Food production and decentralised sanitation in the living environment

Abstract

As the housing shortage in the Netherlands is rapidly increasing, hence the need to develop more housing is as well. It is needed to make these new houses more sustainable to honour the Paris climate agreement. It is known how to make buildings energy neutral. To push further the development of a sustainable urban environment research is done by investigating shortening the transport into the urban environment to a minimum by implementing food production and black water sanitation on site. Based on data provided by the Dutch nutrition centre (Voedingscentrum), the amount of food needed is calculated and divided in what could be feasible to produce within a neighbourhood and is translated to 36 m2 per capita. Blackwater and organic waste are produced and digested on site. Biogas forms from organic waste and biosolids and can provide a potential energy of 626,1 kWh per capita. Ammonia and fertiliser can be harvested with a struvite reactor and has a potential of 20,5 kWh per capita, and the struvite harvested is 474,5g per capita per year. A total of 646,6 kWh per capita is gained