Assessing Wastewater Management in the Developing Countries of Southeast Asia: Underlining Flexibility in Appropriateness

Abstract

The majority of the Southeast Asian region is composed of developing countries with urban, peri-urban, and rural areas whose anticipated change in wastewater treatment demand necessitates improvement in wastewater management. The narrative relating to the present scenario has been constructed via a rapid review structure using various literature concerning the state of wastewater management in the Southeast Asian region. Existing wastewater technology systems in the region have been studied in order to identify challenges in improving wastewater management. Several barriers across technology systems have been identified which shows that offering either centralised, decentralised, or cluster technology systems as one solution is not enough to address changing future demands for wastewater treatment. Thus, flexibility has been identified through the discussion as a key concept for proposing technology systems in regions where future demands require solutions in the present. We propose that investments in wastewater management in the developing countries of Southeast Asia require a perspective that focuses not only on what is appropriate for the present demand but also for the future.