A new report by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce blasts the U.S. EPA and the Executive Branch for imposing environmental mandates without giving voice or financial consideration to the states’ plight.
Wastewater treatment plants, while critically important, often go unrecognized, even when they do exceptional work.
A water technology expert tackles high-profile and important topics currently affecting municipalities, industry, and the community at large.
This year's Annual Conference and Exposition (ACE16), held by the American Water Works Association (AWWA) from June 19 to 22, was the first following the tragedy of Flint — a time when the drinking water industry is under intense scrutiny.
In the midst of this U.S. presidential race, a thought about Ronald Reagan (apolitical, I promise): Known as the “Great Communicator,” it’s certainly no coincidence that Reagan was an actor before becoming president; and honed communication skills, especially in times of trouble, are vital to effective leadership.
The U.S. EPA and multiple water groups recently gathered during Water Week 2016 in Washington, D.C. to announce updates to an essential guide for effective utility management (EUM). If utilities aren't already familiar with this document, they need to be.
Providing safe drinking water is a growing challenge. While methods for the disinfection of bacteria, protozoa and viruses in drinking water are well established, there are certain chemical contaminants of concern resistant to traditional water treatment methods which are being detected in drinking water, and many have the potential to impact public health.
While more prevalent in certain states, 1,4-dioxane has been detected in the groundwater sources of public water systems across the country. This synthetic chemical has been deemed hazardous to humans by the U.S. EPA and could potentially impact tens of millions of people. The upside is that municipalities have options to address the contaminant. Using a trusted partner can allow them to optimize technologies and process flow to achieve the best results at the lowest cost.
1,4-Dioxane is a synthetic industrial chemical which is completely miscible in water. It is highly mobile in groundwater and is not shown to be readily biodegradable in the environment.
The advanced oxidation process removes contaminants in water and wastewater by oxidation through reactions with highly reactive hydroxyl radicals (.OH). This chemical process uses ozone (O3), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and/or UV light.
Chlorate is a highly oxidized form of chlorine that can be introduced to a water source as an industrial or agricultural contaminant or into a finished water as a disinfection byproduct (DBP). As a DBP, chlorate can result from water disinfection with bulk sodium hypochlorite, chlorine dioxide, or hypochlorite formed through electrochlorination (EC) systems.
Since it was first settled in 1841, California's San Gabriel Valley has hosted a wide variety of industries. However, industrial development has left a significant portion of the Valley’s groundwater contaminated with various organic contaminants, including N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) and 1,4-dioxane.
Recently, cyanobacteria and cyanotoxins have become a high profile drinking water quality concern in both the United States and abroad. The combination of weather conditions, agricultural phosphate runoff, and other factors has produced water conditions that have favored the formation of cyanobacteria in surface water supplies.
Nature has long provided guidance to simple and sustainable ways to manage environmental challenges. Biological treatment of potable water is no exception. As more water is required to support human activity worldwide, sources once considered too contaminated or expensive to treat are quickly becoming necessary options. For groundwater contaminant removal, once again, the laws of nature point the way.
New technology helps utilities meet the challenges of maintaining a safe and adequate public water supply.
Our environment is rife with testimonials to the law of unintended consequences. When it comes to water treatment, the compound 1,2,3-trichloropropane (TCP) is the latest surprise making its way through the remediation lifecycle.
Efficiently service and maintain intelligent field devices
Field devices are the eyes and ears of automation. The failure of a valve positioner, temperature, flow or pressure sensor can quickly lead to serious malfunction of the process. With SIMATIC PDM Maintenance Station V3.0, Siemens offers the right solution for efficiently monitoring the condition of smart field devices, irrespective of the automation and control systems used
From data to knowledge to transformation
Move from complexity to simplicity, from asset and process intelligence to operational intelligence with the PI System. Its highly scalable, open data infrastructure empowers enterprises in real time, transforming operational data into actionable knowledge and business transformation.
ABB uses digital solutions to drive outcomes. Engaging customers to demonstrate tangible results that scale.
The new generation of ABB’s total plant automation: DCS and SCADA for the power and water industries.
Reduced operational costs and downtime through seamless distributed control system integration.
Real-time control of a 360km water distribution system through an advanced distributed control system.
Did you know that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had a published Contingency Plan in anticipation of the current government shutdown? I guess in hindsight, you would have expected it for an agency with 134 facilities dotted across the country. And in fact, it’s required by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under Circular A-11, Section 124 that all government agencies have plans for an orderly shutdown “in the event of an absence of appropriations.”
Nick Burns, director of water treatment technology for (the Americas region of) Black & Veatch, discusses the health concerns, current regulatory status, and documented presence of perfluorinated compounds (PFCs), also sometimes called perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), in drinking water supplies — as determined by sampling under the U.S. EPA's Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule 3 (UCMR3).
Jon Loveland, Global Practice Leader - Alternative Water Supply at Black & Veatch, shares insight on a major development for membrane bioreactor (MBR) systems and potable reuse.
Staying on top of new regulations is a never-ending responsibility for water professionals. Each new rule may require huge dollars in capital and operating costs. Operators and technicians may need training on new technologies, sampling, and testing methods.
O’Brien, Texas is just one of thousands of small communities in the United States that struggle to find the resources to ensure that the water coming out of the tap is safe to drink. The recent budget proposal by the Trump administration will only make matters worse. Watch this documentary short produced by Tom Rosenberg and Earth Institute fellow Madison Condon details one shrinking town’s drinking water crisis.
The U.S. EPA’s Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2) was adopted in 2006 to modify the Safe Drinking Water Act and more tightly control the spread of Cryptosporidium, a microorganism that can cause gastrointestinal infection if ingested. Since its inception, the rule has posed a treatment challenge to utilities that are susceptible to the tiny contaminant. But which utilities are at risk? And how should they approach treatment?
Recently, cyanobacteria and cyanotoxins have become a high profile drinking water quality concern in both the United States and abroad. The combination of weather conditions, agricultural phosphate runoff, and other factors has produced water conditions that have favored the formation of cyanobacteria in surface water supplies.
A $92-million expansion completed earlier this year (2012) at the Little Patuxent Water Reclamation Plant (LPWRP) in Savage, MD, presents a model integration of bellwether aeration, disinfection and enhanced nutrient removal (ENR) systems added in tandem with other infrastructure upgrades, that have significantly improved the plant’s effluent and reduced harmful nutrients from reaching Chesapeake Bay.
Frank Rebori, president of Smith & Loveless, sat down with Water Online Radio for this live interview from the show floor at WEFTEC 2011 in Los Angeles. Rebori discussed the company's 65-year history, its current successes, and the main products it sells: wastewater pumping and treatment equipment, as well as headworks (grit removal) equipment.
The City of Riverdale was running into issues with arsenic, color and iron treatment system at their Well 4 site, so they conducted a pilot test with the help of Loprest.
What concerns drinking water municipalities the most? Is it regulations, emerging contaminants, or a crisp, clear product? To a degree, it’s all of the above. Jim Knepper of Jacobi Carbons explains.
As technology improves, contaminants can be measured in ever-smaller quantities. Pollutants formerly undetected are now becoming emerging contaminants of concern. Water utility managers must stay abreast of potential new regulations and plan for ways to address these contaminants.
The City of Paramount conducted a pilot study for arsenic, manganese and iron treatment system at their Well 15 site. The onsite pilot test was designed to demonstrate the performance of the Loprest Water Treatment Company treatment process proposed for the new treatment plant.
WRT’s award-winning system has been in operation in Brookfield, WI since 2007 to remove radium from two water wells. Brookfield, which is located 15 miles west of Milwaukee, is under a 20-year contract to have the radioactive contaminant removed to a level below EPA requirements, ensuring that the city has safe drinking water.
Staying on top of new regulations is a never-ending responsibility for water professionals. Each new rule may require huge dollars in capital and operating costs. Operators and technicians may need training on new technologies, sampling, and testing methods.
High levels of radionuclides (uranium/radium/etc.) in drinking water aren’t very common, but they are very dangerous. If you’ve long dealt with radionuclides, you’re familiar with the treatment requirements — but are you treating as cost effectively as possible?
When Vinny Gupta, the president and CEO of InNow LLC, met Rich Cavagnaro, the CEO of AdEdge Water Technologies, he saw an opportunity to help 40 million people get clean water.
Metro Waste Reclamation District is one of the largest wastewater treatment plants between the Mississippi River and the west coast. Treated water is discharged into the South Platte River, and contributes 90% of the river’s annual flow at the point of discharge.
Howard County, Maryland, Bureau of Utilities recently completed the $92-million Addition No. 7 project at the Little Patuxent Water Reclamation Plant (LPWRP) to improve the quality of the plant’s effluent discharge and to reduce harmful nutrients reaching Chesapeake Bay. The project’s various increments took over five years to complete and incorporated innovative design solutions and state-of-the-art technologies for denitrification, aeration and disinfection. The project presents a model for Maryland’s 66 largest wastewater treatment plants and possibly procurement of municipal facilities elsewhere facing increasingly stringent regulatory changes.
