Grey2Green

Grey2Green is a decentralized system that collects, treats, and reuses grey water from bathroom sinks. As a result, there are freshwater savings, optimization of greywater quality, and familiarization with greywater reuse.

Accelerated and disorderly urban growth has affected water resources. Domestic wastewater is one of the sources of water contamination in Guatemala. The Metropolitan Area of Guatemala has an estimated population of 5,103,685, which generates about 1540 million cubic meters of wastewater annually. Treatment plants (centralized systems) can treat only 13.9% of the wastewater. The most polluted rivers by wastewater in the metropolitan area are the Villalobos River(which receives 60% of urban wastewater) and the Las Vacas River(which receives the remaining 40%). The Villalobos river connects with Lake Amatitlan, receiving 500,000 tons of sediment per year, this sediment includes the waste of cleaning and hygiene products with nutrients(the loads generated in a 1-person household are 120,000 mg of nitrogen and 40,000 mg of phosphorus per week) that cause eutrophication.  Eutrophication is a process caused by the excess of nutrients that causes a vegetative explosion of algae (phytoplankton). The algae demand oxygen and this prevents it from being adequately distributed throughout the ecosystem. As a consequence, there are bad odors that can cause economic losses, respiratory problems, and sanitary problems. In the face of ever-increasing demand, there is a need for decreasing the distribution of nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) and pollutants from domestic wastewater. Decentralized systems can be a medium-term solution pending the large-scale design of centralized systems. Grey2Green is a decentralized system that collects, treats, and reuses grey water from bathroom sinks. System generated to take advantage of greywater and avoid dumping it, converting it from waste to a resource for irrigation of non-edible plants in the house.

Grey2Green is a decentralized system that collects, treats, and reuses grey water from bathroom sinks. Grey2Green is a system with three components, the water diverter at the sink, the collection container, and the treatment system. The collection of gray water is by a diverter system installed in the sink piping, consisting of a T-connection connected to a ball valve carrying the gray water to the collection container. The user carries the filled collection container to the location of the treatment system and the gray water is poured into it. Bioremediation is the type of treatment performed in the system (the substrate and vegetation are the agents that eliminate contaminants). The treated water goes to the lower container with a valve that allows extracting the treated water to the watering can. The system can collect and treat 168 liters of greywater per month, eliminating the use of freshwater in irrigation to 0 liters. It also prevents 40 mg/l of phosphorus from being discharged into the wastewater. As a result, there are freshwater savings, optimization of greywater quality, and familiarization with greywater reuse.

In Guatemala City, upper and middle-class residential areas have the highest water demand, therefore, it is also the area that generates the most wastewater. The project seeks to raise awareness among this group of people and reduce the negative impact of their water pollution habits. The objective is to mitigate pollution through reuse activities. In Guatemala, there is a regulation on wastewater discharge and reuse that authorizes only irrigation activities for wastewater reuse. In irrigation with reused water, greywater has a priority as contaminants are lower and health risks are lower. Younger generations(25-55 years) are more aware of the ecological impact of the products they use, and also are willing to pay more for sustainable products. In this generation, 7 in 10 consider themselves "plant parents." Plant parents have an average of 30 plants and water 3-4 days a week using 7-9 liters. The population from 25-55 years old in residential areas is 447,032. With the system, the user saves 168 liters of potable water for irrigation per month. If the target group (447,032 people) uses the system, the water demand decreases by 75,101 m³ per month. The gray water from the sink contains 40 mg/l of phosphorus. If the user collects 168 liters per month, the distribution of 6720 mg of phosphorus is reduced by 3,004,058 grams with the target group. The Treatment Plants use 2.46 per kWh/m³. If the target group (447,032 people) uses the system,75,101 m³ are not necessary to be treated, decreasing 184,750 kWh of energy. The use of this system not only benefits the target group but also the population of the metropolitan area(3,015,081 people). It reduces water pollution, water demand and energy used in treatment plants. Grey2Green is guided by the three axes of sustainability (planet, economy, and society). It is applied through the choice of materials that reduce waste generation (green production), improves water quality, and reduce phosphorus discharge in watersheds (standard of living) and the user becomes familiar with the negative impact their waste can have on aquatic ecosystems (ecological awareness). It also focuses on the Sustainable Development Goals, clean water and sanitation (Goal 6), and responsible production and consumption (Goal 12). 

My interest in designing and producing with a positive impact on the three dimensions of sustainability (social, economic, and environmental) has led me to learn and explore the fundamentals of circular economy, sustainable business, and innovation for sustainability. The fusion between industrial design and sustainability allows me to innovate and propose solutions focused on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While designing solutions that meet society's needs, I believe that the way we produce and manufacture today shapes the world we will inhabit tomorrow.

Decisions in the design process were made according to the reuse activities allowed in the country, greywater composition, user characteristics, water use, user opinions, and parameters for water reuse. The user does not implement existing recycling systems because they require large land areas, a change in infrastructure is needed, and health risks. The bathroom sink is an appropriate area to reuse water since it does not contain organic residues and greases, thus speeding up the treatment process. The amount of water generated in the bathroom sink (14 liters) is adequate for what is needed in the irrigation activity (7-9 liters), avoiding the stagnation of greywater. The bathroom sink also has an external pipe that allows intervening on the outside to extract the greywater without structural changes in the house. The choice of the type of treatment to be given is made based on the irrigation parameters for non-food crops where the TSS and BOD should be at 30 mg/l. The target audience is plant parents from 25-55 years old. During the design process, the proposal was shown to the target audience and based on their comments, improvements were made in terms of aesthetics, volume, gray water exposure, and ergonomics. With these improvements, a final solution was reached and shown to the target public. The final proposal had a positive acceptance and the target audience described Grey2Green as a simple system that generates a positive impact on the environment. Most felt that the system is simple to install and does not require structural changes to the home which may make more people want to implement it. Grey2Green can help raise awareness about the importance of watershed stewardship and help people feel familiar with greywater.

Disruptive innovation is defined as a process by which an existing solution is transformed. Domestic greywater treatment by bioremediation is generally implemented with engineered wetlands and engineered wastewater treatment systems that mimic natural habitats. Implementing artificial wetlands requires large land spaces and internal structural changes to household plumbing. This is a constraint for users and decreases interest in implementing greywater reuse systems. Grey2Green is a biotechnology-based system that uses living organisms to reduce pollutants in greywater for subsequent reuse. The system is designed to require no structural changes to the home and large land spaces. It proposes a solution to treat gray water with the accessibility of installation and use that motivates the user to implement it.

The 9 Technology Readiness Levels (TRL) are an international tool to measure the maturity level of a technology. Grey2Green has reached level 3 (experimental proof of concept), where actual research and development, including laboratory studies and measurements to validate analytical predictions, are initiated. The next step is continuing with the testing with prototypes to reach TRL 9 (proven system/model ready for full commercial deployment). With the above, the product can enter the market with its first production batch and start with the impact of raising awareness of water pollution and changing reuse habits in the Guatemalan population. 

The treatment of greywater used is biotechnology called bioremediation. Bioremediation broadly refers to any process wherein a biological system (typically bacteria, microalgae, fungi, and plants), living or dead, is employed for removing environmental pollutants from the air, water, soil, flue gasses, industrial effluents, etc., in natural or artificial settings. The natural ability of organisms to adsorb, accumulate, and degrade common and emerging pollutants has attracted the use of biological resources in the treatment of the contaminated environment. Different plants can treat water. The chosen plant Zantedeschia(Calla Lilies) can remove 80% of TSS and 80% of BOD. The greywater from the sink has 89.2 mg/l TSS and 113.87 mg/l BOD, with a pH of 7.2 respectively. The chosen type of treatment removes 80% of TSS and 80% of BOD. Thus, the treated water is left with 17.8 mg/l of TSS and 27.74 mg/l of BOD, complying with the parameters of both, which have to have a maximum of 30 mg/l.

I haven't launched my solution, but I expect to serve 100 the next year. The target audience is 447,032 people, but in my first year in the market, I want to focus on 100 to analyze how the user interacts with the product and how their habits can be changed.

The current national wastewater reuse regulation has several deficiencies, the categories of wastewater reuse and the involvement of the Ministry of Public Health have decreased. Also, the project so far has been carried out with individual research+development, the union with other entities could boost the scalability and adaptation of this treatment to different contexts.

Sustainability competitions: Green product award and Premios Verdes. Participation in sustainability competitions allows me to receive new opinions about the project to continue to evolve and scale it to the next level.

Grey2Green is a born-circular design focused on repairability, upgradability, reusability, ease of disassembly, reconditioning, and recyclability of all components. In the linear economy, companies sell products to the next in line and the primary interest is in selling as many new products as possible. Grey2Green's business model is designed so it can have a continuing income stream throughout the product’s usage cycles. The goal is to maximize both lifespan and utilization, by increasing the value extracted from products before they are discarded. By reusing materials from obsolete or damaged products,  purchasing raw materials can be avoided and input production costs decrease. When goods are disposed of less often, less material ends up in landfills. In addition, not producing as many new products conserves energy and reduces pollution and harmful products created through the manufacturing process. 

The mission of Grey2Green is to reduce water pollution and to make people aware that their habits can make positive changes to the planet. The financial sustainability is going to be by making a profit by selling the product and a percentage of the profit is going to be related to the organization's mission. This percentage can be used for activities of cleaning water bodies, water pollution workshops, etc. For the construction of the first prototypes, an initial investment is needed, which will be covered by the profits from the sale of the first production. After the initial investment is covered, the cost of the product will be only focused on covering the production costs.