Project partners: Kalmar Vatten AB, Linnaeus University
Grant: SEK 1,000,000
Project duration: 2025-10-01 to 2026-09-30
Contact persons: Tobias König, Linnaeus University, Kristin Sjögren, Kalmar Vatten
Linked to mission: Recycle and reuse water and its resources, Sustainable water withdrawals, Reduce water use and leakage, Adapt society to floods and droughts, Secure water supply and management
Purpose and objectives
Water scarcity is becoming an increasing problem in Sweden. Reducing the pressure on drinking water systems requires innovative solutions – one of which is recycled water. Despite its potential, the technology is still unknown to many, and there are few pilot projects in Sweden. Therefore, public acceptance needs to be built. This project uses behavioural economic methods to investigate how the acceptance of recycled water can be increased. The starting point is Kalmar Vatten’s new recycling plant, Kalmarsundsverket, which will be commissioned in 2026. There, recycled water will be used internally, but also made available to households and businesses via a “Water Kiosk”, for purposes where high-quality recycled water can replace drinking water. The recycled water from the Kalmarsund plant will be irrigation class A according to the EU classification for agricultural irrigation. It is swimmable and can be used to fill pools and as technical water for various purposes.
In a collaboration between Linnaeus University and Kalmar Vatten, we are investigating how to make the service economically sustainable: How to motivate consumers to use recycled water, and how should it be priced? The answers are crucial to motivate future investments and diffusion of the technology in Sweden.
Expected impacts and results
We are providing new knowledge about public attitudes and perceptions of recycled water in Sweden – an area where there is currently limited information. This knowledge is important to increase the acceptance of recycled water, which in turn is crucial for the technology to be implemented and scaled up as a sustainable solution for future water supply.
The project investigates what types of behavioral nudges are effective in promoting acceptance, thus providing guidance to policy makers. We also study the willingness to pay for recycled water among households and businesses, and how this varies depending on the pricing model. This supports actors such as Kalmar Vatten in developing socially acceptable and economically sustainable pricing models. The results contribute to more efficient use of resources and better management of peak demand, strengthening the resilience of the water supply system. The project is particularly relevant for Kalmar, where new recycling plants are soon to be commissioned, but the results are also transferable to other regions. Moreover, our knowledge of behavioral economic interventions can be applied to other sustainable technologies, strengthening the resilience of society.
Planned approach and implementation
Together with specialists from Kalmar Vatten, behavioral economists from Linnaeus University will design surveys for companies and private households, where the acceptance of recycled water as a product will be measured and influenced by different behavioral nudges (e.g. information provision on water scarcity, properties and uses of recycled water). A special focus will be on companies’ and individuals’ willingness to pay for recycled water under different pricing models.
The text on this page was written by the project team. The content has not been reviewed by our editors.
Goals and tasks
- Resilient supply and management of water in society
- Adapt society to flooding and drought
- Secure supply and management of water
- Wise use of water
- Recycle and reuse water and its resources
- Reduce water usage and leakage
- Sustainable water withdrawals.
