New Research To Investigate Performance/Costs Of Decentralized Treatment Systems' Unit Processes

Alexandria, VA — The Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF) is requesting proposals for research that will enable municipalities to make informed decisions concerning decentralized wastewater treatment options. By providing local data and performance expectations for common unit processes, decision makers will be able to calculate more accurate capital and operational costs.

Specifically, WERF is providing $175,000 for the development of guidance and tools that lead to more informed decision-making for those who select wastewater treatment systems. Providing technical and non-technical users with the ability to quickly learn about system components and determine costs could result in savings when public health officials select a wastewater treatment system.

U.S. EPA has stated that decentralized wastewater treatment systems can be an effective means of protecting public health and water quality when appropriately managed. However, due to a lack of supporting information, decision makers are not always able to compare decentralized systems on an equal basis to other treatment options. This has resulted in situations in which a municipality will select a more expensive system than necessary. It is critical that municipalities are able to understand and evaluate all economically and technically feasible options.

Decentralized approaches are used in a variety of circumstances in rural, suburban, and urban areas. They are particularly suitable where larger systems require excessive costs to construct or retrofit. WERF's decentralized research program seeks to advance the knowledge in this area and to communicate the results of research efforts to stakeholders.

Please submit proposals before 5:00 p.m. (EDT), August 15, 2008. For more information, visit WERF's Open RFPs page. Contact Program Manager Jeff Moeller at jmoeller@werf.org for more information on this research effort or the proposal process.

SOURCE: WERF