German American Water Technology Magazine 2015/2016

German American Water Technology Magazine

2015/2016

Featuring Our Country Special: Canada

New Approaches & Technologies For Tackling Emerging Pollutants In Drinking & Wastewater

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Water in Pennsylvania

Wastewater Recycling & Reuse In Shale Gas Drilling

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We don’t just make business prosper. We make history.Filled with top talent and progressive water technology brands, Minnesota was recently named the top state for business in 2015 by CNBC.

It’s a place where business and people prosper. Learn more at greatermsp.org

®

3German American Water Technology Magazine 2015/2016

I am honored to share the 2015 edition of our German-American Water Technology Magazine with you. Since its launch in 2012, GACC Midwest’s German American Water Technology (GAWT) Initiative has traveled to many cities throughout the U.S. and Germany. Our GAWT Expert Roundtables series has already visited dozens of states across the Midwest and beyond. In 2015 our travels have taken us to Indianapolis to WWETT and Minneapolis/St. Paul.

The challenges of today’s aging water infrastructure are pressing. We are proud that the GAWT Initiative has developed into a sought-after platform for knowledge sharing and for the identification of industry best practices in the water sector. Germany and the U.S. are both important markets in the water industry, and we work together to tackle challenges with global implications.

For the country special in this edition, I would like to take you on a brief excursion to Canada – a country containing about 60% of all the lakes in the world. Learn more about how our North American neighbor country uses leading technologies to improve energy and water efficiency.

I would like to thank all of our sponsors, supporters, contributors, speakers, event attendees and everyone who has helped GACC Midwest shape this initiative and make it as dynamic and productive as it is. Our special thanks go to the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany Chicago and German Water Partnership for their support in the U.S. and Germany.

GACC Midwest is excited to keep up with the current and continue the GAWT Initiative in 2016 and beyond – fostering exchange between our countries, finding further synergies, and launching innovative technologies to tap all opportunities the water sector has to offer.

Chicago, October 2015

Welcome

Mark Tomkins

President & CEO

German American Chamber of Commerce of the Midwest, Inc.

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WelcomeMark Tomkins, President & CEO, GACC Midwest Fueling Progress In The German & American Water Industries Since 2012 GACC Midwest

U.S. Demand For Water Treatment Technologies On The RiseChristian Janetzke, Germany Trade & Invest

Indiana Stresses Collaboration And Innovative Approaches To Address Water Infrastructure And Technology IssuesErik Hromadka, Global Water Technologies

Granular Activated Carbon For Treatment Of Algal ToxinsCalgon Carbon Corporation

Photoionization For Plant Odor Control: Cleaner Air, Lower Energy CostsOliver G. Augustin, NEUTRALOX ® Umwelttechnik GmbH

Transforming Wastewater Biosolids Into A New ProductWater Equipment and Policy (WEP) Research Center

Water in PennsylvaniaPennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development

Wastewater Recycling And Reuse In Shale Gas DrillingTom Lewis, President & CTO, Lewis Environmental Services

Implementing Sustainable and Resilient Energy Initiatives in Water and Sewer Systems: City of Grand Rapids, MIDr. Haris Alibašić

Sustainable Solutions For Full Nutrient Removal At The Blue Plains WWTP In Washington DCINVENT Environmental Technologies, Inc.

Adopting Advanced Water Technology In The Water StateTimothy Nolan, Sustainable Development Expert State of Minnesota

German Water And Wastewater Technology – In Use All Over The WorldPeter Gebhart, VDMA

The German Water Sector: Secure Water Supply, Wastewater Collection and TreatmentGerman Water Partnership e.V.

Country Special: CANADA - The Canadian Water Sector Anna-Lena Gruenagel, Canadian German Chamber of Industry and Commerce Inc.

Online Water Monitoring Prevents Deposits, Saving Facilities ThousandsTilman Heyl, CEO, Heyl Brothers North America

Emerging Contaminants Regulations In The United StatesRichard Radcliff, Beam, Longest & Neff

Water And The New UrgencyE. W. Bob Boulware, P.E., MBA

Promoting Innovation Through The Assessment Of Changes In Fresh Water Ecosystem Services: The DESSIN ESS Evaluation FrameworkGerardo Anzaldua, Ecologic Institute; Nadine Vanessa Gerner,

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Emschergenossenschaft; Sarah Beyer, Ecologic Institute; Manuel Lago, Ecologic Institute; Issa Nafo, Emschergenossenschaft; Sebastian Birk, University of Duisburg-Essen

State Of The Art Sewage Sludge Handling, Drying, And IncinerationINTEC Engineering GmbH

Putting The O In Advanced Oxidative ProcessesMichael Mangham, Premier Materials Technology, Inc.

New Approaches & Technologies For Tackling Emerging Pollutants In Drinking & WastewaterUlf Stein, Evelyn Lukat, Anna Bee Szendrenyi, Ecologic Institute

Upcoming GACC Midwest Programs 2015/2016GACC Midwest

DE Services - Take Your Business Global - Now!GACC Midwest

The German American Chambers Of Commerce Network GACC Midwest

ImprintPublisher & Editor

German American Chamber of Commerce of the Midwest, Inc.321 North Clark Street, Suite 1425Chicago, IL 60654-4714Tel.: +1 (312) 644-2662 | Fax: +1 (312) 644-0738 Email: [email protected] | URL: www.gaccmidwest.org

Conception & TextDominique Lellek, Nadine Schieban, Svenja Schroeder, Matthew Uber

Layout & DesignNadine Schieban

Notes© German American Chamber of Commerce® of the Midwest, Inc., October 2015

Reproduction in whole or in part of any article is prohibited without permission. Editor and publisher cannot accept any liability for the accuracy or completeness of any material published. Contributed articles do not necessarily reflect the Chamber’s position.

If you have any comments regarding articles in this magazine, please contact us.

Table Of Contents

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Fueling Progress In The German & American Water Industries Since 2012

Water is crucial for many industries, including paper manufacturing, food processing, agriculture, and energy generation. At some level, the entire economy is affected by changes in the water sector, and depends on a well-functioning, efficient, and sustainable water infrastructure.

Water infrastructure issues, a lack of funding, the trend towards more sustainable solutions, and the need for investment in the U.S. water sector have been the topic of innumerable articles and reports from associations and organizations such as the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Center for Neighborhood Technologies, and the American Water Works Association.

The urgency of these issues and the potential for action and collaboration inspired GACC Midwest to tackle the challenges facing the water sector as part of our dedicated mission to promote and support trade and investment between the U.S. and Germany. Given that Germany and the U.S. are two of the most innovative countries globally when it comes to water technologies, and Germany is well-known for its best practice technologies in the sustainability field, we at GACC Midwest saw an exciting opportunity to extend our services to companies in the water sector.

Our sizeable and robust German American business network, combined with our technical and market insider knowledge, allowed us to create the German American

Water Technology (GAWT) Initiative in 2012.

We started out with nothing more than a list of seven contacts from the U.S. water sector – and within just two years, we have already achieved major successes:

• Our water contact list has grown to over 1,000 individuals in the U.S. and Germany

• We have partnered with globally-recognized organizations in the water sector including German Water Partnership, the Council of Great Lakes Governors, and the Water Council

• We have traveled throughout the U.S. to host expert roundtables in 9 cities in 9 different states

• We have taken U.S. delegations to Germany and German delegations to the U.S. to promote collaboration and knowledge sharing in the water sector.

The GAWT initiative on the road

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The GAWT Initiative has enjoyed another successful year from 2014 to 2015. One of this year’s highlights was the Transatlantic Water Tech Conference in Minneapolis, MN, which was held in May to discuss efficient water infrastructure and innovative wastewater management as a driver for a healthy local economy. This event was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy and conducted with the assistance of German Water

in the German and U.S. water markets, and discovered innovative products and technologies from Germany.

GACC Midwest also arranged for the delegates from the eight German firms

GACC Midwest is currently preparing for our presence at WEFTEC, North America’s largest water technology trade show, taking place in Chicago from September 26-30, 2015. We invite you to join us on this special occasion at our 2nd WEFTEC International Night Reception taking place on September 28 to network, mingle, and celebrate the continued and future successes of our GAWT Initiative. For more information on our International Night Reception at WEFTEC, contact Svenja Schroeder, schroeder(at)gaccmidwest.org.

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Partnership, Greater MSP, and the Minnesota Trade Office.

With a final count of over 40 participants, the conference welcomed a wide array of local and international expert speakers and company representatives from the American and German water sectors. Attendees learned about new wastewater management & water infrastructure solutions, heard about the latest developments and trends

participating in the Transatlantic Water Tech Conference to take part in B2B meetings throughout the week with Minneapolis-St.Paul region businesses engaged in water infrastructure and wastewater management. The delegates were also treated to a site visit tour of the Seneca Wastewater Treatment Plant in Eagan, MN, and a tour of the University of Minnesota. They also had the opportunity to take part in a luncheon with German Ambassador to the United States Dr. Peter Wittig at the Minneapolis Club during the week of their visit.

Together with our initiative partners in Germany and the U.S., we are currently developing ideas for new projects in 2016 – including transatlantic delegation programs, expert roundtables, conferences, and much more. If you are interested in hosting an event with us, or if you would like us to bring the GAWT Initiative to your city, please contact Nadine Schieban, schieban(at)gaccmidwest.org.

For more information on our GAWT Initiative, visit our website at: www.gaccmidwest.org/water

German Delegates and Conference Speakers at the Transatlantic Water Technology Conference, May 2015

Transatlantic Water Technology Conference, May 2015

Campus Tour at the University of Minnesota, May 2015

Site Visit at Seneca Wastewater Treatment plant, May 2015

7German American Water Technology Magazine 2015/2016 7

U.S. Demand For Water Treatment Technologies On The Rise Article by Christian Janetzke, Germany Trade & Invest; Translation from German by Sandy Jones, GACC New York

Membrane and disinfection systems see high demand, focus remains on recycling in the dry south

According to the market research institute Freedonia, demand for water and wastewater treatment technologies increased by 7.4% in 2014, to US $11.6 billion. The market is expected to continue increasing significantly in the medium term --though at a slightly reduced rate.

Projected demand for the most important product segments (in millions of US$):

The market is dominated by conventional filters. Approx. 52% of the value-based demand was attributable to such filters. The filter market is heavily saturated and research and development activities are rather low in this area. However, demand

is likely to increase in the coming years, primarily due to the continued & increasing need for municipal wastewater treatment. The market research institute Bluefield predicts that the amount of water treated in municipal plants will increase by 61%

*) average annual percent change from 2014 to 2019 | Source: Freedonia Group

Products 2014 2019 % Change *)Demand in total 11,620 15,000 5.2

Conventional filters 6,020 7,350 4.1

Membrane technology 3,590 4,900 6.4

Desinfection technology 980 1,400 7.4

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between 2015 and 2025. Many treatment plants have already been in use for decades. Operators will have to invest heavily in new technology and equipment to continue operations, reports Vanessa Leiby, managing director of the Water & Wastewater Equipment Manufacturers Association (WWEMA).

Such plant upgrades will be costly. In California, for instance, the state Environmental Protection Agency has enacted more stringent standards for the quality of treated water in recent years. In order to comply with the regulations, the cost to the Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District to build a state-of-the-art water treatment plant was approximately $2.0 billion.

High dynamics in the segment for reverse osmosis membranes

In the filters segment, market experts predict the strongest growth to be in the area of filter cartridges in the coming years. Sand filtration, however, is losing its significance and is increasingly being replaced by new technologies.

The need for membrane systems and sanitation systems in particular is likely to increase significantly in the coming years. Environmental technology companies make technological progress in these segments at a rapid speed (for example, in high-quality, durable reverse osmosis membranes). According to the market research institute Frost & Sullivan, operators of water treatment plants will increasingly convert their often outdated membrane systems to reverse osmosis.

Desalination is the fastest-growing application of membrane systems, says Freedonia. Important impulses will come from both the industry and the energy sector in the next couple of years. Increased interest in membrane bioreactors (combining a biological wastewater treatment with

membrane technology) will also drive demand.

Industry sector with a high demand in disinfection technologies

The demand for disinfection technology (especially UV systems) is increasing as customers of various sectors increasingly elect to forgo the expenses required for chemical disinfection, which include transport and storage of chemicals. Concurrently, the effectiveness of UV disinfection systems is increasing. In addition, dynamics in the construction sector as well as the increasing demand for pools and saunas have driven the need for disinfection technology, reported Freedonia.

In the industrial sector, analysts expect the highest growth in demand in the medium term, following advancements in treatment technologies in the food and beverage industry as well as in the pharmaceutical sector. These industries face strict requirements regarding water purity and quality. Market experts also assume an increasing need in the metal industry as well as in the chemical industry.

The trend towards “zero liquid discharge” is a growth driver for membrane and disinfection systems, according to Leiby. More and more companies are striving to operate without the discharge of wastewater, focusing instead on “closed loop” processes: with sufficient treatment, industrial wastewater can be effectively recycled and reused within the same plant.

Projected demand for the most important customer segments (in millions of US$):

Lower demand in oil and gas industry

The oil and gas industry has provided significant impetus for sustained, expansive market development in the realm of wastewater technologies in the past three years, reports Leiby. The shale gas industry is increasingly under pressure to extensively recycle wastewater that has been filled with heavy metals and partially radioactive substances in the course of fracking operations. Thus, operators of treatment plants are increasingly equipping their systems with new technology tailored to the needs of the industry sector, such as in Pennsylvania where, in recent years, numerous industrial wastewater plants have been constructed in close proximity to fracking locations.

In the dry locations in the south and southwest, widespread water shortages have resulted in fracking being viewed as costly and unpopular, says Leiby. Additionally, the relatively low price of oil by comparison has limited the development of fracking projects. According to Leiby, demand for wastewater technologies has decreased accordingly since the summer of 2014.

In the field of power generation, market impulses could come from new regulations from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the medium term, according to Leiby. The EPA has planned for stricter requirements to be established with regard to dissolved substances, especially the toxic metals from industrial processes that may be discharged into surface waters.

Segments 2014 2019 Changes *)Cities/municipalities for municipal treatment of water

and wastewater

6,050 7,510 4.4

Industry 2,350 3,100 5.7

Construction sector 1,400 1,845 5.7

Resource extraction 1,245 1,865 8.4

Power generation 420 472 2.4

*) average annual percent rate of change from 2014 to 2019 | Source: Freedonia Group


Strong interest in technologies for the recycling of water

Many municipalities and cities in the southern United States are affected by seasonally occurring droughts. Drought periods threaten drinking water supplies and have driven the demand for new technologies. California in particular is facing great challenges to maintain its drinking water supply in the medium term. Recycling of wastewater is thus increasing in importance, and Orange County has been a pioneer in this regard.

A treatment plant in Orange County built in 2008 has been recycling wastewater in a 3-step process so thoroughly that it becomes suitably safe for reintroduction into the drinking water supply. In February 2015, the capacity of this plant was increased by about 30% to 100 million gallons (1 gallon = 3.79 l) of drinking water per day (gpd). The investment cost for this extension amounted to approximately US$140 million.

A similar project is in development by the City of San Diego. For US$3.5 billion, a plant with a capacity of 83 million gpd is to be built for the recycling of wastewater, using the Orange County plant as an example. By 2035, about one-third of the drinking water supply of the city will be met by this system.

Moreover, at the state level in general, California has set lofty goals. In 2014, the annual amount of treated wastewater amounted to 0.7 million acre feet (1 acre feet = 43.560 cubic feet). By 2030, this number will be mandated to rise to 2.5 million acre feet. According to calculations from the information portal “Circle of Blue,” investments between US$13 billion and US$81 billion will be required for the realization of this goal.

Rising demand for equipment for desalination plants

More and more desalination plants, especially in California, Florida and Texas,

are built for the abstraction of drinking water. Close to the town of Carlsbad (California), the largest water desalination plant of the country, with a capacity of 50 million gpd, will cover 10% of the drinking water needs of San Diego County in 2016. The investment amounts to approximately US$1 billion. The operator of the plant, Poseidon Resources Corp., has entered into a 30-year agreement with the San Diego County Water Authority regarding water supply.

On the part of the operators of desalination plants, the need for ultra and micro filtration membranes is increasing in order to comply with the EPA regulations regarding the quality of drinking water (“Safe Drinking Water Act”). Especially given breakthroughs in the very energy-intensive process of the desalination of sea water in the medium term, the demand for innovative, energy-efficient membrane technologies will increase significantly.

Links

• AmericanWaterWorksAssociationInternet:www.awwa.org

• WaterandWastewaterEquipmentManufacturersAssociationInternet:www.wwema.org

• EnvironmentalProtectionAgency(EPA)Internet:http://water.epa.gov

• AssociationofStateDrinkingWaterAdministratorsInternet:www.asdwa.org

• WaterWorld(informationportal)Internet:www.waterworld.com

• GermanAmericanChambersofCommerce(AHKUnitedStates)Internet:www.ahk-usa.com

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Better coordination of water policy, innovative approaches and adoption of new technologies are gaining support to improve water supply and infrastructure in the state of Indiana, which is home to 6.5 million people with diverse water sources and needs.

The state’s water resources range from the sandy shores of Lake Michigan in the northwest to rivers that flow across the flat central part of the state to the hilly regions of the Ohio River that serves as its southern border. Drinking water in Indiana is provided by some 555 water utilities of various types, including investor-owned, municipal and not-for-profit entities, across 92 counties.

As is common in the United States, regulation of water is decentralized and state agencies with such responsibilities include the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM), Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC), Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) and Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH). However, a greater emphasis on

Indiana Stresses Collaboration And Innovative Approaches To Address Water Infrastructure And Technology IssuesErik Hromadka, Global Water Technologies

collaboration is taking place in Central Indiana with city and utility leaders.

Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard, who has served as Co-Chair of the U.S. Conference of Mayors Water Council, cites progress in water infrastructure as one of the most significant accomplishments during his two terms. As an example, he notes the transfer of the city’s water and wastewater utilities to Citizens Energy Group, a public charitable trust that is now the state’s largest water and wastewater utility. Citizens is now making significant investments to upgrade its infrastructure, including a massive $1.6 billion underground tunnel system that has been expanded to store 250 million gallons of wastewater below the city.

That tunnel system, known as “DigIndy,” was part of a city agreement with U.S. EPA to reduce combined sewer and storm water overflows by 2025. In the past, as little as 0.25 inches of rain on the flat city topography could exceed sewer capacity and cause overflows into the White River. “We’re

building 28 miles of tunnels that will prevent sewage overflows from polluting our rivers and streams. Over the next two years, our investments will support more than 13,000 good-paying jobs to help fuel economic development in our community,” said Jeff Harrison, who became CEO of Citizens Energy Group in July. The combined water, wastewater and natural gas utility serves 800,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in Central Indiana.

Such infrastructure improvements are also creating new awareness of water issues in Indianapolis, including Reconnecting Our Waterways, a grassroots effort that has drawn dozens of organizations to use a collective impact model to improve neighborhoods by better appreciating water resources. Another effort in Indianapolis is a “living laboratory” model that has been organized by Global Water Technologies in partnership with Indiana University – Purdue University at Indianapolis, the urban campus of the state’s leading research institutions.

The living laboratory concept seeks to demonstrate the benefits of new technologies by deploying them in a real-world setting where results can be monitored and shared with other utilities in the state. Initial efforts are focusing in better water usage data tools, advanced leak detection and pipeline rehabilitation methods developed in Europe and the United States.

One area identified for the living lab runs along a new corridor just northwest of downtown Indianapolis that is being Repurposing a limestone quarry as a new reservoir will secure Central Indiana’s water supply for 15 years.


planned to highlight the state’s strength in technology. This “16 Tech” initiative began to take shape in the past year after property from the city’s former water company headquarters had been made available for a major mixed-use development expected to include a world-class bioresearch institute and technology space. State and private funding totaling $50 million has been pledged for this effort.

Another innovative effort to address future water supply issues in Central Indiana involved the unusual approach of creating a major new water source by flooding an 88-acre stone quarry to repurpose it into a new reservoir. The 230 feet deep quarry is expected to hold 2.7 billion gallons and provide water for more than 15 years of future growth in the region.

At an Indiana Water Summit held over the summer, collaboration in the state was also

a major topic, with the announcement of a regional planning initiative involving several utilities and communities. The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission also announced a fall billing symposium to identify best practices and better service for utility customers, and state legislators have highlighted the need to leverage opportunities with regional water clusters which drive local innovation in water technologies.

“I believe today represents material progress in how we put water at the center of economic development,” said Indiana Governor Mike Pence at the summit, as he signed several new state laws to monitor the state’s water supply and better enable water infrastructure funding. “Our water resources are a vital part of our future economic success.”

Erik Hromadka is the CEO of Global Water Technologies, a company based in Indiana that is developing solutions to improve water efficiency. More information about the company is available at: gwtr.com

A major development along the White River just northwest of downtown Indianapolis, the 16 Tech initiative highlights Indiana’s strength in technology and life sciences.

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Washington, Nebraska and Florida.

In 2013, an international research team examined the relationship between the amount of phosphorus recorded in 1,500 European lakes and reservoirs and the growth of cyanobacteria. The results showed 23% of the tested water masses in Spain exceed the level established by the World Health Organization (WHO). The percentage is close to 50% for Germany and the Netherlands.

There have been four major cyanobacteria outbreaks:

• In 1989, the deaths of several dogs and lambs were directly attributed to the consumption of algae-laden water from the margins of Rutland (UK) water storage reservoir;

• In 1996, 130 dialysis patients in Brazil were sickened by microcystin contaminated water, at least 50 died;

• In the Paulo Alfonso region of Brazil water from a newly flooded dam developed a severe algal bloom. The drinking water caused a gastroenteritis outbreak and 88 deaths;

• Recently, the levels of microcystin (as high as 3.8 ug/l level) caused a “Do Not Drink” order for over 400,000 residents utilizing water from the The Collins Park Water Treatment plant in Toledo, Ohio.

In 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued health advisories to protect Americans from algal toxins in drinking water. The health advisory values for algal toxins recommend 0.3 micrograms per liter for microcystin and 0.7 micrograms

Algae occur naturally in both marine and fresh water. Nurtured by sunlight, warm water temperatures, and a food source (typically phosphorus), algae can bloom on water surfaces. Harmful algal blooms can cause a variety of problems to the environment, as well as posing a threat to human health. Those coming in contact with water contaminated with algal toxins experience flu-like symptoms and/or skin rashes.

Of particular interest to water and health experts is blue-green algae, also known as cyanobacteria. There are more than 3,000 known species of cyanobacteria and they can tolerate a wide range of environmental conditions. While not all of these species produce toxins, those that do can produce a variety of harmful substances, including hepatotoxin, neurotoxin, dermatotoxin, cytotoxin and endotoxin – all of which impact the human body and its organs in a harmful and sometimes fatal way.

Of these toxins, the three most widely recognized as being linked to human health issues are:

• Microcystin-LR (hepatotoxin)

• Cylindrospermopsin (hepatotoxin)

• Anatoxin-A (neurotoxin)

All three of these toxins have been widely found in the United States and throughout Europe and Asia.

Although monitoring has been sporadic, tested toxins have been broadly detected throughout North America and the world. In the United States, microcystin-LR has been found in North Dakota, South Dakota, New Mexico, Arkansas and the Pacific Northwest. Anatoxin-A has been commonly detected in

Granular Activated Carbon For Treatment Of Algal Toxins

per liter for cylindrospermopsin as levels not to be exceeded in drinking water for children younger than school age. For all other ages, the health advisory values for drinking water are 1.6 micrograms per liter for microcystin and 3.0 micrograms per liter for cylindrospermopsin.

Recognizing the need to address a national challenge, the U.S. House of Representatives voted on February 24, 2015 to approve H.R .212 which directs the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop a strategic plan to assess and manage the risks associated with algal toxins in drinking water. The U.S. Senate has taken up a similar bill (S. 460 - Drinking Water Protection Act).

Additionally, the World Health Organization has issued a guideline of 1ug/l for Microcystin-LR, while individual states and provinces have established guidelines or advisory levels which vary from region to region:

In a different approach, the UK Water Industry Research has developed Short-Term No Adverse Response Levels (SNARL):

Micro- cystin-LR

Ana- toxin- A

Cylin-drosper-mospin

Florida 10ug/l

Ohio 1ug/l 20ug/l 1ug/l

Okla- homa

1ug/l

Oregon 1ug/l 3ug/l 1ug/l

Minne- sota

0.04ug/l

Quebec 1.5ug/l 3.7ug/l


Not only does a community suffer major inconvenience when a drinking water treatment plant shuts down, it also experiences major economic damage as retail stores, malls, restaurants, schools, public facilities, and many other businesses are forced to close due to the lack of potable water. These guidelines and regulations are an important step in keeping the public safe from intoxicated drinking water.

Prevention or at least the minimization of algal blooms is imperative in protecting drinking waters. By limiting the nitrogen and phosphorous nutrients that control growth rates, all algal blooms, including cyanobacteria, can be lessened. The United States has implemented several strategies to control agricultural runoff, restrict the discharge of untreated wastewater, and implement treatment technologies in wastewater treatment plants that will reduce the nutrients entering the water resources. However, the widespread detections of various algal toxins indicate there is more to be done.

Many water treatment processes can help protect against the intrusion of algal toxins into drinking water systems. One of the most effective and affordable treatment options is granular activated carbon (GAC), which is already in use for such purposes in many regions.

GAC: Proven in Efficiency

In August 2014, more than 400,000 residents in Toledo, OH lost access to drinking water when the Toledo Drinking Water Treatment System shut down because of algal blooms on Lake Erie. Interestingly, the 30,000 residents of Bowling Green, OH – down river from Toledo, using the same Lake Erie water – remained unaffected. The difference was the use of granular activated carbon at the Bowling Green Drinking Water Treatment Plant.

The use of granular activated carbon (GAC) for the treatment of drinking water is a well-established practice among municipal water utilities in the United States. Since

the 1960s, GAC has been used to remove dissolved organic compounds from water, including those emanating from algal blooms, chemical spills, and oil spills. GAC has also proven effective in removing microcystins and anatoxins as well as cylindrotoxins and saxitoxins.

The ability of GAC to protect against algal toxins while simultaneously addressing other critical challenges, such as carcinogenic disinfection by-products, volatile organic compounds, endocrine disrupting compounds and many others, makes the treatment a uniquely effective and affordable solution for municipal water providers.

About Calgon Carbon

CalgonCarbonCorporation,headquarteredinPittsburgh,Pennsylvania,isagloballeaderininnovativesolutions,highqualityproductsandreliableservicesdesignedtoprotecthumanhealthandtheenvironmentfromharmfulcontaminantsinwater,andair.Asaleadingmanufacturerofactivatedcarbon,withbroadcapabilitiesinultravioletlightdisinfection,theCompanyprovidespurificationsolutionsfordrinkingwater,wastewater,pollutionabatement,andavarietyofindustrialandcommercialmanufacturingprocesses.

24 hr. Health Based SNARL

7 Day Health Based Snarl

Microcystin-LR 12ug/l 6ug/lAnatoxin-A 3ug/l 1.5ug/lCylindrospermopsin 9ug/l 4.5ug/l

algae bloom

activated carbon

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The control of odor emissions has become a major consideration in the design and operation of wastewater conveyance, treatment and residuals processing facilities. As public concern is generally increasing, effective odor control has become an essential part of successful wastewater and biosolids treatment processes.

Odor is released by nearly all steps of wastewater and sludge collection, treatment and disposal. Typically, these odors are considered to be objectionable. Depending on the treatment process they may even be hazardous. Odorants released are differing

much in kind and conditions and require adapted treatment.

One of the most common and well-known odor substances is hydrogen sulfide (H2S). The odor threshold of H2S is very low (0.5 ppb) which helps the human nose to identify rotten food easily. This warning signal turns into a nuisance, if the odor is associated with wastewater.

The H2S exposure limits set by OSHA are 10 and 20 ppm respectively, depending on application. “NIOSH Recommended Exposure Limit (REL): 10 ppm, 10-minute

ceiling concentration. Considered immediately dangerous to life and health (IDLH): 100 ppm. ACGIH® recommends a threshold limit value (TLV®) of 1 ppm as an 8-hour time weighted average (TWA) and a short-term exposure limit (STEL) of 5 ppm.” (compare www.osha.gov). In Germany, the “maximum working place concentration“ for H2S is 7.1 mg/m³, which is equivalent to approx. 5 ppm.

Despite the fact that H2S is commonly known as a wastewater odorant, wastewater treatment plants seldom stink like rotten eggs. Wastewater odors are typically a

Headworks odor control by Neutralox® Photoionisation.

Photoionization For Plant Odor Control: Cleaner Air, Lower Energy CostsOliver G. Augustin, NEUTRALOX ® Umwelttechnik GmbH


mixture of many different odor substances, including other reduced sulfur substances, ammonia, and volatile organic carbons, among others.

Inside process buildings, control of concentrations of odor substances is possible only through dilution (air-exchange). Air-exchange rates of 6 or 12 times per hour are the most common in the US. This results in relatively high off-gas flow rates. The extracted off-gas then requires treatment in order to protect the neighborhood of the treatment plants.

Sewage pumping station odor control by Neutralox® Photoionisation

affected by varying loads and changing off-gas conditions. The maintenance demand is minimal; no liquid side streams are required or produced.

The German manufacturer Neutralox has developed Photoionisation into a widely accepted odor control technology. While primarily active in Europe, Neutralox officially opened a subsidiary in Chicago early this year and can already refer to a large number of reference projects all over North America (www.neutralox-inc.com).

Odor control based on photoionization has proven to be a reliable treatment technology, applicable for all kinds of odors related to wastewater and sludge treatment. The physico-chemical treatment method treats even high concentrations of odorants (e.g. hydrogen sulphide (H2S), mercaptans (CH3-SH, CH3-CH2-SH), dimethyl sulfide ((CH3)2S), ammonia (NH3)) effectively. Additionally, typical industrial odorants like volatile organic carbons (VOC’s) have been treated successfully. The technology is not

Odor control analysis

Installations worldwide

Installations worldwide

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Drs. Daniel Zitomer and Patrick McNamara are creating biochar from common wastewater biosolids, that is, the end products of water reclamation facilities (WRFs), often land applied or disposed of in landfills at a cost to the utility.

Marquette’s research is funded by the Water Equipment and Policy (WEP) Research Center that operates under the auspices of the National Science Foundation Industry/University Cooperative Research Center (I/UCRC) program. The Marquette team is collaborating with the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD), one of WEP’s industrial members whose annual dues fund the research, and who will benefit from the results.

Since 1926 MMSD has marketed a revenue-producing organic fertilizer manufactured from biosolids. This fertilizer is manufactured to stringent quality control standards, and any product that fails to measure up will not be sold to its traditional markets where variations in particle size and iron content can affect ease of application and performance. However, this out-of-spec product is suitable for land application in agriculture where users are less sensitive to particle size and iron content.

Marquette’s challenge is to develop a process that cost-effectively converts this material and biosolids into biochar, yet another revenue-producing product for MMSD that can be sold for land application to improve soil productivity.

Marquette’s research has three goals.

1. Transform wastewater biosolids into biochar.

Researchers at Marquette University are developing pyrolysis technology to create biochar from biosolids. Their work addresses some of the world’s greatest challenges: decreasing greenhouse gases, removing micropollutants from wastewater, increasing production of renewable fuels, and improving crop production in unproductive soils.

Biochar is a product of pyrolysis during which biosolids are heated in oxygen-deprived environments, producing carbon. Biochar, a porous charcoal-like material that can be made through manufacturing and by nature during forest fires, sequesters carbon that would otherwise escape into the atmosphere. And when it’s integrated into soil biochar enhances plant growth by retaining moisture and nutrients, and promoting the growth of beneficial microbes. Pyrolysis actually creates three products; biochar, py-oil and syngas (mostly H2 and CO). Py-oil and syngas are renewable energy sources that can be tapped to fuel the pyrolysis process or for other purposes.

Transforming Wastewater Biosolids Into A New ProductWater Equipment and Policy (WEP) Research Center

2. Further activate the biochar to adsorb nutrients from wastewater and then release them when applied to agricultural soil.

3. Determine the extent that pyrolysis destroys micropollutants, such as pharmaceuticals that may now pass though WRFs into the environment.

When left to decompose naturally over time, wastewater biosolids, as well as plant, wood and forestry waste, release carbon as a greenhouse gas. Transforming this waste into biochar could lock it up for centuries, which is the reason scientists around the world are researching it.

With so many scientists focusing on transforming wastes into biochar, how is Marquette’s pyrolysis research different? Drs. Zitomer’s and McNamara’s groundbreaking research is focused on wastewater biosolids (rather than wood or other biomass) and will lead to the design of production-size pyrolysis systems for WRFs. Upgrading WRFs with pyrolysis systems has several potential advantages.

• WRFs are geographically concentrated in urban areas.

• WRFs have a steady supply of biomass in the form of biosolids to feed the process.

• Removal of ammonia from return lines in WRFs using biochar as an adsorbent may help recover and remove nitrogen.

• Pyrolysis may provide a higher level of protection to waterways by removing micropollutants that may have heretofore passed through WRFs.

Biosolids converted to biochar, pyrolysis-oil, and pyrolysis aqueous condensate


Marquette PhD candidate Dan Carey researched whether biochar can adsorb nutrients to be later released after being applied to agricultural soil.

The research demonstrated that the nitrogen in heat-dried biosolids is retained in the biochar but is locked in the solid matrix and not readily available to promote plant growth.

To increase the porosity and surface areas of the biochar with the intended outcome of increasing nutrient adsorption, a portion of biochar was activated with a potassium hydroxide solution.

He then contacted the activated biochar with centrate that had a high concentration of ammonia from biosolids dewatering. The biochar adsorbed the ammonia to create what Carey calls “biochar-N”. Using 35 benchtop planters, Carey measured the differences in growth of turf grass planted as seed in different combinations of sand, peat, biochar, biochar-N, Milorganite® and inorganic fertilizer.

Carey’s results demonstrated that biochar production from digested biosolids may have additional advantages beyond simply

digesting biosolids. It can be used to immobilize NH3-N from wastewater and transfer it from the WRF to soil. There are many potential advantages of this method compared to the current practice of land applying biosolids. Among these are:

• Long-term improvement of soil productivity

• Long-term sequestration of carbon

• Energy recovery in the form of bio-oil and syngas

WRFs were designed to intercept nutrients before they enter waterways, and convert them to biosolids. Some biosolids have been land applied as fertilizer. But for those WRFs not equipped with systems comparable to MMSD’s heat-drying process that virtually eliminates pathogenic organisms, land application is becoming more difficult due to increasingly stringent regulations.

Another issue of growing concern is a variety of micropollutants appear to be passing through some WRFs and accumulating in lakes and streams. Dr. Rebecca Klapper, Associate Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Freshwater Sciences has conducted extensive research on the presence of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) that have been transported to Lake Michigan in wastewater discharge. Her research on how PPCPs affect the reproductive behavior of fish has raised questions on the human impact of these micropollutants present in surface water and ingested through drinking water. Dr. Klapper’s research shows some of the most prevalent PPCPs found in Lake Michigan, a source of drinking water for millions of people to be:

• Metformin, a prescription diabetes medicine.

• Caffeine, found from some natural sources but also from coffee, tea, and soda pop and energy drinks.

• Sulfamethoxazole, an antibiotic used to treat ailments such as urinary tract

infections and inner-ear infections.

• Triclosan, an antibacterial and antifungal agent found in many consumer products, including toothpaste and antibacterial soaps.

The vast majority of older established WRFs designed primarily to remove nutrients may be incapable of intercepting PPCPs. Additionally, retrofitting these plants may be cost-prohibitive.

Researchers at Marquette believe that pyrolysis could be an economically-possible alternative. Just as pyrolysis sequesters carbon and other nutrients, Marquette is conducting research funded by WEP to determine whether PPCPs can be locked up in biochar and/or removed in the WRF before being discharged into the environment.

For 25 centuries the secrets of biochar remained hidden deep in Brazil’s Amazon jungle. The Amazon’s “Terra Preta” has been known since the mid 1800s but the rich black soil created by early Brazilian civilizations mixing biochar into their soil has received intense international scrutiny in recent years. Marquette’s WEP financed research is creating new opportunities to leverage this ancient practice in addressing today’s most serious global challenges.

TheWaterEquipmentandPolicy(WEP)ResearchCenteroperatesundertheauspicesoftheNationalScienceFoundationIndustry/UniversityCooperativeResearchCenter(I/UCRC)Program.WEPisacollaborativenonprofitorganizationofresearchuniversitiesandmembersincludingcorporationsandgovernmentagencieswhoseannualmembershipfeesfundpre-competitiveresearchinfourareasimportanttothewaterindustry:materials,sensorsanddevices,systems,andpolicy.

CompaniesandorganizationsintheU.S.andoverseasinterestedincollaboratingoncreatingthenextgenerationofwatertechnologyandproductsareencouragedtolearnmoreaboutWEPbyemailingDaveMarshatmarshd@uwm.eduandvisitingwww.uwm.edu/wep/.

Furnace with pyrolysis reactor, condenser, and water bath

This picture is from day 95 of the experiment and both planters were trimmed to the same height of 2.5 cm (1 inch) 7 days before this photograph, Left- 10% biochar-N, Right – Sand Only

18

In Pennsylvania, water is not only vital for quality of life — it also powers many key industries that comprise a major piece of the state’s diverse economy. The manufacturing, thermoelectric, agriculture and energy sectors all rely heavily on access to reliable, clean and abundant sources of water for various processes. With a combined 2.5 trillion gallons of surface water and 80 trillion gallons of groundwater, in addition to 86,000 miles of streams and rivers, and more than 1 million water wells, Pennsylvania has the water resources businesses need to be successful and sustainable.

Pennsylvania also offers industry a prime location within 500 miles of 60 percent of United States and Canadian populations, and has convenient access to six of the 10 largest markets in the U.S. Bolstering its far-reaching infrastructure is its robust port system, composed of the Ports of Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Erie, each contributing unique advantages both to in-state and global companies.

Port of Philadelphia

Situated in a strategic location on the Delaware River with direct access to the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean, the Port of Philadelphia has served as a major hub of trade and commerce since the time of Pennsylvania founder William Penn. Prominent in specialized trade areas, including perishable cargo, paper products, and meat imports, the port ranks in the top 25 nationally for total tonnage at 28.5 million tons of goods annually. In 2012, the U.S. Department of Defense named it the 14th Strategic Military Port in the U.S., enabling it to handle military cargoes with various international destinations. The Port of Philadelphia handles more than one-

quarter of the entire North Atlantic District’s annual tonnage and is ranked as the 4th largest port in the U.S. for the handling of imported goods.

With considerable refrigerated and freezer warehousing space as close as 90 feet from the dock, the Port can handle temperature-sensitive cargoes, including fruits, vegetables and other agricultural products. Due to the vast resources in the Marcellus Shale play, the Port is also evolving into an energy hub which soon will facilitate the export of natural gas, compressed natural gas, and liquid gas.

Additionally, the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority has embarked on a project to dredge the Delaware River, deepening the waterway from 40 to 45 feet from Philadelphia Harbor to deep water in the Delaware Bay. The deeper channel will provide for more efficient transportation

Water in PennsylvaniaPennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development

of containerized break bulk, dry and liquid bulk (crude oil and petroleum products and chemicals) cargo to and from the Delaware River ports, as well as enable the port to accommodate more of the world’s larger cargo ships. This partnership with the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers and the commonwealth is scheduled to be completed in 2017.

Port of Pittsburgh

The second-busiest inland port in the U.S., the Port of Pittsburgh moves more than 35 million tons of cargo annually along its three major waterways. The state’s natural gas boom is transforming the Monongahela Valley into a prime area for growth, as waterborne transportation has been recognized as the most cost-effective mode of transportation when compared to railway and truck modes. These savings offer companies located in or choosing to locate

Port of Philadelphia


during the 2014 navigation season compared to the previous year.

“The Great Lakes Seaway System realized a 7.6 percent tonnage increase from 2013 to 2014, a strong performance that reflects the increasing strength of the overall economy,” said SLSDC Administrator Betty Sutton. “Marine transportation remains a catalyst for jobs and productivity for the local economies where these ports are situated and throughout the Great Lakes region.”

Commodities accounting for almost all of the increases in international cargo handled by the seven Pacesetter port winners included asphalt, petroleum products, aluminum, steel, and grain.

High-value project cargo such as locomotive cars, electrical transformers, and fermentation tanks were also handled during the 2014 navigation season.

The commonwealth’s vast water resources and strategic waterways are just two of the ways that Pennsylvania is built to advance a wide range of industries that rely on a strong water-based infrastructure. For additional information visit newpa.com.

Electric Transportation exported 27 narrow-gauge locomotives through the Port of Erie for a mining operation in Mozambique. The port’s terminal operator also handled three large transformers that were destined for Massena, New York.

The Port of Erie was nationally recognized for increasing its annual shipping tonnage in 2014. The U.S. Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation announced that seven U.S. ports in the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System received the prestigious Robert J. Lewis Pacesetter Award for registering increases in international cargo tonnage shipped through their ports

in the Port of Pittsburgh District a substantial transportation advantage in sourcing raw materials or marketing finished products.

More than $9 billion worth of goods is moved along the waterways through the Port of Pittsburgh District each year. The 35 million tons of cargo the Port of Pittsburgh ships and receives each year equates to an annual benefit to the region of more than $800 million.

The Army Corp of Engineers has committed funds to complete the lower Monongahela River project — an investment which will also catalyze new opportunity in the region. The project has already replaced the nearly 100 year-old fixed-crest dam at Braddock Locks and Dam with a gated dam, and will remove Locks and Dam 3 in Elizabeth, and construct two new larger locks (Charleroi Locks) at Locks and Dam 4 in Charleroi.

Port of Erie

Located within a 300-mile radius of one-third of the U.S. population, the Port of Erie handles 550,000 tons in cargo volume each year. It also contributes to the recreational and tourism market and is home to a $42 million shipbuilding industry. Its main export markets are Europe and Canada, and on the import side, the Port is seeking expanded use in frack sand shipping to support Pennsylvania’s Shale Gas boom and other energy findings. In 2014, General

Port of Pittsburgh

Port of Erie

20

The United States’ energy supply market has improved significantly over the past five years with the development of unconventional natural gas reserves. The United States has 2,247 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of natural gas proved reserves and unproved technically recoverable resources, including major contributions from unconventional resources from shale and coalbed methane. The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) maintains that the sudden increase in natural gas production from shale plays is directly related to horizontal hydraulic fracturing. The abundance of domestic shale gas resources combined with increased activity developing “wet” gas which contains liquid hydrocarbons has spurred gas exploration across this country. There are approximately 22 shale basins located onshore in more than 20 states across the US including Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, West Virginia, Wyoming, Colorado, North Dakota, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York and Ohio, Michigan.

Experts believe that the increasing demand for all forms of energy, including natural gas, will make its production a growth market. The United States has an abundant supply of unconventional natural gas with production growing exponentially, increasing from less than a billion cubic feet a day in 1998 to more than 6 billion cubic feet per day in 2010. This is a compound annual rate of growth of more than 20% and a combined growth rate of 600% over the last ten years. The fact that end users are very often located near gas supplies has prompted analysts to predict continued growth in natural gas supply. There are an estimated 75,000 wells

to be drilled in the Marcellus Shale play alone.

“The development of shale gas plays has become a “game changer” for the U.S. natural gas market.”- U.S. Energy Information Administration

The Oil and Gas industry generates more than $7.1 billion in revenue per year for Pennsylvania. Natural gas exploration in Pennsylvania has gained a tremendous shot in the arm with the drilling of the Marcellus Shale. The Marcellus Shale is a rock formation that stretches from New York through West Virginia and covers about two-thirds of Pennsylvania. It has been proven to contain vast reserves of untapped natural gas. Marcellus Shale is said to have “favorable mineralogy” in that it is a lower-density rock with more porosity, which means it may be filled with more free gas. To recover these 50 trillion cubic feet of gas a horizontal drilling technique called hydraulic fracturing (also known as “fracking”) is used. Large volumes of fresh water are injected into a well at pressures so intense that the structure cracks, or “fractures.” The water generally is treated with a friction reducer, biocides, scale inhibitors,

surfactants, and sand as the propping agent. The fracking process for a horizontal well completion can require as much as 6 million gallons of water. It is projected that in five years, daily water consumption for gas well drilling in Pennsylvania will exceed 25,000,000 gallons per day. It is projected in the same time period, annual water fees and disposal cost will exceed $2.2 Billion per year. The need for large quantities of fresh water to facilitate horizontal gas drilling has placed tremendous pressure on water resources, namely rivers and streams. Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has modified the permitting process to require drillers to identify the fresh water source, as well as how and where the frack waste water will be disposed. Along with obtaining the fresh water, disposing of the frack water has become increasingly difficult.

Approximately 20-25% of the frack water is recovered in the first few weeks of operation, known as “flowback”. Flowback contains multiple contaminates, namely oil/grease, soluble organics, trace metals and extremely high concentration of chlorides. Typically, flowback water is captured in lined pits and transported off-site to deep well injection facilities for disposal. Recent water management trends have initiated the practice of blending frack water with fresh water in a 15% to 85% ratio. Large drillers use the blended water to drill the next well(s). The Shale Gas industry is marketing this recycling trend as an answer to their environmental problems, but they are still in need of water treatment capacity. Also, heavily recycled wastewater is more contaminated than normal frack water with

Wastewater Recycling And Reuse In Shale Gas DrillingTom Lewis, President & CTO, Lewis Environmental Services

MarcellusShalePlay


deep well injection being the only disposal option. In the end, heavily recycled frack water has diminished most recycling options.

Additionally, medium and small drillers are having a difficult time finding disposal options for their waste. In one report, a smaller firm transported tanker loads of waste over 150 miles to find an available treatment facility. Additionally, Pennsylvania passed new regulations in August 2010 making disposal of frack water more difficult. This was followed by a voluntary moratorium issued by Pennsylvania’s Governor in May 2011 on dumping frack water at municipal treatment plants. Gas drillers have a second option for processing the frack wastewater, deep well injection. Marcellus Shale gas drillers, unlike the Texas’s Barnett Shale, have limited deep well disposal options because Pennsylvania has less than nine permitted deep well injection sites. Most frack water is transported to Ohio or West Virginia for disposal. This has caused a disposal capacity crunch for Marcellus Shale gas drillers.

Gas Drillers working in the Marcellus Shale use direct recycling of “blended” frack water and deep well injection for frack wastewater disposal. Currently, there are limited technologies to recycle frack water and produce a high purity effluent and only two commercially operating facilities in Pennsylvania which produce high purity water from Marcellus Shale frack water. For the Marcellus Shale play to realize the anticipated growth, the need for fresh water supply and expanding frack wastewater treatment options must be addressed. Technologies which enable water recycling, by-product recovery and provide environmentally friendly treatment options will aid in the desired growth of this industry. Conventional waste treatment practices are deficient and inept in providing solutions to eliminate toxic waste from being dumped into rivers or injected into the earth. The industry practice of heavily recycling frack water has made this problem more difficult to remediate.

Recycling technologies have had moderate success upgrading frack water due to increasing contaminate levels. Presently, five disposal and/or recovery processes are expected to assist drillers recycle more frack water. They are: reverse osmosis; ozonation; evaporation techniques, carbon adsorption and deep well injection. A brief discussion of these recovery options and their advantages and disadvantages follows:

Reverse Osmosis – This technology has been proposed as a viable treatment option for fracwastewater. The major limitation of reverse osmosis (RO) is its inability to process a waste stream with very high level of chlorides. Normally, frack wastewater has chloride concentrations averaging 80,000 mg/l. This is 2 – 3 times more concentrated than seawater. Based on how reverse osmosis works, the rejection rate (water still needing treatment) would exceed 50%. Also, the organic contaminants in the frack wastewater would foul the membranes, requiring frequent membrane replacements. The writer is not aware of any RO units commercially processing this type of waste.

Ozonation – Ozone is the tri-atomic form of oxygen (O3). Because ozone is unstable it must be generated at the point of application. Ozone can be generated by passing oxygen, or air containing oxygen, through an area having an electrical discharge or spark. The major disadvantages with ozone generation are: high capital cost, high electric consumption and its highly corrosive to metals and plastics. Reactor design requires exotic materials of construction, such as titanium or hastelloy. Ozone based technologies have gained substantial coverage in the press, but have not been aggressively installed in the field.

Evaporation – Recycling the water is accomplished by boiling off sufficient water from the frack waste stream to return to the drilling operation. This is a very energy-intensive process and the type of unit and design is critical. Also, the cost of evaporator equipment is high and maintenance is

required. Additionally, organic impurities are a major problem because they can contaminate the recovered distillate. Normally, additional unit processes such as ion exchange and/or activated carbon are required to remove inorganic and organic impurities.

Deep Well Injection – On the surface, this appears to be the most attractive option to gas drillers, but upon closer inspection, it is actually the most expensive. Deep well injection has three key inherent weaknesses: (1) it’s location sensitive. Most Marcellus Shale wells are not close to deep well injections facilities, which require trucking frack water over large distances. For example, the roundtrip time from Williamsport, PA to an Ohio deep well site is a 12-hour trip at a transportation cost averaging $0.25 per gallon; (2) cost to install deep well averages $2MM; (3) they have limited capacity. They can handled a limited volume of wastewater on a daily basis; and (4) environmental issues. Deep wells are known to be susceptible to plugging from scale formation and can cause surface tremors. Tremors have been observed at several deep well facilities causing the facility to reduce daily disposal volumes .

Carbon Adsorption – This mobile treatment process enables frack water to be successfully recycled back to the drilling operation. The proprietary treated activated carbon simultaneously removes organic and inorganic compounds. The final effluent is of such purity that it can be recycled back to the well site to supplement fresh water requirements for new drilling.

Additional work is still needed to significantly reduce the disposal of frack water.

22

Despite the lack of a unifying national energy policy and a varying patchwork of state-level energy policies, communities across the country are attempting to realize the benefits of sustainable energy programs and projects. The role of the sustainable energy plan for local governments is to identify and prioritize programs based on specific community needs, thereby leading to implementation of the programs most likely to accomplish those goals. The City of Grand Rapids’ focus on sustainable energy efficiency has resulted in projects completed or underway shedding nearly 6 million kilowatt hours of electricity from its operations over the past 7 years. Most of the avoidance and savings come from services related to water, wastewater, stormwater, and sewer systems management. Overall, the city is seeing over $600,000 annually in cost avoidance related to power purchase with the energy efficiency programs it has implemented since 2009. In addition, the city has received more than $430,000 in energy efficiency rebates from Consumers Energy since 2009. The City provides water and wastewater services on a regional basis, serving a population of over 280,000 and covering a service area of 137 square-miles. Its partnering communities in the water and wastewater services system are represented through the Utility Advisory Board (UAB). UAB members have been actively involved in reviewing energy related projects that lead to more efficient operations. The City’s ability to deliver public services in a timely, cost-effective, and socially- and environmentally-responsible manner are essential components of sustainable water and wastewater service delivery to residents and businesses.

Implementing Sustainable and Resilient Energy Initiatives in Water and Sewer Systems: City of Grand Rapids, MIDr. Haris Alibašic

Sustainable Energy Activities

The City of Grand Rapids regularly and consistently analyzes cost-effective opportunities for on-site energy generation, including the use of solar panels and geothermal production technologies. In 2009, the City developed the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy (EECS) as a roadmap for becoming a more energy-efficient and sustainable organization and community. Implementation of the EECS was funded by the Department of Energy’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG). With the development of this strategy, the City gained a comprehensive understanding of the greenhouse gas emissions of its facilities and fleet, as well as the emissions generated in the community from residential, commercial, industrial, and transportation-related activities. The main focus of the energy efficiency strategy for the City is to reduce or avoid cost in operations and improve energy management.

Most of the savings are realized in water and wastewater operations. Some of the more recent energy efficiency projects include:

• New variable-speed water pump at the city’s Coldbrook Pumping Station

• The new pump allows the city to match the pumping energy to the actual water demand, reducing electricity use and saving the water system over $140,000 annually.

• Improvements to the water pumping facility resulted in a more than $147,100 energy efficiency incentive payment from Consumers Energy in February 2015.

• LEED Certified designation for Wastewater Technical Services Building, at 1300 Market Ave SW

• The building received 45 LEED-rating points, needing at least 40 to receive the designation.

• Gained several new energy-efficient upgrades: LED lighting, on-site

Electricity

Heating and Cooling

Fuel Management

Renewable Energy

Pump and Process Equipment

The City of Grand Rapids spends more on electricity than any other utility, over $8 million each year. Addressing electricity consumption and cost related to power supply is essential.

Michigan’s midwest climate and climate change results in a number of days that require significant heating and cooling of buildings.

While the City’s consumption is down, overall costs continue to rise due to price increases.

Inherent to the sustainability approach is the adoption of renewable energy to reduce and eventually discontinue the use of fossil fuels.

Pumping operations can consume significant amounts of energy at waste-water and water treatment plants. It is the primary electrical demand in water plants and in many cases, second only to aeration in wastewater plants.

Alibašić (2015) City of Grand Rapids Five Key Components of Sustainable Energy Management


storm water retention and treatment, energy-efficient heating and an improved building envelop.

• New technology to monitor treated wastewater

• The new system allows for more efficient operation of treatment equipment, reducing electricity use.

• The City received a $57,000 energy efficiency incentive payment for this upgrade.

• Wastewater Treatment Plant installed motion sensors and fluorescent lamps

• Estimated to save $18,500 in energy costs per year

Joellen Thompson, Water Service Director for the City stated how she believes “Organizations need to look into energy projects with an open mind as an opportunity to better understand and evaluate operations, and as a potential to improve operations and cut costs. We are utilizing all the elements available to us in our various toolboxes to achieve energy efficiency, including utilizing performance contracting.”

Renewable Energy

The City is committed to using 100% renewable energy for all municipal structures by 2020 in order to reduce risks from potential power outages in operations and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In December 2007, the city entered into a

partnership arrangement with the power utility Consumers Energy to procure 20 percent of its energy from renewable sources. In 2015, after the installation of the solar photovoltaic system at the Water Administration building, geothermal at two Fire Stations, and commitment through enterprise system to procure green energy purchases, the City of Grand Rapids has a total of 27% green power as a percentage of total electricity use. City of Grand Rapids is ranked 16th on EPA’s Top 30 Local Government list, which represents the largest green power users among local government partners within the Green Power Partnership.

The City has installed a 125 KW photovoltaic power generation system using solar panels on the LEED certified Water Service Facility. The system was operational in June of 2012 and is offsetting over 35 percent of the facility’s annual electric consumption, producing nearly 400,000 KWh of green energy since installation in June of 2012 and offsetting close to 500,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide emissions. The City has been evaluating other renewable energy projects, including a potential large-scale solar project at former landfill site, a solar project at its water filtration plant, and a large-scale bio-digester project at its biosolids operation in partnership with the City of Wyoming. The key elements to the City’s sustainable energy management approach are innovation, resiliency, partnership, and positive societal impact.

In the words of Mike Lunn, Environmental Services Director, “Investments in renewable energy projects, be it our commitment to procure green energy through savings from energy efficiency in our enterprise system or energy production are an important part of strategy to positively address water quality and can also serve as a cost cutting policy. Our superfund landfill solar project, planned in partnership with a private vendor, will deliver overall reduction in cost per kWh thus positively impacting sewer rates in our system. Traditional power generates a negative impact on the environment and the entire water system. We must do things differently and be proactive in innovating for more resilient systems.”

Abouttheauthor:Dr.HarisAlibašićhas20yearsofcombinedexpertiseandexperienceininternationaleconomicdevelopmentandthepublicsector,includingworkingfortheUnitedNationsMissionandtheOfficeofHighRepresentativeinBosniaandHerzegovina,anddirectingenergy,sustainability,andlegislativeaffairspoliciesandprogramsfortheCityofGrandRapids,MI.Dr.Alibašićhasover10yearsofexperienceteachinggraduateandundergraduatecoursesatGrandValleyStateUniversityandDavenportUniversity.Dr.AlibašićisanAssistantProfessorattheUniversityofWestFloridawhereheteachescoursesinpublicpolicyandadministration.

Grand Rapids Sustainability Plan

Economic

Social

Environmental

Governance

Transformation Investment Plan

Energy Efficiency & Conservation Strategy

Renewable Energy Business Plan

Asset Management Plan

Water & Sewer Capital Projects Plan

Sustainability Energy Plan

Electricity

Heating and Cooling

Fuel Management

Renewable Energy

Pump and Process

Alibašić (2015) City of Grand Rapids Sustainable Energy and Sustainability Planning and Implementation Process

24

The Blue Plains Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant provides treatment services to more than two million Washington metro area customers. It has the capacity to treat 370 million gallons of wastewater a day and is, according to its operator, DC Water, the largest plant of its kind in the world. The treated water is discharged to the Potomac estuary and there the plant is required to meet some of the most stringent National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Standards (NPDES) in the United States.

One of the crucial parameters in the effluent is nitrogen. Nitrogen is a primary nutrient for the growth and survival of plants. If the nitrogen concentration in a water body exceeds a certain concentration, it induces explosive growth of plants and algae. When such organisms die, the decomposition process of the biomass in the river causes a rapid depletion of oxygen in the water body. Under a certain concentration of oxygen the aerobic decomposition of the biomass is no longer possible and anaerobic microorganisms start to produce toxic substances e.g. ammonia or methane. This causes decimation in fish and plant population, with the result, that the water body will start emitting bad odors. This very much undesired phenomenon is called eutrophication.

To prevent this scenario, DC Water recently implemented a comprehensive upgrade program for its biological treatment step to enhance treatment capacity and to reduce energy consumption. Therefore, a total of 112 specially-designed, energy-efficient Hyperboloid-Mixers were delivered from a German nutrient removal specialist. Prior to the selection, DC Water ran extensive tests against standard mixing equipment available locally and internationally and

Sustainable Solutions For Full Nutrient Removal At The Blue Plains WWTP In Washington DC

found that the Hyperboloid-Technology could provide better mixing at 50% less energy consumption. Contrary to common mixers available in the market, the INVENT Hyperboloid Mixing System was developed especially for the suspension and homogenization of biologically active sludge in anaerobic and anoxic basins of biological wastewater treatment plants. The basic design is based on fundamental fluid mechanical considerations, which led to a superior mixing system.

called ”Deammonification” before they can be discharged into the normal treatment process.

Essential for the Deamonnification Process are the so called “anammox” bacteria which were discovered in the 1990s. Anammox bacteria work synergistically with ammonia oxidizing bacteria to oxidize ammonia without organic carbon, producing nitrogen gas. This process requires significantly less oxygen to remove nitrogen, and less energy is needed for aeration. Crucial for

Currently, the Blue Plains treatment plant is implementing the world’s largest reactor for nutrient removal from wastewater coming from the huge sludge digesters the plant runs to produce biogas. These waste streams are extremely high in nitrogen and require special treatment and a special process

the successful large-scale application of the Deammonification Process is excellent mixing at low shear rates in order to not destroy the sensitive granular anammox sludge flocs, and an aeration system with quick response times in order to control the biological process reliably. For this very

1 of 112 HYPERCLASSIC®- Mixers in the Blue Plains wastewater treatment plant in Washington, DC, USA


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demanding task the INVENT Hyperboloid Mixing and Aeration System was the first choice for the DC Water Side-Stream Treatment Project at the Blue Plains wastewater treatment plant. The INVENT Hyperboloid Mixing and Aeration system is uniquely suited for this advanced process which could save wastewater utilities hundreds of million of dollars in aeration and external carbon costs in the treatment cycle.

INVENT offers a complete range of fluid-mechanically optimized products and systems for the biological treatment of wastewater. Next to wastewater treatment, they also deliver mixing systems with special features required in drinking water processing. The most recent project in the US of this kind is the Carlsbad, CA seawater desalination project for which INVENT delivered all flocculation mixers. 1 of 90 HYPERCLASSIC®- Mixer/Aerators in the Back River wastewater treatment plant in Baltimore, MD, USA

26

Minnesota is often identified as the Water State. It is the land of 12,292 lakes and 63,000 miles of rivers and streams, and has more freshwater than any of the country’s other contiguous forty-eight states. Water continues to be part of the State’s identity and a defining force in our history, heritage, environment, and quality of life. Water resources are critical to the state’s economy, ecology and culture. A common perception is that Minnesota is water-rich, but in fact the state’s water resources are highly heterogeneous. Rates of groundwater recharge, precipitation, and evapotranspiration – which determine the amount of water available for human and ecosystem use – vary considerably throughout the state.

In 2011 after two years of work by stakeholders from all sectors and jurisdictions, Minnesota produced a “Water-Sustainability Framework: A Plan for Clean, Abundant Water for Today and Generations to Come.” This extensive Framework examined all aspects of water supply and quality, and identified action areas to achieve more sustainable solutions. Milestone issues that significantly affect water resource management include:

• Population growth and increased competition for resources

• Ecosystem fragmentation• Climate change• Hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico• Contaminants of emerging concern,

including endocrine active compounds• Impaired waters and Total Maximum

Daily Loads• The 2006 Clean Water Legacy Act • 2008 Clean Water Land and Legacy

Amendment and Sustainability Goal

Major Challenges

The Future of Energy and Minnesota’s Water Resources, a July 2010 study funded by the MN Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources, concluded bio-energy production, together with increasing population, energy demand and climate uncertainties, present a great challenge sustaining future water supplies.

Minnesota will face increased demand for useable and accessible groundwater, as population and water use increase. Minnesota’s groundwater supply is not always located where it is needed. Surface waters are under threat from aging individual private septic tanks. Key challenges include:

Water Use Power generation is the primary user (60%); municipal use and irrigation each use about 13% of the total. Some 90% of irrigation water comes from the ground as does 75% of drinking water. Because of the ample natural water supply, irrigation has been minimal. However, growing climate change impacts such as drought conditions are driving an increase in irrigation and associated energy use. Overall water use in Minnesota has generally increased for the last two decades implying that the efficiency of water use by people and households in urban areas is not improving. This trend is opposite the pattern seen in most parts of the US.

Impaired Waters Geographically concentrated is the location of impaired waters (do not meet water quality standards). Greater than 80% of the EPA-defined impaired water is located in the rural areas of the state. If misused, these waters could negatively affect the food grown there, recreation, and tourism. Impaired surface

waters included 4,100 listings in 2014.

Improving Water Monitoring Minnesota must reinstate efforts of condition monitoring to develop an understanding of the current conditions of groundwater. New technology may allow an economical way to collect and analyze a large amount of important data. In situation real-time monitoring with data transmission capabilities would allow a statewide network to quickly identify and report problems that could receive more scrutiny.

Reducing Phosphorus Levels in Waterways While attention has been centered on lowering phosphorus levels, results remain elusive. There has been a coordinated plan between the federal Environmental Protection Agency and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to reduce phosphorus levels in the Minnesota River by 40%, a goal difficult to obtain due to the proliferation of phosphorus coming from nonpoint sources. As the primary nutrient pollutant affecting Minnesota, phosphorus from both point and nonpoint sources will continue to be a major battle line. A similar challenge, Nitrates at high levels are problematic, increasing, costly to remediate, and we do not have under control.

Phosphorus Treatment and Removal Technologies The Chemical Treatment Process at the wastewater treatment stage creates a balance between added chemicals and phosphorus, and results in a sludge containing phosphorus that must be properly disposed. This process is the least expensive way to remove phosphorus at the wastewater treatment stage. Advanced technologies at the treatment stage and those that recover phosphorus for value-added reuse will be necessary, coupled with technologies that

Adopting Advanced Water Technology In The Water StateTimothy Nolan, Sustainable Development Expert State of Minnesota


cost effectively decrease phosphorus from entering the water system.

Bio-fuels - A Water and Energy Intensive Process With new bioenergy policies aiming to reduce fossil fuel dependency, Minnesota has become a top-five bioethanol producer in the United States. In 2010, there were 19 bio-fuel production facilities in Minnesota operating using a lot of water. Ethanol plants often use four to five gallons of water for each gallon of ethanol produced. In 2006, Minnesota drivers pumped 236 million gallons of bio-fuels mixed with gasoline, resulting in between .944B and 1.18B gallons of water used in bio-fuel production. Also, corn production is an energy- and water-intensive process and directly affects water quality due to more fertilizer being used. Utilizing native plant feed stocks and next-generation conversion technologies can significantly minimize the needs for water and fertilizers, releasing over 5 times more energy than what was used to produce it.

Aging Infrastructure and Leaky Private Septic Tanks About 450,000 homes, 75,000 cabins and 10,000 businesses and resorts rely upon individual onsite sewage treatment systems. Over 64,000 of these systems are estimated to be nonfunctioning, discharging to ground and surface water, and released into nearby ditches, streams or lakes. Failing to resolve this problem will increase harmful impacts to waterways within and out of Minnesota, causing adverse affects on recreation, tourism, and public health.

Infrastructure Applying decentralized stormwater management practices – green roofs, trees, rain gardens, permeable pavement, floating islands – to capture and infiltrate rain and reduce runoff and non-point source pollution. More active technology to recover rainwater for beneficial use, such as is deployed at the MN Twins and St. Paul Saints baseball fields and UofMn football stadium, can significantly reduce groundwater use. These practices deliver multiple ecological, economic and social benefits, and positively impact energy consumption, air quality, carbon reduction and sequestration, and provide communities flexibility to adapt infrastructure to a changing climate.

Integrating Water Treatment Process Technology customizing technologies and combining multiple processes to solve the most challenging water quality problems and deliver solutions based on localized conditions and capabilities. This includes integrating less energy-intensive and more energy-efficient technologies.

A Great Lakes Commission Report 2011 indicates the nature and extent of the mercury problem is more severe than previously known and appears to be getting worse. Heritage and economic value are lost when the consequences of ecological degradation hit home.

Minnesota’s water technology companies, both large and small, are leaders in delivering drinking water and wastewater treatment solutions at home and abroad. The state’s water sector was strong long before the present surge in attention to growing regional water scarcity challenges and anticipated future demands on finite fresh water sources. Minnesota companies have and are developing a range of water and associated technologies, from established and widely used, to embryonic – technologies under development demonstrated overseas but not established in North America – and innovative being demonstrated commercially to a limited degree. Innovation, along with the depth and strength of technological expertise in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest, represents a competitive advantage in terms of export markets, but also creates an opportunity to further develop and promote this unique economic cluster to the world.

Key Niche Markets in Minnesota

• Water Conservation/Efficiency • Septic System Replacements and

Distributed Wastewater Treatment • Groundwater Contamination/

Monitoring Real-time Groundwater Sensor Systems

• Reducing Ag Nitrogen & Phosphate Loss

• Water-efficient Electricity Generation• Efficient Bio-fuel Manufacturing

Processes• Biosolids recovery (sewage sludge)

nutrient-rich organic materials resulting from treatment and processing of wastewater residuals

Fundamental to finding solutions to these challenges is gaining a better understanding of the interconnections between water, energy, land-use, food production, and climate change, and how we might harness synergies. This will take a collaborative effort across public and private sectors, progressive policy, effective leadership, and true innovation to overcome the status quo.

Where to Find Solutions

Greater pressure on resource systems together with increased environmental risks present a new set of leadership challenges for both private and public institutions. One important action area to better address our water and other environmental issues is to accelerate adoption of advanced water technologies. Water optimization, conservation, and recovery methods and technologies will be essential to using water resources wisely. It will also be necessary to more comprehensively address non-point source pollution, price water correctly to meet infrastructure needs and protect ecological services, and align our water, land-use, and energy policies as a new framework for sustainability.

28

Solutions “made in Germany” for global challenges

The water topic in all its facets is a

global issue. This becomes particularly

apparent if you take a look at the agendas

of international trade fairs. Industrial

water management was the focus topic of

ACHEMA 2015, the leading exhibition for

the process industry. In 2016, water and

wastewater management will be a central

exhibition topic at IFAT which is the leading

trade fair for environmental technologies.

More than ever, future water and wastewater

engineering development must be tailored to

customer specifications in order to provide

technically and economically optimal

solutions across the entire life cycle of

machinery and equipment. The optimization

of the cleaning process will only be one

focus of innovation. Another major point

will be the further use of energy and contents

of wastewater or the ingredients contained

therein.

What is therefore growing in importance

is a combination of innovative processing

techniques with modern process control

systems, intelligent online measuring and

monitoring procedures with real-time

controls and a continuous central data

acquisition of all process states.

The worldwide demand for components and

systems for water treatment and wastewater

and sludge treatment is large and continues

German Water And Wastewater Technology – In Use All Over The WorldPeter Gebhart, VDMA

to grow. German suppliers are popular

partners and have reached their world market

position due to their long-standing solution

finding expertise. Whether mechanical,

physical, chemical, or biological treatment

of drinking, process and waste water – the

solutions are invariably closely geared to

the needs of the customers and the specific

demands set by the actual location.

German exports 2014

The German manufacturers of components

and systems for water treatment, waste

water and sludge treatment recorded a

slight increase of 0.5 percent in exports in

2014 even though market conditions were

difficult.

Despite the drastic decline in exports

to Russia by about 35 percent, German

suppliers of water and wastewater

technology were able to maintain high level

of exports. Compared to last year, exports

rose to a total of about EUR 950 million

(2014) compared to about 945 million

(2013).

In the ranking of the world’s strongest export

markets, China leads with EUR 90.5 million

(plus 30.4 percent), followed by France with

EUR 69.8 million (plus 13.1 percent) and

Russia (formerly in the lead) with EUR 69.5

million.

The EU-28 still remains the foremost

importing region for German manufacturers

of water and wastewater engineering. The

exports to these countries rose by a total

of 7.6 percent to EUR 399 million. With

EUR 196 million, the Asian market also

had a major export share (plus 8.7 percent),

German Exports by Region 2014

Total export volume: 950.34 € millionSource: Federal Statistical Office / VDMA(item number 842121)

Rest of World6%

EU-2842%

Middle East7%

Africa3%

North America6%

Other European Countries15%

Asia21%


other European countries reached EUR 147

million (down 22.4 percent) and the Middle

East EUR 71 million (plus 22.5 percent).

Thus, this region has surpassed the North

American region with its export share, as

the former experienced a decline in exports

(EUR 53 million, down 14.2 percent).

VDMA Water and Wastewater Technology Group

The range of products and services offered

by members of the Technology Group

ensures a sustainable use of water resources

adapted to the needs of the 21st century. For

this, efficient solutions are needed for both

water treatment and wastewater and sludge

treatment since the requirements for quantity

and quality of drinking water, service water

and process water are steadily rising.

The VDMA Water and Wastewater

Technology Group also has a new internet

service platform at

www.waterwastewatertechnology.info. Here

customers will find the right manufacturers

and suppliers for operators of municipal and

industrial water and wastewater treatment

and sludge treatment facilities. A detailed

listing of manufacturers/product directory is

the central element of the bilingual customer

portal (German / English). A media library

with publications and further information

complete the extensive range of services.

Filtration and Water Treatment “Made in Germany” for US Oil & Gas Industry

Water treatment and filtration are major

issues in the US oil, gas, and petrochemical

industry. High technology solutions

guaranteeing health and safety as well as

environmental standards are essential both in

upstream, with produced water treatment and

handling, and in various steps of downstream

processing.

Contact

VDMAProcess Plant and EquipmentPeter GebhartRecoolingTechnologyWaterandWastewaterTechnologyLyoner Straße 1860528 FrankfurtGermanyTel.: +49 69 6603-1468Fax: +49 69 6603-2468Email: [email protected]: http://vtma.vdma.org

More than a hundred years of experience

in the downstream industry has made

Germany very strong in this segment. Here

German companies are active worldwide

and are well-known for delivering world

class solutions. The upstream segment

was traditionally dominated by Anglo-

Americans. But even here numerous

German VDMA member companies offer an

increasing amount of technology for difficult

tasks such as fully automated drilling, deep

sea technologies or sustainable drilling

water treatment, or even more complex

applications such as handling oil sands, tight

oil, sour and aggressive gases, shale oil and

gas or coal bed gas.

End customers are not often aware when

they buy a “made in USA” package that this

solution already contains a lot of “Made

The 10 Most Important Export MarketsGerman water and wastewater technology (in 1,000 EUR)

www.waterwastewatertechnology.info

30

Lining solutions for a future life

SAERTEX multiCom® GmbH | Brochterbecker Damm 52 | 48369 Saerbeck | Germany | Phone: +49 2574 902-400 | [email protected] | www.saertex-multicom.de SAERTEX multiCom® LP | 12200 - A Mt. Holly-Huntersville Rd. | Huntersville, NC 28078 | USA | Phone: +1 317 464-9717 | [email protected] | www.saertex-multicom.com

Your system supplier for the trenchless rehabilitation of sewer and

potable water pipes. Worldwide.

GAWTM_216x140.indd 1 14.08.15 16:05

in Germany” technology. Regardless,

the trend will continue exactly in this

direction, since all VDMA members are

engaged in developing ever more reliable,

energy-efficient, and sustainable solutions.

It is, indeed, the only way to attain two

benefits: The customer will operate more

environmentally safely and as a result

enhance his or her reputation, and he or

she will also enjoy economic advantages.

Reliability of equipment is, next to custom-

tailored and durable solutions, a traditional

virtue of German manufacturers.

Product Directory “German Process Engineering”

Member companies of the Process Plant

and Equipment Association within VDMA

who are active in the areas of water and

wastewater engineering or oil / gas /

petrochemicals can be found in the new

edition of the buyers guide “German Process

Engineering.” They are listed with their

product range.

In addition, the entries appear in the VDMA

product database at

www.vdma-products.com - Process Plant

and Equipment.

www.vdma-products.com


The German water industry takes particularly good care of 12 percent of the surface of the country because there are more than 17,000 water protection areas, from which primarily drinking water is used.

Germany is in a good position – 365 days per year, drinking water of the highest quality and purity is available. We owe this to a wise management of water resources, optimal and sophisticated technologies in water and plant engineering, and a very good state of our networks.

Germany has abundant water resources: 64 percent of the drinking water is extracted from groundwater, and 27 percent from surface water, which is collected in reservoirs, lakes or ponds. Dams are an integral part of the drinking water supply and energy production; Germany has 311 dams. 9 percent of drinking water is directly taken from springs.

In a European comparison, German water suppliers ranked highly: 99 percent of the population is connected to the public drinking water supply, whose figures for water losses are the lowest. In an international comparison, German standards satisfy the highest demands: The resource management is sustainable, the environmental legislation is comprehensive and effective, the know-how is extensive and the professionals are well-trained. All these factors are prerequisites to deliver clean water in sufficient quantity at any time to any place.

German water suppliers deliver about 5.4 billion cubic meters of drinking water to consumers each year. Each German citizen consumes an average of 125 liters of water per day. For comparison: 164 liters per day are consumed in France, 168 liters per day

The German Water Sector: Secure Water Supply, Wastewater Collection and Treatment

in England and Wales and almost 300 liters of drinking water per citizen per day are consumed in the U.S. and Japan.

Germany also has a well-functioning drinking water supply network. For maintenance purposes only, German water suppliers invest around € 1.5 billion annually, an investment which is financed with about 2 percent of its per capita income. These supply networks are aging, and tend to be fragile and leak. However, on average, only about 8 percent of water is lost in Germany – a figure placing Germany among the best not just in Europe, but throughout the world.

be treated. The length of the German public sewerage pipe system totals 515.000 km. Mixed water channels account for about 46 percent of this figure, while wastewater channels account for about 33 percent of the network. The remaining 21 percent is rain water channels.

Sustainable water management also requires effective sewage treatment, another realm where Germany also sets the bar. Nearly the entire amount of wastewater is treated according to the highest EU standards. In large- and small-sized wastewater treatment plants, sewage sludge remains after mechanical, biological and chemical

In order to minimize these processes, underground drinking water supply networks are monitored regularly and then maintained and / or repaired with the help of the latest technologies.

The water available for use as drinking water may be cloudy, and may contain pollutants or too much iron and manganese. For the treatment of these waters, German water suppliers utilize sophisticated technologies, including various physical and chemical processes, such as filtration, oxidation, sedimentation and disinfection.

Where fresh water is used, wastewater must

purification steps, about 2.3 million metric tons annually. Uncontaminated sludge can be used as fertilizer in agriculture. The vast majority, however, is used for heat generation.

The entire German water sector, including drinking and wastewater, employs more than 100,000 people – more employees than in the automobile industry.

Contact

German Water Partnership e.V. www.germanwaterpartnership.de

Hamburg Wasser, wastewater treatment plant

32

Country Special: CANADA- The Canadian Water Sector

With an area of nearly ten million square kilometers, Canada is the second largest country in the world after Russia, and almost as large as Europe. The country shares just two land borders, one in the South and one to the Northwest (Alaska), both with the United States. The rest of Canada is surrounded by water: the Pacific Ocean to the West, the Arctic Ocean to the North, and the Atlantic Ocean to the East. Moreover, Canada has the world’s longest coastline, stretching over 243,000 kilometers. The provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia divide the Southern part of Canada from west to east into ten provinces. The North is divided into three territories: Yukon Territory, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut.

32

Anna-Lena Gruenagel, Canadian German Chamber of Industry and Commerce Inc.

in the future. Both the modernization of wastewater treatment plants and increasing efficiency have therefore become high priorities for the government in recent years.

This is also reflected in recent regulations and funding programs at the federal level. The 1985 Canada Water Act, a general act for coordination between the provincial and federal levels with regard to the management of water resources in Canada, as well as the Wastewater System Effluent Regulations announced on July 12, 2012, have renewed national standards for Canada’s wastewater treatment systems. Additional requirements for monitoring, record-keeping, reporting, and toxicity testing have long been established under the federal Fisheries Act. Beside federal regulations, all Canadian provinces have their own regulations and programs to support the sector. The province of Alberta, for example, has introduced a “Water for Life” strategy which supports diverse projects selected for the Water Resource Sustainability Program with 10 million CAD in funding. Ontario, as one of the most progressive provinces when it comes to the support of environmental technologies, has several acts including the Clean Water Act and the Water Resources Act to protect drinking water and regulate sewage water disposal.

A second challenge for Canada besides the many different regulations and programs is the size of the country. Dirk Ruppert, National Business Development Manager of KSB Pumps and head of the North American Region for German Water

Canada contains 7% of the world’s fresh water resources and 14% of the country is covered by water. Canada is furthermore one of the most resource-rich countries in the world and has the largest natural water resources worldwide. The country’s water use is steadily increasing and is already well above the average when compared to other OECD-countries. This high rate of consumption can be attributed to historically low energy and water prices which have resulted in a lack of awareness amongst the general public and energy- and water-intensive industries, including the raw material, paper, iron and steel, chemicals and aluminum industries. The average water use per inhabitant is 251 liters per day (in 2011). Due to a projected population growth rate of approximately 20% by 2050, the demand can be expected to continue rising

The Greenway Pollution Control Plant hosts the Southern Ontario Water Consortium’s wastewaster facility. It creates capacity for compliance testing and demonstration of technologies that is unprecedented, enabling access to full-scale municipal flows from 1000 m3/day up to 4500 m3/day. | Picture Credits: Southern Ontario Water Consortium


Partnership comments, “The expanse of the country is the greatest challenge but also the greatest opportunity. The business model of the water and wastewater treatment markets, primarily for those at the municipal level, is closely dependent on personal connections as well as cooperation with local engineers and decision makers. In this way, Canada does not differ strongly from many other countries; however, the geographic distances across the country are immense.”

Despite the country’s immense size, Canada has well-developed sector organizations and associations which provide industry support across all three time zones. These organizations across the country work closely together in order to advance the sector. On the federal level, the Canadian Municipal Water Consortium works closely with municipalities, industry, government, and research teams to address municipal water management challenges. The Canadian Water Network is an organization that connects researchers and industry decision makers in the water sector across Canada. Many initiatives can also be found on the provincial level such as WaterTAP Ontario, a water technology acceleration project that promotes close cooperation between Ontario’s public and private water industry institutions and businesses. Dr. Peter Gallant, President and CEO of WaterTAP states, “Ontario is home to more than 900 water-related companies. Mature technology clusters include membranes, ultraviolet disinfection, and pipe inspection and rehabilitation. Clusters with high growth potential include resource recovery and reuse, stormwater management, and smart systems that incorporate monitoring, sensors, and big data. WaterTAP’s mandate is to increase adoption of these technologies in global market. At more than $560 billion, the market presents an incredible opportunity—and Ontario has the expertise to address many of the world’s water challenges.”

Canada’s biggest challenge for the coming years will be modernizing its more than 3,500 wastewater treatment plants. Over 150

billion liters of untreated and undertreated wastewater are dumped into the Canadian waterways every year. KSB Pumps applauds the efforts of the government on all levels: “The Canadian market for water and wastewater treatment continues to grow even further and the need to update facilities is substantial. Not only the federal government in Ottawa but also the provincial governments are making great efforts to improve water pollution control while at the same time optimizing energy efficiency in municipal facilities.”

The new regulations defined in the Wastewater System Effluent Regulations will require communities to substantially upgrade about one in every four wastewater treatment systems across the country over the next three decades. Based on conservative estimates, future capital expenditures will be in excess of 18 billion CAD. These costs challenge municipalities to defer other local infrastructure priorities that are similarly critical to sustained economic growth and job creation, but also offer municipalities a chance to open up for new partnerships and drive innovation. Currently, the 15 billion CAD annually invested into water projects by municipalities is complemented significantly by both the federal Gas Tax Fund and the


application-based New Building Canada Fund. Moving forward, municipalities are expected to look to partner with the federal government for a new, dedicated fund in order to assist communities in complying with new regulations.

This development in the Canadian water and wastewater sector offers significant economic opportunity and potential for foreign companies to enter the market in the next years. “Canada has the potential to be a global leader in water management, and that includes drinking water, wastewater, stormwater and urban watersheds,” says Bernadette Conant, CEO of Canadian Water Network.

ContactCanadian German Chamber of Industry and Commerce Inc.Anna-Lena GruenagelSenior Manager Business Development410, rue St. Nicolas, Bureau 200Montréal, QC, H2Y 2P5Canada

T +1 (514) 844-3051F +1 (514) [email protected]

Picture Credits: Shutterstock

34

Water quality monitoring is a crucial element of energy cost savings at any facility that utilizes boilers. Recent research has shown that better control of parameters such as water hardness, carbonate hardness, and conductivity through online water quality monitoring can save facilities thousands of dollars annually in energy and potential downtime costs. Water quality monitoring can also greatly increase the functional life of boilers, allowing for significant savings on capital equipment and investment.

According to the US Geological Survey, most regions in the United States are affected by hard water. The Great Lakes region, Alaska, Tennessee and parts of the Pacific Northwest endure moderately hard

water, while the highest hard water levels in the US can be found in Texas, New Mexico, Kansas, Arizona and southern California. However, hard or very hard water has been identified to some degree in water sources throughout all regions of the country.

Calcium salts contained in hard water become soluble when heated inside a boiler feed or condensate water stream. When calcium salts become soluble, they attach to the surface of metals that they come into contact with, forming a milky-colored, solid layer. By this process, limescale builds up on the inside surfaces of the pipes and other metal parts of a boiler, as well as its feed and condensate water streams. In addition, the likelihood of limescale forming increases

significantly with rising temperatures.

This means that virtually any facility in the US is vulnerable to incurring extra energy costs due to the negative effects of hard water, including the formation of limescale in boilers. Given the high rates of water hardness in most parts of the US and the need for cost-reduction efforts across all industries, regulating and monitoring CaCO3 levels has become a crucial process.

In addition to build-up from calcium salt limescale, deposits on heat transfer surfaces can also be caused by silicates, sulfate and calcium phosphate present in boiler feed water, resulting in additional costs and energy loss. Specifically, the presence of

Online Water Monitoring Prevents Deposits, Saving Facilities Thousands

Dow Chemical: Ultra-pure water plant for chemical industry with water hardness monitoring device | Pictures from (C) Frei AquaService AG, Aesch, Switzerland

Tilman Heyl, CEO, Heyl Brothers North America


an excessive amount of any one of these substances in boiler feed water can lead to costs of up to approximately $22,000 per year, depending on the size of the boiler. When these factors combine to form scale build-ups, the costs due to energy loss, de-scaling operations, and further potential damage to the boiler and related equipment can be astronomical.

The need to innovatively combat this risk of high-cost limescale deposits is therefore apparent. However, innovations in the water sector do not come easily and face a number of challenges. According to a 2014 study by Black & Veatch, challenges in the US water sector are not only dominated by an aging infrastructure and lack of financing. Information technology and an aging workforce have also been identified as key challenges for future developments.

The water sector is perceived as a comparatively unattractive employer for the new generation of workers. With the current workforce aging rapidly, a labor gap needs to be filled. Automation technologies, which decrease the need for highly trained workers, provide a solution to this gap, and are becoming more sought after, fueling investments in information technology and process automation.

In addition to a labor gap, three more large challenges that utilities and industrial plants with potable water cycles face are environmental standards & awareness, energy costs, and a lack of process automation. A tried-and-true solution that has been implemented in Germany to face these challenges is automated water quality analysis.

Currently, most facilities which monitor their water quality do so manually with test kits. In such cases, a water sample is taken by an employee, who then adds an indicator. Water hardness or other parameters are determined by how much indicator must be added before the sample changes color. However, manual water can also be inaccurate, typically requiring that tests be frequently performed to ensure constant water quality monitoring--thereby adding to already high labor costs.

A more accurate and integrated option is the fully automated monitoring of potable water cycles. For this method, a monitoring instrument is placed in the water cycle wherever measurements need to be taken. These instruments communicate via standard industrial data transfer systems such as Ethernet, WiFi with external data management, or SCADA systems, and can also be connected to control systems for water softening units to automatically

start the regeneration process should pre-determined limit values not be reached.

Fully automated water quality analysis has been implemented in a variety of industries in Germany and its cost-saving effects have been successfully demonstrated. Plant downtimes are an essential cost factor in the decision to better monitor water quality with an online analyzer, as plants and facilities usually have to be shut down when a boiler needs to be cleaned.

This occurs more frequently if water hardness has led to increased lime scaling. Plant operators and facility managers can significantly lower these costs through automated monitoring of water hardness. In addition to the decrease in energy costs enabled through automated water quality analysis, compliance with environmental standards can also be achieved through the monitoring of parameters such as phosphorous, bromide, or sulfite.

Faced with increased movement towards process automation to decrease labor costs and increase plant efficiency, operators utilizing automated analysis instrumentation have taken a vital step in the integration of multi-step treatment processes of potable water cycles.

Ultra-pure water plant for pharmaceutical industry with water hardness monitoring device | Picture from (C) Frei AquaService AG, Aesch, Switzerland

36

Federal Regulations

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for regulating pollutants in the US. EPA has been looking at ECs in potable water since the 1996 amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act. These amendments require EPA to monitor for not more than 30 contaminants every 5 years and to make a regulatory determination on at least 5 contaminants every 5 years. (1) To support this regulatory determination, EPA requires representative public water supplies across the country to collect and submit samples under the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rules (UCMR) to approved drinking water testing laboratories for analysis. The results are submitted to EPA to determine if a contaminant “may have an adverse effect on the health of persons”; “is known to occur or there is a substantial likelihood the contaminant will occur in public water systems with a frequency and at levels of public health concern”; or, “In the sole judgement of the Administrator, regulation of the contaminant presents a meaningful opportunity for health risk reductions for persons served by public water systems.” (2)

As a result of advancements in analytical chemistry, such as the tandem mass spectrometer coupled to both gas and liquid chromatographs (GC/MS/MS and LC/MS/MS), environmental scientists have been able to detect a wider array of environmental contaminants at much lower detection limits. In previous decades, detection limits were in the parts per million (ppm or mg/L) to parts per billion (ppb or ug/L) range. New technologies now enable environmental scientists to see in the parts per trillion (ppt or ng/L) levels for some contaminants.

Environmental samples of surface water, wastewater and even finished drinking water are now showing the presence of trace levels of pharmaceuticals and personal care products such as fragrances, cleaners, anti-bacterial additives (Triclosan) etc. Various terms have been used for these newly discovered contaminants including: Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs), Endocrine Disrupting Compounds (EDCs), and Emerging Contaminants (ECs). It is probably not accurate to use the term Endocrine Disrupting Compounds when speaking of Emerging Contaminants, as it is unlikely that all ECs are EDCs. The large number of different contaminants that may be present in an environmental sample coupled with a lack of understanding regarding their specific health effects, has hindered the regulation of ECs. This paper will focus on EC regulatory efforts in the United States and will propose a solution to address regulation of tens of thousands of contaminants.

Emerging Contaminants Regulations In The United StatesRichard Radcliff, Beam, Longest & Neff

As of this article, there have been three rounds of UCMR testing. EPA has required testing for 77 different chemicals, viruses and other microbiological contaminants. To date, only Perchlorate (3) and Strontium (4) have been determined to meet the requirements for regulation. Regulations are under development for these contaminants. In addition, certain states have regulated select contaminants beyond those regulated by EPA.

Endocrine Disruptors and the Water Quality Bullseye

The history of drinking water regulations in the United States shows that the definition of potable or “clean” continues to get narrower over time. As Figure 1 shows, each new regulation has had the effect of adding new contaminants or lowering the allowable concentration of previously regulated contaminants, thereby narrowing the definition of “clean” drinking water.

Beam, Longest & Neff 126 Castleton Road Indianapolis, IN 46250Richard [email protected].: 317.849.5832


The Future of Emerging Contaminant Regulations?

To truly regulate the “Universe” of contaminants that may be present in a water supply, it is suggested that the regulatory agencies look at the chemical properties of the substances (octanol water partition coefficient and Henry’s law constants). These properties would alert the regulator to whether the contaminant would partition to the air/sludge or stay in the water column. This would eliminate thousands of chemicals from consideration as potential water contaminants.

Consideration should also be given to what contaminants are likely to be present in a water sample. For example, the body may not excrete the parent pharmaceutical, but rather numerous metabolites. Looking at what drugs people take regularly (say the top

200 prescribed pharmaceuticals each year) and what metabolites are excreted would be more useful than screening for some of the materials on EPA’s “Universe” list. Finally, selecting individual chemicals that are representative of a class of contaminants (such as is done for the Trihalomethanes and Haloacetic Acids) would greatly reduce the complexity of testing and regulatory burden.

This effort is currently underway by the author. The author started with EPA’s Universe list and added approximately 4,000 additional pharmaceutical, metabolite and other contaminants that may be in water. Chemical properties are under review to determine their distribution (air, sludge, water matrix) after treatment. For more information, please contact the author.

References

1. http://water.epa.gov/lawsregs/guidance/sdwa/theme.cfm

2. http://www2.epa.gov/ccl/regulatory-determination-2-contaminants-second-drinking-water-contaminant-candidate-list

3. http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/unregulated/perchlorate.cfm

4. https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2014/10/20/2014-24582/announcement-of-preliminary-regulatory-determinations-for-contaminants-on-the-third-drinking-water

5. http://www.epa.gov/endo/pubs/edsp_chemical_universe_and_general_validations_white_paper_11_12.pdf

The Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program “Universe”

In 2012, EPA released its “Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program Universe of Chemicals” (5). This list contains over 10,000 items including: Foodstuffs; High production volume chemicals; Pharmaceuticals; Pesticides, and Fragrances.

While this is a significant step toward defining a starting point, the list is missing most of the typically prescribed pharmaceuticals, pharmaceutical metabolites, many pesticide metabolites, algal toxins and other important contaminants that may be present in source waters used for drinking water production. The process needs to be enhanced to efficiently regulate the “Universe” of possible contaminants.

HIT THE WATER QUALITY BULLSEYEAs the bullseye shows, efforts to regulate drinking water quality have been undertaken since 1914, and the definition of “clean” water has gotten narrower as time has progressed. Development of new analytical technologies has allowed for detection of trace level contaminants at the parts per trillion (ng/L or ppt) level. As our understanding of pollution has

progressed, the range of regulated contaminants has increased greatly. EPA has now developed a list of over 10,000 contaminants that they have included in the Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program, and has begun actively testing groups of these contaminants for endocrine disrupting activity. Future regulations will likely further narrow the definition of “clean”

drinking water. These developments have come at a time when the need for potable water is beginning to outpace the natural water cycle.

Population increases, climate change and droughts are resulting in water shortages. Water reuse is becoming more important to address water shortage issues. Since water reuse interrupts the natural water purification process, engineered treatment technologies are needed to mimic and enhance the natural environmental process.

Beam, Longest and Neff’s Water Resources Department continuously follows developments in the Safe Drinking Water Act and understands that new technologies will be needed to address the more stringent water quality demands that water reuse and future Safe Drinking Water Act regulations will require. BLN’s engineers have been working

on water treatment solutions geared toward meeting these new contaminant issues and are prepared to assist.

1914 US Public Health Service Regulates Coliform Bacteria

1962 US Public Health Service Issues Standards for 28 Contaminants

1974 Safe Drinking Water Act

1976 National Primary Drinking Water Regulations

ENDOCRINE DISRUPTORS RULE?

1979 Total Trihalomethanes Regulated

1979 Secondary Standards

1986 Fluoride Standard Revised

1987 - Phase I VOCs

1989 Total Coliform Rule, Revised

1989 Surface Water Treatment Rule

1991 Phase II VOCs, SOCs and IOCs

1991 Lead and Copper Rule

1992 Phase V - VOCs, SOCs and IOCs

1995 - Nickel is Remanded

1996 Amendments to Safe Drinking Water Act

1998 Stage I Disinfectant/Disinfection Byproducts Rule

1998 Interim Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule

2000 Radionuclides Rule2001

Arsenic Revised

2001 Filter Backwash Recycling Rule

2001 Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule 1 (UCMR 1)

2002 Long Term 1 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule

2006 Ground Water Rule

2006 Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule

2006 Stage 2 Disinfectant/ Disinfection Byproducts Rule


2009 Initial List of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals

2010 Second List of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals

November, 2012 EPA Releases Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program Universe of Chemicals


2013 Total Coliform Rule, Revised

2013 & Beyond Rules In Progress - Perchlorate, VOCs

2013 BLN Adds Missing Pharmaceuticals, Pharmaceutical Metabolites, Pesticide Metabolites, Fragrances, Algal Toxins and Disinfection Byproducts to EPA's List

THE FUTURE

1996 The Information Collection Rule (ICR)

38

get ahead of the water and sewer cost issue, the prudent facility manager should look to more creative options for water and waste management.

Some simple options available for consideration include:

• Rainwater Collection• Stormwater collection• Air conditioning Condensate reclaim• Greywater Reclaim

Rainwater Collection

Collecting rainwater predates the bible. As it falls from the sky, it approximates distilled water, being mostly devoid of minerals and chemicals. It makes an ideal source of water for laundries, (where less soap is required), cooling tower makeup (with limited scale producing hardness), watering livestock and pets, and vehicle washing (less soap and less spotting). Once the infrastructure of storage and distribution is established, the water source is free with filter replacement

As the planet’s population and industrial output continues to grow, water scarcity and water stress will be experienced in more and more regions of the United States and the world in general. Conservation can take us so far but beyond there will be a need for creative thinking and the development of alternative sources of water.

It is expected this increase in water demand will be accompanied by a rapid rise in water and sewer costs. Exhibit #1 indicates the rise in water and sewer costs is predicted to exceed all other costs. Where in previous years, the cost of water has been a minor part of an operating budget, looking toward the future; it will become an important component to operating costs.

How to anticipate this cost, and developing plans of action to minimize the impact, will become the difference between success or failure of managing future business and facilities.

Where are we now?

The first step to managing a facilities water budget is to survey how much water comes into a facility, how it is used and how it is disposed of. For combined sewer bills, the sewer bill is generally based on water consumption. Unless metered separately, water used for irrigation includes a charge for sewage disposal that is not used. A water audit, much like an energy audit, summarizes sources and uses and identifies opportunities for conservation and reuse.

A good first step is to increase the water use efficiency by reducing waste and phasing in high efficiency plumbing fixtures and systems. Typically that will only save 15%-20%, which is a good start but still leaves you vulnerable to price increases from cost and increased demand, which will reduce or eliminate the savings. To really

Water And The New UrgencyE. W. Bob Boulware, P.E., MBA

and normal pump maintenance the only maintenance required. If brought into an occupied space the water is required to be maintained at water quality standards per ARCSA/ASPE/ANSI 63 /Design Standards for Rainwater Collection Systems.

Rainwater was provided to supplement the water supply for Western Virginia Regional Jail, initially as a means to gain LEED points. AECOM Engineering, working with Rain Management Solutions of Salem Virginia, utilized the 261,000 square roof as their collection surface to harvest the rain. A siphonic drainage system conveyed rainwater to four (4) 30,000 gallon underground cisterns where the water was filtered and used by the prison laundry.

When the water savings from all the water conservation measures were totaled, the savings was nearly 11 million gallons of water per year, or about 62.4 percent reduction over the facility’s baseline water usage. Of these 11 million gallons saved,

Exhibit #1: Trends in the Consumer Price Index for utilities (general, 1979-2011) The index is set to 100 for 1982-1984 except for telephone services, where the index is set 100 for 1997.


nearly 40% was due to the rainwater harvesting system, which saved nearly 4.3 million gallons per year. With this exemplary performance, a LEED innovative design (ID) credit was achieved, making the WFRJ regional jail the first LEED-certified jail in Virginia and one of the first in the United States. This $225,000 project has an expected 2.5 year payback, or 40% Return on Investment.

Stormwater Collection

Buffering stormwater runoff is a side benefit of rainwater collection. Stormwater collection is a variant of rainwater collection, the difference being rainwater is generally considered to be harvested from a roof or other above ground relatively clean surface; while stormwater has come in contact with the ground, sidewalk or parking surface. Stormwater is not perceived as being quite as clean as rainwater, but is serviceable for landscape irrigation, toilet flushing, and area washdown. The required level of treatment is dependent upon the intended use. If brought into an occupied space, the minimal standards would be compliance with the ARCSA/ASPE/ANI 63. But for sub surface irrigation outside, simple filtering can work.

An enhancement to the basic rainwater collection system would be the inclusion of stormwater retention in the system design. Increased development usually means less pervious surfaces and increased runoff during a storm. In the case of the Western Virginia Regional Jail project, rainwater collection system had the added benefit of

providing less runoff than in predevelopment conditions, thereby gaining favor with the local building officials concerned about sewage plant overflows from their combined sewer system.

A hybrid version of the two systems uses rainwater collection as a stormwater management tool by reserving a volume in the top part of the rainwater tank equal to approximately 1” of rainfall on the collection surface. This volume is allowed to bleed out of the tank over a designated time depending on rain event frequency, to be used for irrigation, groundwater infiltration, or other use. This technique has been successfully used to answer flooding and high water table issues, along with utility reducing imposed stormwater runoff costs.

Air Conditioning Condensate Reclaim

The small trickle of water coming from a condensate drain is often overlooked, yet has potential for significant savings at the price of some plastic pipe. It is essentially distilled water, low in dissolved solids, but likely high in bacteria count and therefore needing to be treated with appropriate caution. Aerosols created from spraying have the potential to introduce bacteria such as Legionella into the occupant breathing zone. Contained distribution, such as cooling tower makeup is acceptable, but applications such as above ground spray irrigation are to be done with caution. However, depending upon the site location, significant amounts of water can be obtained from what normally would be discarded to a floor drain.

Grey Water

While often requiring the greater investment and system complexity, these options potentially have the greater payback. Unlike rainwater and stormwater usage that must rely on the vagaries of weather, greywater production is more predictable. Greywater systems re-use water from lavatories, showers and laundries primarily for toilet flushing but also can be used for irrigation and process makeup water. The end result is that, after being filtered, disinfected and stored for use, greywater reuse can

save approximately 50% of water being consumed with a payback commonly in the 3-5 year range. For the accountants, that is a Return on Investment between 20%-33%.

The design of a greywater system begins with a water audit. The audit is used to balance the sources and uses of greywater. For a successful design, the amount of greywater harvested should be ideally be used within 24 hours to avoid the water going septic, causing odors and potential health issues.

El Paso Prison improves its prisons self sufficiency by using the greywater produced to water the garden.

The logical extreme to these examples can be seen in the Bullet Center, a net zero water building newly built in Seattle Washington. This building uses rainwater as its principal source of water, recycles greywater from lavatories and showers for irrigation and groundwater replenishment. Waste is processed using composting toilets, where the compost and urine byproduct becomes a profit center. All these technologies show the possibility of being totally sustainable and if necessary, totally off grid in their building operation.

Conclusion

Resources such as energy and water, previously seen as limitless, now appear less so. Energy conservation is currently the norm. No right-thinking facility manager would claim that energy conservation is not top priority in running a facility. The new realities now include water as another limited resource a facility manager must be prepared to manage.

Adjusting a thermostat and turning off lights can be a simple answer to conserve energy. But there is no alternative if one runs out of water. Managing water is the next new imperative. Being prepared will separate successful facility managers from those that failed to see the new reality of water shortage.

For more information: www.DAEngineering.com

Rainwater Storage tank showing metered rainwater discharge available for irrigation (North Carolina State University Photo)

40

Foundations and components of the DESSIN ESS Evaluation Framework

The DESSIN ESS Evaluation Framework was developed on the basis of the Common International Classification of Ecosystem Services (CICES) and the DPSIR adaptive management cycle. The former is a standardized system for the classification of ESS developed by the European Union to enhance the consistency and comparability of ESS assessments. The latter is a well-known concept to disentangle the biophysical and social aspects of a system under study. As part of its analytical component, the DESSIN framework also integrates elements of the Final Ecosystem Goods and Services-Classification System (FEGS-CS) of the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). Furthermore, the framework will be accompanied by a sustainability assessment module which will help to ensure a holistic perspective for the evaluation (Figure 1).

While new solutions and advancements in technology are necessary to meet the water quality and scarcity challenges faced in Europe, these are typically confronted with barriers to their implementation. By enabling assessments that consider broad environmental and economic aspects when evaluating the costs and benefits of investing in novel solutions, these barriers can be overcome.

The European water research project DESSIN demonstrates and promotes innovative solutions for water scarcity and water quality related challenges for the implementation of the European Water Framework Directive (WFD). The overall aim of the project is to demonstrate how innovative solutions in the water cycle can enhance the services provided by freshwater ecosystems and therefore increase the benefits and attached values that are derived from them. The applied framework and key contribution of DESSIN, the DESSIN ESS Evaluation Framework, uses an integrated methodology for the evaluation of changes in ecosystem services (ESS).

20 partners from 7 countries comprising universities, research institutes, and site operators as well as small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are working together in this 4 year project (2014 – 2017), funded through the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013).

Promoting Innovation Through The Assessment Of Changes In Fresh Water Ecosystem Services: The DESSIN ESS Evaluation FrameworkGerardo Anzaldua, Ecologic Institute; Nadine Vanessa Gerner, Emschergenossenschaft; Sarah Beyer, Ecologic Institute; Manuel Lago, Ecologic Institute; Issa Nafo, Emschergenossenschaft; Sebastian Birk, University of Duisburg-Essen

In the DPSIR scheme as applied in DESSIN, the innovative technologies to be tested within the project are considered Responses that may have influence on Drivers (anthropogenic activities with environmental effects), Pressures (the direct effects of such activities) and States (the conditions of the ecosystems under study). From the resulting changes in ecosystem state, the changes in ESS (Impact I) will be estimated. An economic assessment of the subsequent changes in the benefits as perceived by society and in the value of the services derived from ecosystems (Impact II) will follow. Finally, this estimated change in the level of human well-being will inform policy and decision-making (further Responses). Figure 2 outlines the DPSIR scheme as applied in DESSIN.

Figure 1: Components and foundations of the DESSIN ESS Evaluation Framework

Figure 2: Conceptual approach of the DESSIN ESS Evaluation Framework (based on Müller and Burkhard, 2012, Van Oudenhoven et al., 2012 and Haines-Young and Potschin, 2010; 2013).


Application of the DESSIN ESS Evaluation Framework

Through the development and application of the ESS Evaluation Framework, DESSIN seeks to provide a means to estimate and promote the potential impact of innovative technologies on freshwater ESS. The framework testing and validation will take place until the end of 2015 in three mature case study sites: Emscher River (Germany), Aarhus River (Denmark), and Llobregat Delta (Spain) (Figure 3). In all these sites, innovative solutions have been implemented in the past and a good amount of data has been recorded, making it possible to test the methods proposed by DESSIN. Here,

control of large scale systems, sewer mining and storage of freshwater in aquifers as well as monitoring, modeling and management approaches.

Example: The Emscher River mature case study

Over a century ago, the region surrounding the Emscher River in Germany was transformed into an industrial conurbation centered around the coal and steel industries. The Emscher and its tributaries were turned into a man-made system of open wastewater channels. With the decline of mining, a decision to start re-converting the river and its tributaries into near-natural waterways was met and started being applied around

tourism & recreation) and Pressures (e.g. point and diffuse sources of wastewater, physical alteration for flood protection, hydrological alteration, introduced species and diseases). This is resulting in modifications in the hydromorphology, physicochemistry and biology of the river (i.e. an altered State) which is subsequently linked to an enhancement of regulatory ESS like water purification, flood protection, climate regulation and biodiversity preservation as well as an enhancement of cultural ESS such as local recreational opportunities and experience of nature in urban areas (the Impact). The changes in ESS resulting from the Emscher re-conversion activities are now being appraised quantitatively using biophysical indicators and economic valuation methods.

Outlook

Using the DESSIN ESS Evaluation Framework facilitates the delineation and assessment of changes in ESS that result from the implementation of water management innovations in the examined ecosystems. This enables a more informed selection of the most promising solutions for water management that takes into consideration impacts on the water body as well as wider economic implications. To evaluate the impact of a proposed or implemented water technology and to quasi-objectively compare among different potential solutions, the DESSIN ESS Evaluation Framework will be integrated into a Decision Support System. This will provide decision-makers with a practical way to integrate valuable, wide-ranging

Figure 3: Mature sites of DESSIN

changes in the value of ESS before and after the interventions are being calculated.

Once the testing phase at the mature sites is finalized by the end of 2015, the validated methodology will be applied to five demonstration sites around Europe where new innovations are undergoing implementation: Athens (Greece), Emscher (Germany), Hoffselva (Norway), Llobregat (Spain), Westland (Netherlands). The demonstration sites in Germany and Norway focus on water quality issues, while those in the Netherlands, Greece and Spain focus water scarcity. The solutions include technological approaches, such as decentralized water treatment units, real time

two decades ago. The first application of the DESSIN ESS Evaluation Framework shows that the Emscher re-conversion affects a high number of Drivers (e.g. urban development, climate change, flood protection, industry,

Responses

Emscher Re-conversion:

- creation of sewer network incl. CSOs

- waste-water free streams

- ecological restoration

Impact II

Avoided costs for water treatment

Ecosystem stability

Avoided restoration costs

Real estates, Willingness-to-pay for recreation

Impact I

Water purification

Flood protection

Surface water provision

Biodiversity preservation

Nutrient retention

Climate regulation

Cultural services

State

Hydromorphology:

- Quantity + dynamics of water flow - Water residence time - Depth and width - Structure and substrate of the

water bed

Physicochemistry:

- Transparency - Thermal conditions - Oxygenation conditions - Salinity - Nutrients - Hazardous substances

Biological:

- Macrophytes + Phytobenthos - Benthic invertebrates

Pressures

Point sources:

- Urban wastewater - Industrial wastewater

Diffuse sources:

- Urban run-off - Atmospheric deposition

Physical alteration for flood protection

Hydrological alteration

Introduced species and diseases

Drivers

Urban development

Climate change

Flood protection

Industry

Tourism & recreation

Figure 4: DPSIR analysis of the Emscher re-conversion

Responses

Emscher Re-conversion:

- creation of sewer network incl. CSOs

- waste-water free streams

- ecological restoration

Impact II

Avoided costs for water treatment

Ecosystem stability

Avoided restoration costs

Real estates, Willingness-to-pay for recreation

Impact I

Water purification

Flood protection

Surface water provision

Biodiversity preservation

Nutrient retention

Climate regulation

Cultural services

State

Hydromorphology:

- Quantity + dynamics of water flow - Water residence time - Depth and width - Structure and substrate of the

water bed

Physicochemistry:

- Transparency - Thermal conditions - Oxygenation conditions - Salinity - Nutrients - Hazardous substances

Biological:

- Macrophytes + Phytobenthos - Benthic invertebrates

Pressures

Point sources:

- Urban wastewater - Industrial wastewater

Diffuse sources:

- Urban run-off - Atmospheric deposition

Physical alteration for flood protection

Hydrological alteration

Introduced species and diseases

Drivers

Urban development

Climate change

Flood protection

Industry

Tourism & recreation

42

gGmbH, Emschergenossenschaft, EYDAP, Inrigo Water, KWR Water B.V., Leif Kølner Ingeniørfirma A/S, National Technical University of Athens, Oslo Kommune VAV, SEGNO Industrie Automation GmbH, Stiftelsen SINTEF, TELINT RTD Consultancy Services LTD, UFT Umwelt- und Fluid-Technik, University of Duisburg-Essen.

References

Haines-Young, R., and Potschin, M., 2010. The links between biodiversity, ecosystem services and human well-being. In: Raffaelli, D., Frid, C. (Eds.), Ecosystem Ecology: A New Synthesis. BES Ecological Reviews Series. CUP, Cambridge, pp. 110–139.

Haines-Young, R., and Potschin, M., 2013. Common International Classification of Ecosystem Services (CICES): Consultation on Version 4, August–December 2012. EEA

information into the decision-making process.

First results and conclusions from the mature case studies, including quantification of biophysical changes and economic benefits, will be available in late 2015.

Further information as well as precise case study descriptions can be found under: https://dessin-project.eu/.

Acknowledgements

The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement no. 619039.

Partners

IWW Water Centre (Project Coordinator), Adelphi, Amphos21, Bruine de Bruin, CETaqua, Chemitec, DHI, Ecologic Institute

Framework Contract No EEA. Contract No EEA/IEA/09/003.

Müller, F., Burkhard, B., 2012. The indicator side of ecosystem services. Ecosyst. Serv. 1, 26–30. doi:10.1016/j.ecoser.2012.06.001

Van Oudenhoven, A.P.E., Petz, K., Alkemade, R., Hein, L., de Groot, R.S., 2012. Framework for systematic indicator selection to assess effects of land management on ecosystem services. Ecol. Indic., Challenges of sustaining natural capital and ecosystem services Quantification, modelling & valuation/accounting 21, 110–122. doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2012.01.012

real challenges.real answers. SM

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The utilization of sewage sludge and similar waste sludge has been in intense discussion for many years. Besides objective information, emotions often play a role in shaping this discussion.

The agricultural exploitation and the usage of sludge for recultivation of soil will be strongly reduced due to new legislation. This will tighten environmental limits and greatly reduce or fully forbid the landfilling of dried sludge wastes. As a result of this development, the disposal by incineration and the energetic usage of the wastes until they reach inert status will prove to be a simple solution to this complex problem.

The end product which remains after dewatering the sewage sludge may be utilized in many different ways. It is indefinitely storable and requires significantly less transportation and storage volume. It may also be used as common fuel in cement factories, power plants, and diverse industrial incineration facilities.

There are many different drying technologies and systems which have been attempted with varying degree of success. Due to the high requirements of technology used in the drying process, only very few systems have proven to be consistent, long term, and economically viable solutions.

The major contemporary investment in drying technology has been divided between convection driers and contact driers. In the case of convection driers, the main heat source is a hot gas stream (either flue gas or heated air) which is fed over the wet sludge. The hot air transfers heat into the sludge and simultaneously removes the evaporated water as well as the other gasified residues. The moisture is removed in a condensation process while the rest of the flue gas with brine has to be safely burned and inertized.

State Of The Art Sewage Sludge Handling, Drying, And Incineration

A very interesting and economical alternative is the contact dryer. It transports the sludge within a screw conveyor while the shaft and the blades of the conveyor are heated to 572 ° Fahrenheit by circulation of thermal fluid. This technical solution makes the drying process very efficient, requiring significantly less floor space in factory settings.

Modular components for the immediate incineration of the dried sludge and flue gas can further improve efficiency, especially when coupled with a power generation module based on ORC technology.

Innovative screw conveyor incinerator devices such as this have already seen adoption in Germany. At the beginning of December 2007 an innovative sludge incinerator began operation in Altenstadt, in Germany. With an annual capacity of 120,000 tons of dewatered sludge, this incinerator has made a substantial contribution to the thermal utilization of municipal sewage sludge in Bavaria, and has played a significant role in helping to meet the objectives of the Bavarian State Ministry for the Environment and Consumer Protection to gradually replace agricultural sewage sludge utilization.

The sludge incineration plant is designed for the thermal utilization of sewage sludge from municipalities within a 60mi radius of the plant. It operates on innovative technology that differs from common sludge grate incinerator designs. Here, the well-mixed fuel (sludge, screenings, fermentation residues from the neighboring biogas plant etc.) is crushed to particle sizes of <2inch and pre-dried to approximately 65% dry matter before being inserted with a spinner on the step grate, despite different grain sizes, the turbulence in the combustion

chamber cause an even distribution of the material. Once on the grate, the fuel smolders, leading to a uniform burning combustion bed. Relatively low temperatures in the combustion zone reduce NOx and slagging. The plant is built in 2 lines each with 13,6 MBTU heat power. Prior to each incineration line, which is heated by thermal fluid, there is a contact dryer. The sludge is then led through screw conveyers to obtain about 65% dry matter. The thermal oil is heated by hot flue gas to around 572° F.

Once in the mud bunker, the delivered sludge is mixed by a process-driven excavator to achieve a relatively homogeneous calorific value of around 2150 BTU/lb x °F. The combustion gases are cleaned in a multi-stage exhaust gas cleaning system with emissions far below the limit values according to 17. BimSchV (according to German emission regulations).

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INTEC Engineering GmbHChristian DanielEmail: [email protected] www.intec-energy.com

44

wastewater treatment. One drug in this study was even found at rates of 120% the pretreatment amount. The hypothesis offered was that bacteria were producing the drugs after water treatment. I would offer another thought. Chlorine is an ingredient in many drugs and by treating wastewater with chlorine operators are simply adding additional components for the drugs to use in reassembling.

The list of new problems is seemingly endless. But what of new ways to deal with these emerging contaminates? There is hope in the category called Advanced Oxidative Processes. This grouping includes methods such as ozone, hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyls, ultraviolet (UV), and superoxide (SO).

From this group, ozone has made the largest inroads and is also the oldest. It is composed of three oxygen atoms and is very unstable. At ground level it is considered a pollutant and disintegrates in a very short time. Ozone will remediate a very wide range of problems such as bacteria, some chemicals, and many PCPs. The disadvantages are that is very corrosive and somewhat expensive as well as very short-lived. Ultraviolet is used in conjunction with ozone to insure the complete removal of bacteria. UV bulbs are expensive to replace, however, increasing long-term costs.

There is currently some excitement about the use of hydroxyls (OH-). Hydroxyls are a form of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that have very high oxidation capabilities. It is difficult to envision their use in any but the most limited arenas because their lifespan is less than a second. They are also not that easy to produce on a mass production basis.

The 21st century has brought with it a host of new emerging contaminants that old line treatment methods are failing to mitigate. Among these are personal care products (PCPs) that include prescription drug residues and chemicals from items such as shampoo, cyanobacteria, and pesticides. This list does not even include some of the older problems which have never been dealt with, including PCBs and dioxins.

Cyanobacteria is the contaminate that receives the most headlines in the warm months. Last year an entire city’s drinking water was shut down for several days in Toledo, Ohio. Cyanobacteria plague most of the country and an easy, comprehensive solution has been very elusive. Also known as blue-green algae, it is precipitated by excessive amounts of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphates in the water column. The cyanobacteria feed on these nutrients and grow explosively. The real solution to this problem is not to combat the bacteria, but rather to dramatically reduce the agricultural run-off responsible, while in the meantime causing no reduction in the production of drinkable water.

The EPA also handed water providers another chore when it raised the allowable limits of glyphosate, (the main ingredient in Roundup, the ubiquitous biocide from Monsanto). As farmers use more Roundup, the amounts washed into the nation’s water will increase. Glyphosate, also known previously as Agent Orange during the Vietnam War era has been held responsible for causing many birth defects.

Just recently, another potential problem has surfaced. Research from a Wisconsin scientist has revealed that some prescription drugs are reassembling themselves after

Putting The O In Advanced Oxidative ProcessesMichael Mangham, Premier Materials Technology, Inc.

This brings us to the newest entrant in the water cleanup field, superoxide (SO), an oxygen molecule with an extra electron (O2-). SO is a powerful oxidant that remediates a wide scope of pollutants. On an oxidation scale where chlorine is equal to 1.0, ozone rates 1.52, and SO comes in at 2.35. An additional advantage is that SO lasts about 7 days (as long as it doesn’t encounter a pollutant) and is totally safe to use. SO is as old as the atmosphere, but the technology to mass produce it is only about 12 years old.

SO will destroy any organic pollutant by reacting with the carbon atom in that pollutant, producing carbon dioxide. This is called a Fenton reaction and was discovered in the 1890s. Organic pollutants are the great majority of what water operators deal with on a daily basis, so a method of dealing with organics is a very valuable addition to the armory. The availability of SO technology means that PCBs and dioxins can now be treated in situ with no secondary pollutants and no dredging. This will reduce mitigation costs by 96%.

SO is extremely effective in dealing with anaerobic bacteria such as salmonella, E. coli, enterococcus, and coliform die within minutes of exposure. This bacteria killing ability also extends to cyanobacteria where both the Army Corps and a research team from Stanford discovered that cyanobacteria as well as the neurotoxin microcystus were destroyed in less than 5 minutes. A 2013 paper found that SO reacts with manganese to remediate excess nutrients (nitrogen and phosphates) as well as pollutants such as coal ash (Hansel, 2013). There are many thousands of scientific research papers describing the effects and uses of SO as a cleanup tool.


SO will also oxidize most metals, causing them to precipitate out of solution. Recent research proved that SO secreted by some marine organisms is responsible for the recycling of trace metals in the world’s oceans. SO is also now known to be one of the factors in dealing with air pollution in the troposphere. In time, SO may become one of the more important new technologies in the water industry.

Currently, there are two technologies available for the production of SO. The older is titanium dioxide coatings. Invented in Japan in the 1970s, TiO2 coatings produce SO passively in the presence of UV and light. The amounts of SO produced are small and subject to the availability of light.

The newer technology is the Kria ionizer, also from Japan. This device produces SO in quantity by pulling oxygen from the atmosphere and electrically attaching an electron to oxygen molecules. The SO is then injected into a stream of water that is returned to the body of water being treated. The Kria is a small, mobile device able to operate in the field or in an industrial setting. In the field, the ionizer has an operating range of one mile and can treat any organic pollutant as well as most metals. Energy consumption is listed at 750 watts/hour.

SO is just one of the many promising new technologies for water treatment in the 21st century.

Premier Materials Technology, Inc.7401 Central Ave. NEMinneapolis, MN. 55432800-262-2275763-785-1411www.premiermaterials.comkeith@premiermaterials.com

EcoSOAR Water Technology

Suction Hose

Superoxide (SO) Return Hose

Key Applications:• Harmful Bacteria Reduction or

Elimination• Cyanobacteria / Algae Reduction• Excessive Nutrient Pollution Reduction• Storm Water, Waste Water, and

Drinking Water Ponds• Improves Fish Hatcheries and Fish Farms• Improves Aquatic and Plant Life• Cleans Oil Spills

Premier Materials Technology, Inc.7401 Central Ave. NE • Minneapolis, MN 55432

Phone 763-785-1411 • Fax 763-785-1509

www.premiermaterials.com

KRIA Ionizer creates and injects superoxide (SO) into the water column and sediment raising the dissolved oxygen (DO) level to start the cleanup process without chemicals.

Call 800-262-2275 for additional information

46

New Approaches & Technologies For Tackling Emerging Pollutants In Drinking & Wastewater

uptake of knowledge, prototypes, practices and technologies that enable the water sector to tackle emerging pollutants more effectively. The project consists of a network of partners from research, water utilities and SMEs that are exploring five promising water treatment technologies: Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR), Hybrid Ceramic Membrane Filtration (HCMF), Automated Neural Net Control Systems (ANCS), Advanced Oxidation Techniques (AOT), and Bioassays.

New collaborative approaches

Using action research, the DEMEAU project provides new, improved approaches for developing and testing relevant water treatment technologies as a way to innovatively and effectively address the gaps and opportunities for tackling emerging pollutants. Bridging the gap between research and industry, DEMEAU facilitates close collaboration and feedback among the research community, SMEs and water utilities by lowering the economic and shared risks associated with innovation and trial of such new, promising technologies.

To fuel innovation and knowledge exchange, the project actively explores synergies among drinking and wastewater treatment technologies. This integrated approach has been critical to the overall success and uptake of the five technologies explored in the project. On the one hand, researchers have been able to receive inspiration and critical feedback from SMEs, while SMEs

Introduction

In recent decades, emerging pollutants from pharmaceuticals, industrial chemicals, and large-scale agriculture have posed new challenges for the water management sector. Coupled with demographic changes, climate change, as well as aging and deteriorating water infrastructures, research and innovation in the water sector have become increasingly important for ensuring the long-term sustainability and quality of water resources.

The need for innovation

Despite these challenges, the adoption of appropriate practices and technologies that effectively address and tackle such emerging pollutants remains low. Improved knowledge transfer and better science communication among key stakeholders, including scientists, the private sector, and water utilities have been identified as central to addressing the low rate of uptake of appropriate technologies. In particular, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have emerged as key go-betweens for increasing innovation in the water sector and encouraging knowledge dissemination and uptake of research.

In Europe, efforts to address emerging pollutants in drinking and wastewater are already in progress. Using applied research and demonstration sites across Europe, the DEMEAU project is demonstrating new, collaborative approaches for advancing the

Ulf Stein, Evelyn Lukat, Anna Bee Szendrenyi, Ecologic Institute

A visualization of the approach.

and utilities have been able to broaden their markets by pioneering the water sector.

Technologies for emerging pollutants

Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR)

Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) is a versatile technology that provides drinking water supply, process water for industry, for irrigation and for sustaining groundwater dependent ecosystems. MAR uses natural aquifer treatment processes, such as mechanical filtration, sorption and biodegradation, at the subsurface level. These natural treatment processes do not require additional chemicals, offering a more sustainable alternative to traditional treatment processes.

MAR has been shown to provide a variety of benefits, including water storage and improved water quality. However, the implementation of MAR is often hampered by uncertainty relating to economic and environmental profiles. To address this,


life cycle assessments (LCA) and life cycle costing (LCC) tools, based on a set of indicators selected for environmental impacts and costs, are being applied to MAR sites for comparison against other competitive water treatment technologies. From the assessments, it has been found that natural, infiltration pond systems are a low-cost and low-energy option for groundwater recharge, provided that a suitable long-term strategy to prevent clogging is implemented. Such ponds can be upgraded or combined with advanced oxidation processes to enhance their capacity for removal of organic micropollutants.

Hybrid Ceramic Membrane Filtration (HCMF)

Polymeric membranes are widely used

in water treatment to remove pathogens, particles and organics from surface, ground, and process and filter backwash water. However, ceramic membranes are much more resilient, outperforming polymeric membranes even under extreme conditions (e.g. temperature, pH and chemicals).

LCC assessments based on case studies also show that HCMF have lower operational costs than polymeric membranes, though implementation costs were higher for HCMF. In order to improve cost effectiveness, several alterations to the ceramic membrane modules have already been tested and successfully applied within the DEMEAU project. For example, by combining several membranes into one vessel, fewer valves, and therefore steel, are needed. In addition, an improved bottom

plate has helped to enhance its durability, making the technology more resilient during backwashing, particularly in the long-term.

Automated Neural Net Control Systems (ANCS)

Automated Neural Net Control Systems (ANCS) are computer-based, process optimisation systems that use tailored mathematical algorithms, with applications in drinking water processing and supply, urban drainage systems, and activated sludge reactors in wastewater treatment plants. In the drinking water industry, ANCS technology is usually applied as an add-on to optimize membrane filtration, and thus is widely applicable. Within DEMEAU, marked improvements in filtration and enhancements in process productivity (of

Copyright: MAR infiltration system in Sant Vicenç dels Horts (Barcelona, Spain).

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implementation.

Advanced Oxidation Techniques (AOT)

Oxidation techniques have a long tradition for use in disinfecting drinking and wastewater, however, its benefits for use in removing emerging pollutants have only recently come to light. Results from pilot plants and the first full-scale application using post-ozonation produced removal rates greater than 80% for many emerging pollutants.

Within DEMEAU, researchers, utilities and SMEs are testing a combination of various oxidation processes (including O3, O3/H2O2, UV/H2O2) as well as different post-treatment applications, such as sand filtration

about 4 to 15%) has made ANCS particularly lucrative as an add-on for existing membrane filtration plants in Europe to increase their increasing environmental and economic sustainability.

However, several barriers to widespread uptake still exist for ANCS. Life cycle assessments have revealed that a certain degree of complexity is necessary in order for ANCS to be cost-effective. Consequently, larger plants are more cost-effective than smaller plants. Similarly, as maintenance is a necessary aspect of the technology, ANCS is more cost-effective at larger scales. As a result, understanding the extent and costs of maintenance required for the plant is an important aspect to account for prior to

or biological activated carbon filtration. Due to the collaborative character of DEMEAU, the project is actively facilitating a safe environment for utilities and SMEs to experiment and apply this innovative technology in a full-scale drinking water plant. The results have been promising: one oxidation reactor developed by a Dutch SME projects significant energy reductions. In fact, the SME estimates 30-40% less energy consumption with its oxidation reactor as compared to conventional reactors using UV/H2O2 processes.

Bioassays

Current mainstream water monitoring strategies rely exclusively on chemical analysis. However, chemical analysis only

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bioassays toward regulatory acceptance. The studies found that in order to facilitate the operational use of these tools for decision-makers, knowledge dissemination is essential.

Conclusions and recommendations

Ultimately, transparent sharing of research results, increased communication, and more trans- and interdisciplinary exchange and collaboration between researchers, utilities and SMEs have been shown to provide the greatest potential for successful knowledge transfer and uptake of new technologies. Despite these findings, key barriers to, as well as opportunities for, need further investigation moving forward.

Firstly, for promising water treatment technologies to effectively tackle emerging pollutants, regulatory standards have to be defined for emerging contaminants at the national- and EU-level, such as for example, laws that establish long-term target values for water quality of waste water treatment plant effluent, surface water, and drinking water. In addition, increasing regulatory pressures will motivate water utilities to implement innovative solutions-oriented technologies, while also providing an incentive for technology developers to generate innovations.

Secondly, movement towards better integration of regulators and policy makers into the innovation cycle is also needed. Without targeted input and timely feedback from policy makers and regulators, technological advancements will always follow rather than lead the innovation curve. Informing the general public is one way to raise public awareness on the topic and create pressures that can result in direct policy action. In this regard, LCA and LCC results have a great potential to convey complex research messages to the non-scientific community.

identifies specific, targeted compounds with no information on the biological effects of the pollutants. Bioassays address this gap in monitoring strategies, and hold the potential to serve as an additional, complementary technology to chemical analysis.

Because bioassays measure the biological effects of single compounds present in water samples, they are particularly useful for application in assessing the harmful effects of complex mixtures of unknown pollutants. As a result, bioassays have the potential to widen the scope of water quality monitoring, and can be tailored to and adjusted for testing a range of water sources, from general toxicity tests to very specific biological activities.

Though some scientists and end-users view bioassays as a potential replacement of more costly techniques, currently, regulatory acceptance of bioassays is slow. Demonstration and validation studies are being carried out in an effort to bring

Thirdly, as already highlighted, there are economic barriers and associated risks. As mentioned previously, SMEs and water utilities often cannot bear the burden posed by such economic barriers. Because innovation in the water sector is often fraught with uncertainty, it requires a very specific environment for actors to be willing to engage and also be successful.

Large-scale projects such as DEMEAU, that provide the economic security and stability to innovate, have demonstrated the potential to facilitate environments for collaborative technological advancements in water treatment. Not only do such projects facilitate synergistic, cross-sector knowledge sharing, but also they provide the testing grounds for trying promising technologies before they are fully launched on the market.

Acknowledgments

The DEMEAU project is supported by the European Seventh Framework Programme (EU-FP7) under grant agreement No. 308330. DEMEAU follows a solution-oriented approach using applied research and demonstration sites to explore five promising technologies. News on the project and detailed contact information for the partners involved are available on the project website www.demeau-fp7.eu.

50

Upcoming GACC Midwest Programs 2015/2016

IL, Nov. 20 – Dec. 24

• Christkindlmarket Oak Brook | Oak Brook, IL, Nov. 27 – Dec. 24

• Transatlantic Dialogue – Agricultural Perspectives | up to three locations in the Midwest, tbd

December 2015

• Children’s Lantern Parade at the Christkindlmarket | Chicago, IL, Dec. 2

• German American Business Outlook (GABO), New York, NY, Dec. 14

Our Signature Events in 2015/2016

Smart Factory Industry Forum, October 9, 2015

Our new Industry Forum brings together top-level executives and industry leaders, providing a business platform to engage in and discuss current hot topics and industry trends. This year our Smart Factory Industry Forum will focus on the future of manufacturing, Industrie 4.0, elaborating on its growing strategic importance, opportunities, and challenges for the German-American business community. This year’s conference location, the DMDII, represents the United States’ flagship research institute for applying cutting-edge digital technologies to reduce time and cost of manufacturing, strengthen the capabilities of the U.S. supply chain, and reduce production costs. We look forward to hear experts in the field share their knowledge on the future of manufacturing.

GACC Awards Gala, October 9, 2015

Our Awards Gala combines the favorite aspects of both our popular MERLIN Awards Gala and Wine Dinner - awarding

We look forward to presenting our upcoming events, which provide the German-American business community with unique opportunities to grow, network, and to meet high-ranking representatives of transatlantic relations in business and politics.

October 2015

• German Machinery Delegation | Detroit, MI & Chicago, IL, Oct. 5-9

• German Machinery Conference - Focus on Automotive | Detroit, MI, Oct. 6

• MI Chapter: Unity Day | Rochester, MI, Oct. 7

• GACC Awards Gala & Smart Factory Industry Forum | Chicago, IL, Oct. 9

• Energy Efficiency in Industry Business Delegation | Detroit, MI, Oct. 19-23

• Energy Efficiency in Industry Business Conference | Detroit, MI, Oct. 20

• European Business Networking | Chicago, IL, Oct. 21

• MI Chapter: HR Circle | tbd, MI, Oct. 22

• CO Chapter: Membership Meeting | tbd, CO, Oct. 23

• Business Delegation from Saxony | Chicago, IL & Cincinnati, OH, Oct. 26-30

November 2015

• Health IT Expert Delegation Trip to Germany | Germany, Nov. 15-22

• European Business Networking | Chicago, IL, Nov. 19

• Grand Opening Christkindlmarket Chicago | Chicago, IL, Nov. 19

• CO Chapter – Christkindlmarket | Denver, CO, Nov. 20 – Dec. 23

• Christkindlmarket Chicago | Chicago,

excellence in German-American business, culinary highlights, as well as dancing and networking to round off a wonderful evening. On the occasion of the 2015 Gala we will celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Germany’s Reunification and welcome Ambassador JD Bindenagel to share his remembrance of this seminal world event. The GACC Awards Gala will ensue our Industry Forum, the Smart Factory Industry Forum this year. Join us for this remarkable event!

German American Business Outlook, December 14, 2015

The German American Chambers of Commerce (GACCs) in cooperation with the Representative of German Industry and Trade (RGIT), and Roland Berger Strategy Consultants survey over 1,900 German subsidiaries in the United States each year to assess their economic outlook. The German American Business Outlook measures the satisfaction of German companies with the United States as an investment location and takes on a different topical angle each year. Last year’s study found that an overwhelming 98% of German companies expected positive revenue growth for their own business and the U.S. economy in general in 2015. TTIP (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership) gained importance, with businesses anticipating lower tariffs and

German American Business Outlook 2014


better regulatory cooperation to provide future growth incentives. This year’s results will be presented at the Thomson Reuters Headquarters in New York City on December 14, 2015.

Annual Economic Forum, January 29, 2016

Around 200 executives get together at the beginning of each year for the Annual Economic Forum, a favorite of the C-level audience in the Midwest and beyond. Top speakers from both sides of the Atlantic identify current economic developments in the international and, in particular, the German-American business world. Attendees from a variety of industries, companies, and backgrounds listen to high-ranking speakers from the U.S. and Europe and discuss synergies and business opportunities. Past speakers included the Ambassador of Germany to the U.S., Dr. Peter Wittig, as well as representatives from companies such as Ipsen, Rittal, Rational North America, Volkswagen Group of America, Wittenstein and the Representative of German Industry and Trade. The Forum provides the audience with a wide array of takeaways from industry experts in transatlantic business and gives ideas as to how to ideally prepare their businesses for success in the year ahead.

German American Business Forum June 16, 2016

You should also mark your calendar for the German American Business Forum at the IHK Frankfurt that will take place

on June 16, 2016. The all-day conference targets German companies interested in strengthening business relations within the U.S. market, and will feature informative workshops and engaging speakers. The event will provide an exclusive platform to network and exchange ideas with some of the highest-ranking representatives of German companies in the U.S.

Get involved! We look forward to welcoming you at our events.

In addition to our signature events, GACC Midwest is also proud to be part of HANNOVER MESSE 2016, which will take place on April 25-29, 2015 in Hannover, Germany. HANNOVER MESSE is the largest industrial trade show in the world and a proven platform for initiating tangible global business opportunities. In 2015, 6,500 exhibitors from across the world introduced their innovations in areas such as advanced manufacturing, industrial supply, digital factory, energy, and mobility. In 2016, the US will be the official Partner Country. Through a strategic partnership between the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Commercial Service/SelectUSA, the

U.S. Embassy in Germany, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and Deutsche Messe, this event will generate unique opportunities for investment attraction and trade promotion. GACC Midwest is working closely with U.S. Department of Commerce, Deutsche Messe AG, and Hannover Fairs USA to make Partner Country USA an even greater success. GACC Midwest is the official partner for any economic development organizations who want to be part of the US Investment Pavilion. We want to make sure that all the great regions of the US are well-represented in Hannover next April, to showcase themselves and take advantage of the significant publicity that comes along with Partner Country status – ultimately generating more business, more growth, and more jobs.

For more information, please visit our website and feel free to contact us with any questions.

German American Chamber of Commerce of the Midwest, Inc.321 North Clark Street, Suite 1425Chicago, IL 60654Tel.: +1 312 644 2662Email: [email protected]: www.gaccmidwest.org

Annual Economic Forum 2015

German American Business Forum 2015

52

DE Services - Take Your Business Global - Now!GACC Midwest has been supporting German and American companies in transatlantic business for over 50 years.

Profit from our extensive experience in both American and German business environments and our vast industry knowledge. Our intercultural, bilingual team specializes in effectively initiating German-American business relationships and establishing German companies in the U.S. We represent and support companies both in the short and long-term, focusing all of our efforts on ensuring a successful future for your company in the German-American business world.

To ensure professional support, GACC Midwest – under the service brand DEinternational – has developed a wide range of services to assist German and U.S. companies in their efforts to expand internationally.

Market Entry & Business Development Services

Our market entry and business development services support your market entry in the U.S. or Germany and set the foundation for your long-term success. With market analysis, targeted search for business partners, a virtual office, site selection services or trade show support, we facilitate your market entry activities.

Market Study

A market study provides you with essential information about market size, market developments, competitors, distribution and sales structures as well as product requirements specific to the US or German market. Before you decide to pursue a new market or location, an in-depth analysis of the target market is essential.

Business Partner Search

Is your company looking for new strategic partners to market your products or services? We offer efficient and practical solutions to help companies build up their business activities quickly and effectively through a targeted partner search.

Virtual Office

Our virtual office service provides an initial step towards establishing your U.S. presence and serves as an interface between your company in Germany and in the U.S.

Trade Show Support

Are you planning a trade show presence at a U.S. or German trade fair to attract new business partners and customers? We can support you in the preparation, execution, and follow-up activities involved in exhibiting at a trade show.

Site Selection

The complexity of a site selection process in the U.S. market requires a trusted partner on site. Thanks to our broad network of

members, contacts, and clients we help you independently and objectively to find the ideal location for your company.

M&A Consulting

We offer strategic M&A consulting–starting with research, identification, analysis, and approach of suitable target companies–followed by data evaluation as well as acquisition and integration assistance–together with accountants, lawyers, and financial institutions.

Collection Services

As one of the most important trade partners for German companies, regrettably, it is sometimes the case that a U.S. client pays its invoices belatedly or not at all. We support German companies and private persons claim outstanding debts from defaulting partners in the U.S.

If you want to learn more about our market entry and business development services, please contact Virginia Attaway Rounds at [email protected] or +1 (312) 494-2163

HR Services

With our HR services, we offer full-cycle recruitment support for open positions at your company. We also coach your U.S. and/or German employees to learn the most important intercultural differences in a work


environment and prepare them for business meetings, presentations as well as for all communication with clients and colleagues.

Career Services

We offer full-cycle recruitment support for open positions at your company. We specialize in matching job seekers from a wide range of fields and experience levels to

positions at our client companies. Our focus is on identifying qualified bilingual talent as well as professionals with transatlantic and/or start-up business experience.

Coaching for Intercultural Teams & Managers

After founding a subsidiary and recruiting appropriate employees, there remains the complex task of integrating German or U.S. employees into an international work environment. To help facilitate the integration of your employees into the international environment, we offer coaching services for intercultural teams and managers in a wide variety of situations.

If you need support in filling an open position at your company, please contact Justin Flaxbart at [email protected] or +1 (312) 644-3369.

Event & Delegation Services

As event service provider, we support the preparation, organization, and realization of your business events in various formats. In addition to that, we organize delegation visits to the US and business trips to Germany.

Event Services

Do you need professional support to organize your company event? From smaller workshops to conferences and summits up to galas and receptions, we are capable of covering many event formats and catering to different industry focuses.

Delegation Services

We have found that delegations provide a useful tool for discovering new markets and business areas. We not only set up delegation programs, but provide support for companies to find new contacts and business partners based on an analysis of their technology and developments in the target market.

If you need support in organizing your event or a delegation visit, please contact Nadine Schieban at [email protected] or +1 (312) 494-2180.

54

The German American Chambers of Commerce (GACCs) are one of the largest bilateral trade organizations worldwide. With 2,500 member companies and office locations in Atlanta, Chicago, and New York as well as branch offices in Detroit, Houston, Philadelphia, and San Francisco, the members and clients of GACCs benefit from a nation-wide service network. In several states, the GACCs are also represented by local chapters. GACC Midwest has active chapters in Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota and Colorado.

The GACCs are an integral part of the network of German Chambers of Commerce Abroad (AHKs). At 130 locations in 90 countries around the world, the members of the German Chamber Network offer their experience, connections, and services to German and foreign companies. The service portfolio of the AHKs is unified worldwide under the brand name DEinternational.

In the U.S., our liaison office in Washington, DC, the Representative of German Industry and Trade, represents the interests of the German business community vis-à-vis both the US administration and other international organizations based in Washington, DC. The AHKs cooperate closely with the foreign trade and inward investment agency of the Federal Republic of Germany – Germany Trade & Invest.

The German American Chamber of Commerce of the Midwest (GACC Midwest), headquartered in Chicago, and with a branch office in Detroit, was founded in 1963. Our continuing mission is to further, promote, and assist in the expansion of bilateral trade and investment between Germany and the United States, especially the Midwest. Focus areas of our

The German American Chambers Of Commerce Network

work include automotive, manufacturing, renewables, and skilled workforce.

GACC Midwest’s territory covers 14 U.S. states: the 13 states of the Midwest (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin) and Colorado, comprising together approximately one quarter of the nation’s geographical area, its population, and its GDP. With over 800 members, GACC Midwest enables its members to socialize and build important business relationships throughout its network. Our organization combines elements of a trade commission, a membership association, and a professional consultancy - quite a unique concept in international trade promotion. More specifically, the Chamber’s three pillars consist of:

1. Public Function

Being the official representatives of German companies, AHKs are key players of German

foreign business development on behalf of the Federal Republic of Germany. The GACCs represent German business interests in the USA.

2. Member Organization

The GACCs are a member organization for companies actively involved in bilateral business relations. As a reliable partner for both U.S. and German companies, we offer excellent services to our members. The GACCs interact with political organizations and businesses in terms of promoting the bilateral business relations and facilitate trade and investment.

3. Professional Consultancy and Service Provider

The GACCs’ service portfolio brand “DEinternational” provides consulting services to companies both from Germany and in the U.S. in order to support their foreign business activities. Get in touch with us now for more information!

Our national network

54


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56

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German American Water Technology Magazine 2015/2016