. To do so, we focus on the analysis of cases in the water treatment sector. The emergence of CE as a more desirable model in the framework of sustainable development is leading to the transformation of the business model of conventional wastewater treatment plants into new circular models, or more broadly circular ecosystems, in which several actors cooperate for multiple value creation. Through circular ecosystems, water, the materials and substances it carries, and the energy that the water or its treatment processes can generate may be valorised. This process of multiple value creation and thus, the realisation of the circular outcome, requires the dynamic interaction of diverse actors and the adoption of eco-innovations of different types. The study identifies different types of eco-innovation contributing to implement circular strategies.