SMALL-SCALE AND PORTABLE:

A NEW WATERRECYCLING
SYSTEM
FOR TIMES OF DISASTER
In the areas affected by the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake on New Year’s
Day in Japan, a small-scale water recycling system that can reclaim more than
98% of wastewater on site has been contributing to the resolution of water-supply
issues. It boasts a unique, leading-edge water treatment technology, as well as adesign that allows for operation by anyone, anywhere.
In Japan—perennially assaulted
by natural disasters suchas earthquakes and tsunamis—
disaster countermeasures havebeen grounded on past experienceand the latest technologies. Several
new efforts have sprung up since the2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquakethat struck on January 1. According
to Prime Minister KISHIDA
Fumio, “The common threadrunning through these [initiatives]is the power of our bonds, a
traditional strength of the Japanesepeople, intensifying through its
combination with new elements—
with digital fields, startups, newpublic-private collaboration, orresource recycling—to become a
new strength for Japan.”
One leading example is a smallscale water recycling system thatallows people to bathe and washtheir hands in areas with a disrupted
water supply. The WOTA BOX—developed by WOTA Corp., astartup established in 2014—canreclaim over 98% of wastewateron site for repeated, safe reuse.
Although approximately 5,000liters of water are usually neededfor 100 people to shower, WOTA
BOX can reduce that amount toabout 100 liters, or just 2% of theoriginal amount. WOTA’s system
was deployed after the Heavy
Rain Event of 2018 in westernJapan, the Hokkaido Eastern
Iburi Earthquake of the same year,
and even after the Turkey-Syria
Earthquake that occurred in 2023.
On the Noto Peninsula, thesystem has been successfully
introduced to all the places
where the water supply has been
disrupted for extended periods oftime. Some 100 WOTA BOX setswith shower kits and 200 WOSH
handwashing stands equippedwith a similar system have been
installed at evacuation centers andWOTA’s CEO MAEDA Yosuke withthe water-recycling handwashing stand
WOSH (right foreground), released in2020, which is used not only indisaster-affected areas, but also in
public spaces and at event venues.

Left: The WOTA BOX(wheeled white object infront center) is used together
with a shower tent, clotheschanging tent, water tank,
and water heater. It can be set
up by two people in as little as
15 minutes.
Right: Inside the shower tent.
Wastewater that flows under
the ground boards is collected
and repeatedly recycled.

other locations, providing enoughwater for about 6,000 showers and50,000 handwashings daily.
The key features of WOTA’s“small-scale decentralized waterreuse system” are its easy mobility
and universal usability. “As the firstsystem developed was a stationarymodel and hence difficult forpeople in disaster-afflicted areas
to operate by themselves, we could
only partially meet the needs of thepeople affected by the Heavy Rain
Event of 2018 in western Japan.
Learning from that experience, we
proceeded with the developmentof a system that can be operated byanyone, anywhere,” said WOTA’s
CEO MAEDA Yosuke.
While high-precision watertreatment processes typicallyrequire complex adjustments byskilled professionals, WOTA has
successfully developed a uniquealgorithm for optimal watertreatment control using digitaltechnology, and has realized
automation. The system can beoperated through a comprehensive
touch panel, constantly displaying
the water-supply levels as well as
the condition of consumable parts
such as filters, and its compact bodymoves easily atop small wheels.
Thanks to those functionalities,
autonomous operation is being
widely practiced in Noto, withpeople able to operate it bythemselves at evacuation centersand medical and welfare facilities
where the system is installed.
When the prime minister visitedthe area in mid-January, a middle
school student involved in thesystem’s operation at an evacuationcenter explained to him how easy
it was to operate. “This heartening
interaction showed me just how
much things have changed since
2018,” said Maeda.
WOTA’s system also has thepotential to solve various water
challenges other than those arisingthrough disasters. Even in areas
with scarce water resources orwhere water-supply infrastructure
has not been developed widely,or where water infrastructure
is difficult to maintain due topopulation decline, it can provide astable supply of safe water without

the need for water and sewersystems. Maeda said, “In recentyears, we have been getting anincreasing number of requests toimplement our systems in houses
for everyday residential use.”
The system’s social application
has already begun on a remoteisland in Tokyo Prefecture, as
well as in depopulated areasin Ehime Prefecture, and theimplementation of projects
overseas has been planned,
including one in Antigua andBarbuda, an island country in
the Caribbean. “The idea that
local people can solve local
water problems themselves—that’s what is essential for quick
and sustainable solutions to water
issues. We wish to provide theworld with new systems to ensurethat happens.”

Top left: A middle school student carrying out maintenance on
the inside of a WOTA BOX at an evacuation center in Noto.
Top right: The WOTA BOX with shower kits set up at an evacuation
center in Noto. Depending on the environment, essentially, it canbe installed in a space of just four meters by two meters.
Bottom right: The water-recycling handwashing stand WOSH
installed at the entrance of an evacuation center in Noto.