Wellington City Council are looking at 1.8 billion to upgrade our antiquated wastewater/sewerage system (1).
More crippling rates for everyone.
I am not an expert in parabolic solar dishes but the technology is very simple in principle so I am going to make a suggestion.
I wonder if large solar dishes could be used on individual properties, or shared by neighborhoods, to evaporate wastewater by boiling it with concentrated sunlight, instead of spending billions on underground pipes. This would require very little power, mainly pumping of water, which could possibly be done with windmills.
The water could be allowed to escape into the atmosphere, perhaps speeding up cloud formation, which may slow global warming due to increased cloud cover reflecting sunlight back into space. Or perhaps water could be captured and recycled locally as it will have been effectively distilled.
Solid waste would have to be filtered somehow and/ or a composting toilet could be integrated with the system, the main concern here is how to get rid of the great volume of waste liquid most households produce.
I expect this would be a lot cheaper than new pipes if it could work. Perhaps individuals or streets that do it on their own initiative could get a rates reduction for reducing strain on the sewer system, or refuse to pay some of their rates.
It seems likely WCC consultants have not considered this due to professional bias.
Feel free to comment/refute below, especially if you (think you) have expertise in the area.
I have shared this idea with the Wellington City Council, no reply so far.
Reference.
1) https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/509817/almost-half-of-wellington-wastewater-pipes-poor-or-very-poor
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