Resource-oriented sanitation and the SDGs: a target-level interaction assessment in the Austrian context

Resource-oriented sanitation (ROS) is increasingly discussed as an innovative approach for circular resource use, yet its cross-sectoral sustainability implications are rarely assessed at the level of specific Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets. An expert-based scoring approach adapted from Nilsson et al. (2016) was applied within the Austrian UniNEtZ project to assess interactions between ROS and 123 SDG targets. The analysis identified 42 non-neutral interactions, particularly related to water management, nutrient cycling, food production, resource efficiency, health, innovation, and governance. ROS has the potential to improve water quality and reduce pollution loads through direct sanitation pathways as well as indirect effects linked to the reuse of reclaimed water and nutrients, with decentralised and nature-based solutions representing important implementation pathways. The identified interactions were contextualised through a food-system perspective to examine cross-sectoral pathways relevant for integrated governance and policy-relevant sustainability assessment in infrastructure-mature contexts.