Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
through an Osorb nanoglass system will meet or need only trivial secondary treatment to
meet drinking water standards. Planning is now under way with United Nations-funded
development agencies in West Africa to develop and deploy modular 8-ton units capable of
treating 400 gal/day of surface water affected by industrial pollutants into potable water.
Previously, no systems existed that were durable, effective, and could be operated power
free for years, no less decades.
Besides the potable water solutions, discussions are now under way to offer packaged
specialty soil amendments for removal of nitrates, phosphates, herbicides, fuels, pharma-
ceuticals, and other common runoff pollutants for irst-world customers placing a pre-
mium on removing all or nearly all volatile organics from their food supply. These same
volatiles are often a cause of great concern to wastewater and stormwater treatment plants
that often have compliance requirements with USEPA consent decrees and/or other dis-
charge requirements.
Testing results to date indicate that Osorb bioretention soil blends will remove >90% of
stormwater volume and >95% of contaminants coming into the stormwater system. The
addition of Osorb media upstream also reduces the cost for water treatment plants down-
stream to remove these contaminants. Twentieth century technology to remove these
contaminants is focused on central wastewater treatment plants, which pay $6-12/lb for
phosphate removal due to electrical energy, labor, and chemical consumables needed to
treat phosphate-laden waters. The cost to remove phosphate with Osorb nanoglass is lower
by an order of magnitude, at only $0.60-1.90/lb using Osorb stormwater systems upgradi-
ent. This cost savings is further compounded by the nutrients having a valuable potential
impact upgradient if the plants grown with the Osorb stormwater system have commer-
cial value.
To address this growing demand to treat these waters, substantial incentives for build-
ing upgradient and passive systems are becoming commonplace in the United States.
Seattle, Portland, and Philadelphia are three cities leading a movement to manage storm-
water quality and quantity upgradient in a distributed manner. Further public interest
and architect/developer/contractor interest in designing to achieve LEED certiications
have created a further inancial and public awareness driver for green stormwater
management.
LEED certiication, and similar programs like STARS, Living-Machines, and BioBuilt, all
place a very high value on installing smart methods for energy saving, water recycling,
and stormwater savings integrated into a building or campus design. There are ive cat-
egories in the LEED program where integrating Osorb nanoglass materials into a storm-
water system on site can score points toward certiication, with up to 13 points achieved
as a result—13 LEED points for the use of any system is a relatively large number and has
been driving a substantial interest in the use of the material.
Osorb nanoglass materials are enabling LEED certiication points from lower operating
costs, waste reduction, water quality improvement, on-site water management and reuse,
native habitat restoration, technology innovation, and energy-eficient construction due
to the small footprint and vastly reduced need for concrete piping. In addition, LEED-
enabled tax rebates, zoning allowances, and other inancial and structural incentives are
beneits of integrating Osorb stormwater systems into building design. Some cities offer
tax credits up to $1 million over a 10-year period (% tax credit/year depends on certii-
cation level). Los Angeles, California, requires LEED certiication for all new structural
buildings >50,000 ft 2 . Including rain gardens that provide water reuse will help many
of the companies rebuilding to attain points to become LEED certiied, as well as meet
requirements in cities where LEED certiication is mandatory.
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