Predicting community behaviour in relation to wastewater reuse
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This report is part of the Water for a Healthy Country National Research Flagship, a research partnership between CSIRO, state and federal governments, private and public industry and other research providers. It details the results of a three-year investigation which aimed to develop a measurement of prediction of community behaviour with relation to the reuse of different types of wastewater for different uses.
The report investigates the discrepancy between community support of water reuse, and community rejection of technically sound schemes for such reuse. The research program it details was designed to investigate, identify, measure and test the major factors influencing people’s decisions about whether to use recycled water for different uses or whether to reject it.
The investigation included conducting a social experiment in which people were asked to drink "recycled water" and eat horticultural produce grown with "recycled water". Findings confirmed those of previous research, that the closer the personal contact, the less acceptable the use. However, it also appeared that being exposed to the experiment also reduced acceptance.
Among the investigation's findings:
- Trust and emotions were shown to be involved in people’s decisions to accept or reject the reuse situations; emotions are often the mahor reason for the failure of past schemes to gain public acceptance
- Other variables can be used to temper these emotions, such as increasing trust in the authorities, and increasing the influence of "others"
- Surprisingly, health risks were not significant in decisions
- Knowledge did not emerge as a factor in people's decisions to accept produce grown with recycled water; however, the provision of comprehensive and open information is a factor in engendering trust, so the role of knowledge should not be totally discounted
- The more strongly people felt an obligation to protect the environment, the more positive their attitudes to buying produce grown with recycled water