Water reuse has the potential to substantially reduce the demand on groundwater and surface water. This study presents a method to evaluate the potential of water reuse schemes in a regional context and demonstrates how water reuse propagates through the water system and potentially reduces pressure on groundwater resources. The use of Sankey diagram visualisation provides a valuable tool to explore and evaluate regional application of water reuse, its potential to reduce groundwater and surface water demand, and the possible synergies and trade-offs between sectors. The approach is demonstrated for the Dutch anthropogenic water system in the current situation and for a future scenario with increased water demand and reduced water availability due to climate change. Four types of water reuse are evaluated by theoretically upscaling local or regional water reuse schemes based on local reuse examples currently in operation in the Netherlands or Flanders: municipal and industrial wastewater effluent reuse for irrigation, effluent reuse for industrial applications, and reuse for groundwater replenishment. In all cases, water reuse has the potential to significantly reduce groundwater extraction volume, and thus to alleviate the pressure on the groundwater system. The water-quantity based analysis is placed in the context of water quality demands, health and safety aspects, technological requirements, regulations, public perception, and its net impact on the environment. This integrative context is essential for a successful implementation of water reuse in practice.

水回用有可能大幅减少对地下水和地表水的需求。本研究提出了一种在区域范围内评估水回用计划潜力的方法，并展示了水回用如何通过水系统传播并潜在地减少对地下水资源的压力。桑基图可视化的使用为探索和评估水资源再利用的区域应用、其减少地下水和地表水需求的潜力以及各部门之间可能的协同作用和权衡提供了一种宝贵的工具。该方法适用于荷兰人为水系统在当前情况下以及由于气候变化导致用水需求增加和可用水量减少的未来情景。根据目前在荷兰或法兰德斯运营的当地再利用示例，通过理论上升级当地或区域水再利用计划，对四种类型的水再利用进行了评估：市政和工业废水再利用用于灌溉、废水再利用用于工业应用，以及再利用用于地下水补充. 在所有情况下，中水回用都有可能显着减少地下水抽取量，从而减轻地下水系统的压力。基于水量的分析是在水质要求、健康和安全方面、技术要求、法规、公众认知及其对环境的净影响的背景下进行的。这种综合环境对于在实践中成功实施水再利用至关重要。