A toilet in an office or apartment building usually has a simple purpose: waste goes in, water carries it away and the sewage system takes over. In parts of Europe, that routine is being redesigned. Special toilets can separate urine before it is diluted with flushing water, allowing the liquid to be collected inside the building and treated as a source of plant nutrients. The approach is now operating in commercial and residential properties, including the European Space Agency's headquarters in Paris and a major private bank in Geneva. Across several installations, around 3 million litres of urine are being recycled each year. The resulting product can be used as fertiliser, while recovered water can return to the building's flushing system.
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