wastewater Archives - Artemis Water Strategy

Jul 11 2016

Can San Francisco’s integrated water policy unlock the market for onsite water?

SFPUC-Sidewalk-2 — Living Machines’ Onsite Water Treatment Cells at SFPUC Headquarters

Cleantech investors have been stymied by the US water market. In 2015, water tech accounted for only 2.2% of cleantech funding, and 0.07% of the broader technology start-up market. While green building has driven the installations of renewable energy and new materials over the last decade, distributed water solutions have struggled to establish themselves in high-performance buildings. At the same time, US water utilities have piloted a host of promising technologies that treat water in buildings and tap into the energy potential within water infrastructure, but they have not succeeded in deploying at mass scale. After successfully piloting in here in the US, many of our best technologies have deserted home markets for Asia and Europe.

The City of San Francisco has been stepping forward to break the log jam of pilots and public debates with a comprehensive policy for distributed water. Last July, it enacted the first mandatory requirement for onsite water reclaim. All new buildings over 250,000 sqft must treat and recycle wastewater for toilet and urinal flushing as well as irrigation. In addition, all new buildings must identify potential sources for reclaimed water. “We have the opportunity to create a new water management paradigm by incorporating innovative strategies to conserve, reuse, and diversify our water supply,” the San Francisco Public Utility Commission (SFPUC) states in its 2014 Blueprint for Onsite Systems. “One of those strategies is integrating smaller, decentralized, onsite water systems into our broader centralized systems.” *

Integrated civic policy: Water, public health and urban planning

Since 2012, San Francisco’s water program has brought three local agencies – the SFPUC, the San Francisco Department of Public Health, and the San Francisco Department of Building Inspection – to work together to develop a streamlined permitting process and regulatory framework. In 2013, the SFPUC expanded the program to allow buildings to share non-potable water across property lines. During the first two years of the program, twenty projects formally submitted water budget applications to the SFPUC.

city-ordinance-codifies-process-streamlined-from-kehoe-presentation-10-1-2016 — Source: San Francisco Public Utility Commission, “San Francisco’s Non-Potable Water Program” October 1, 2015

After an initial series of pilots, SFPUC’s Director of Water Resources Paul Kehoe notes that “we came across a number of other developers who wanted onsite water treatment in their buildings and districts in San Francisco, so we created a non-potable water program.” Through that program, the city has aligned policies for public health and public spaces to develop a process for private property owners to install onsite water systems. Kehoe states that over 40 buildings are proposing plans to collect and treat water onsite for non-potable applications such as toilet flushing and irrigation. “We’ve been learning and working with others throughout the country to show that you can successfully integrate decentralized onsite water treatment systems into your broader, centralized infrastructure to reduce the use of potable water.”

Public Health, Public Spaces

SFPUC has sought input from architects and engineers to examine how integrated design can achieve new levels of efficiency and build resilience in the face of severe storms and the earthquakes. These discussions have gone beyond the basics of installing water reclaim systems to look at synergies between water and energy management, public spaces and public health. Water is seldom seen in tUS buildings beyond the fountains at the entrance. The pipes that deliver water from remote centralized water systems are hidden. In installing its own onsite reclaim system for its new headquarters, the San Francisco Public Utility Commission (SFPUC) chose to showcase water treatment.

San Francisco Public Utility Commission Headquarters: Image by Living Machine Systems (http://www.livingmachines.com/portfolio/municipal-government/san-francisco-public-utilities-commission,-san-fra.aspx) — Image: Living Machine Systems

In a recent presentation at the Aspen Global Change Institute, Kehoe spoke about the role of “process-focused and context-sensitive principles” in building resilient cities.

Building on a legacy of trailblazing policy in San Francisco

San Francisco has a long history of trailblazing new kinds of legislation that have led national trends. In 1983, San Francisco made global news with the first mandatory requirements** for all workplaces to accommodate non-smokers. Yes, there was a trend toward limiting smoking in theaters and public places, but had the city gone too far? In retrospect, San Francisco was among the cities that pioneered a sea change in public policy around smoking. Within a decade, smoking bans outside of buildings as well as inside of them, became common throughout the US. Will distributed water systems also become ubiquitous in a few years?

Green Building has redefined energy and materials in public buildings, but it has left water largely untouched. Urban sprawl and car-centric cities are rapidly being replaced by towns that integrate natural spaces and ecological corridors that bring people together and promote a sense of well-being.

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*Connor, Theresa. BLUEPRINT FOR ONSITE WATER SYSTEMS: A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE FOR DEVELOPING A LOCAL PROGRAM TO MANAGE ONSITE WATER SYSTEMS. Publication. WERF, WRF, and the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, 23 Sept. 2014. Web. 17 June 2016.

**Source: NELSON PADBERG CONSULTING. POST-ELECTION REPORT. PROPOSITION P SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.. 1984 January. RJ Reynolds. https://www.industrydocumentslibrary.ucsf.edu/tobacco/docs/nlpm0096

May 03 2016

It’s in the water: DC RPS considers a new source for renewable cooling

Sewage heat recovery systems are well established in Europe: Photo by Huber

In the densely packed megacities of the future, warming climates and rising incomes will make cooling a decisive factor— for energy conservation and quality of life. By mid-century people will use more energy for cooling than heating. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), energy demand for residential air conditioning in summer is projected to increase more than 30-fold by the end of the century: from nearly 300 terawatt-hours (TWh) in 2000 to about 4,000 TWh in 2050 and more than 10,000 TWh in 2100.

Thinking beyond solar and wind

Since the Paris Agreement in December, cities are thinking beyond solar and wind with a view to transitioning to 100% renewable energy sources. One of the cities recognized at the conference for groundbreaking energy procurement programs, Washington DC, is looking to tap into another highly resilient source of renewable energy– municipal sewage waste heat. “The District of Columbia is proud to be recognized among global cities that are truly at the vanguard of fighting climate change,” said Mayor Bowser. “To meet its GHG reduction and renewable energy goals, DGS [DC’s Government Services Group] will need to aggressively expand efficiency solutions and the use of clean energy.”

Targeting Cooling and Heating

On May 12, the District of Columbia Commission on Climate Change and Resiliency will consider adding a new renewable resource for cooling and heating– municipal sewers. The District of Columbia’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) requires District energy suppliers to obtain renewable energy credits (RECs) proportional to the energy they sell. If the new proposal is accepted, “Tier 1” renewable resources would include wastewater thermal energy along with solar, wind, biomass, landfill gas, wastewater treatment gas, and geothermal.
Wastewater thermal energy (WWTE) systems transfer or absorb heat through the conductive piping, from the wastewater to a working fluid in a closed loop. Regardless of above ground temperatures, sewage temperatures remain relatively constant year-round. These systems are completely sealed and odor-free, making them a safe and effective means of tapping into a sustainable energy source. WWTE replaces conventional HVAC systems, saving significant energy and fresh water.
As cities struggle to scale up renewable energy sources and contend with unpredictable supply from solar and wind, WWTE systems provide a critical new resource for renewable energy sources at peak periods. Regardless of whether the sun is shining and the wind is blowing, sewage flows match peak human activities.

WWTE integrates component technologies that have been proven for decades. Both Huber’s ThermWin and International Wastewater’s SHARC system have been widely applied in Europe and Canada. ThermoWatt out of Budapest (Hungary) is one of many emerging companies offering robust WWTE solutions. These modular technologies are cost-efficient for buildings requiring at least 100 tons of cooling, and efficiencies build beyond that. WWTE requires nearby access to at least 100-150 gallons per minute of sewage flow. Given sufficient heating and cooling needs and access to sufficient sewage flow, WWTE can replace conventional HVAC for office buildings, hospitals, hotels and campuses. For example, at Marie Reed Elementary in Washington DC, engineering analysis estimates that Huber’s ThermWin WWTE-driven HVAC would save 364,692 kWhs of electricity, 24,508 Therms of natural gas and 4,480,000 gallons of water.

At present, several US states, including DC, Massachusetts, and New York, are assessing the possibility of using wastewater energy recovery (WWER) as part of their efforts to replace fossil fuels with renewables. DC Water estimates that its sewage flow can generate 160-200 KW of energy. A study conducted in 2012 in New York City concluded that if 5°F of heat were removed from wastewater flowing through the sewer pipes beneath the streets over the course of 1 year, $90,000,000 worth of energy could be recovered.

As US states like Hawaii and organizations like the US Navy and Apple aim toward high levels of renewable energy, WWTE will play a critical role in providing peak energy services.

(NOTE: On July 25, 2016, DC Mayor Bowser Signed Renewable Portfolio Standard Bill into Law)

Jun 22 2015

Water is Critical for the “Once-in-a-Generation” US Energy Opportunity

Water management will be critical to the US to realize the “once-in-a-generation opportunity” brought by innovations in unconventional oil and gas production,” according to a new report by Harvard Business School and the Boston Consulting Group America’s Unconventional Energy Opportunity. read more…

Jul 28 2010

Resource Recovery Companies Find Sustainable Advantage

Newtown Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant / Photo: roboppy on flickr

Everywhere you look people are trying to do more with less. Reduce costs, increase efficiency, reduce energy use, recover resources. There are strong economic drivers to do all of these things, which also happen to be sustainable.

On July 22nd, 2010 I moderated the first in the BlueTech Tracker(TM) Webinar series: Mineral & Resource Recovery from Wastewater. We featured four companies with innovative technologies, and perhaps even more importantly, innovative business models. The companies were Ostara Nutrient Recovery Technologies, Calera, CASTion and Oberon.

Ostara produces a slow release fertilizer product, Crystal Green(TM) from wastewater. Calera, a Khosla Ventures backed company whose technology is part of a new infrastructure designed to view carbon, not as a pollutant, but as a resource. Calera might be accused of having a Superman complex in the cleantech sector, in that their technology simultaneously contributes to solving two of the most pressing environmental issues of our time: climate change and water scarcity. Calera sequesters carbon from power plants, produces a low carbon cement and helps to desalinate water.

The CASTion Corporation has an Ammonia Recovery Process (ARP) which can produce an ammonia fertilizer product from wastewater and recently won a $27.1M contract with the City of New York to provide a cost effective method for the City to achieve compliance at its 26th Ward Wastewater Treatment plant.Oberon FMR concluded the quartet. Oberon takes wastewater from the food processing industry, and through the application of some clever biotechnology (single cell protein synthesis), produces a value added, high protein, fish meal replacement for use in the aquaculture industry.

A few key take-aways:

1. This is about Costs

To get out of the starting gate with wastewater technologies in this area, you have to have a compelling value proposition. Resource recovery can enable a technology provider to off-set operational and capital costs and thereby provide a cost effective solution to their clients.

Ahren Britton, CTO with Ostara put it very succinctly with the observation, “as a standalone wastewater treatment technology, we won’t always be the cheapest way to remove phosphorus; as a fertilizer production company, we might not compete with current ore prices, but put the two together, and that’s what makes for the winning proposition.”

David Delasanta, President of CASTion noted that the decision by the City of New York to go with their ARP system on a new project was driven by economics. The City had a regulatory requirement to remove ammonia and the ARP system represented the lowest cost option occupying the smallest footprint. The City in fact sole-sourced this option from CASTion.

Fishing Farm, Jian De, Hangzhou, Shanghai — Fish Farm outside Shanghai / Photo: Ivan Walsh on flickr

The Sustainability and political angle can help to push these projects over the line, as the person who finally signs off on expenditure is likely to be a political animal. However, to get this far in the process, you first have to convince the people on the ground that this is a good idea, and their concerns tend to be less politically motivated and more related to, ‘Will this work and how much will it cost?‘.

Seth Terry, Oberon VP of Operations said they have found that the Corporate Sustainability angle of their approach to turn food processing wastewater into a feedstock for fish meal replacement production, has piqued the interest of a number of major Corporations and was one of the factors which helped them to secure a contract with Miller Coors to construct a full-scale demonstration facility at their site.

There is a monetary value to a company in terms of brand value to be able to show its shareholders that instead of generating a waste product which required disposal, they were able to ‘up-cycle’ the resources in their wastewater and in doing so, off-set the unsustainable harvesting of biomass from oceans to produce fish-meal for fish farms.

2. Resource Recovery is becoming a geo-political and security issue

Certain resources such as phosphorus are becoming a geo-political issue. China has recently put an export tax on phosphorus to discourage the export of this valuable commodity, to preserve it and keep it at home to enable food production. China is known for its ability to take a long-term view on things and this is an early indicator of how important this resource may become. It is worth noting that like oil, phosphorus resources are found in a number of unstable regions of the world.

3. Companies which succeed in this area need to know two markets

The flip side of producing a product while treating a waste, is that you need to simultaneously build an outlet and channels to market for your product, at the same time as you are developing the infrastructure to produce it. This is challenging when working with a variable feedstock (wastewater) and when the quantities you produce, initially, do not make a dent in the larger market for that commodity.

To succeed, companies need to understand the wastewater treatment market and also understand the market for the commodity they are producing.

In the case of Calera, this means they have to know the concrete and aggregate business. In the case of Oberon, they have to know the fish-meal business. Ostara and CASTion both have to understand the dynamics of the fertilizer industry. When you hear Calera CEO Brent Constanz speak about the nuances of the concrete and aggregate market, and then switch back to the importance of piloting on different wastewater streams, you get a feel for the level and depth of understanding required to succeed in straddling these divergent worlds.

At least a part of the sustainable business advantage these companies have, is their ability to understand and create a business model which meets customers needs on both sides of the fence. Companies that can do this are pulling away from the herd. When you combine this with technical know-how, continued innovation and a strong IP position, you have a sustainable first mover advantage which will be difficult for a ‘me-too’ to catch up with in the short term.

The next Webinar in our BlueTech Tracker(TM) Series is on Thursday July 29th at 12 noon PST and will put the spotlight on Microbial Fuel Cells and Bioelectrochemical systems. This group of technologies has the potential to generate electricity from wastewater and produce fuels and chemicals which can be sold.Again the approach is the same, how to squeeze some value out of that wastewater.Paul O’Callaghan is Principal of O2 Environmental, a consultancy group providing water technology market expertise, founder of the BlueTech Innovation Forum and co-author of ‘Water Technology Markets 2010′.

Jul 28 2010

Engineers Turn Water Contaminant into Fuel

Aerial Top Dusting Is a Leading Cause of Water Contamination from Nitrates — Aerial top-dusting is a leading cause of water contamination / Photo: tjmartins on flickr

Researchers in Delaware are worried by high levels of nitrates recently discovered in groundwater and drinking water. A recent study found 76% of domestic wells contained nitrates. 18% of the wells exceed federal standards for drinking water.

Even some deep wells are affected, leading Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources to conclude that surface contaminants are penetrating natural barriers, meaning “ground-water quality in a significant fraction of confined aquifer wells is susceptible to human activities.

“Nitrates reach surface waters and groundwaters via septic systems, stormwater runoff and fertilizers used at farms, homes and businesses including golf courses. Nitrates threaten pregnant mothers, children and, in sufficient concentrations, nitrogen-rich waters precipitate eutrophication, contributing to dead-zones like in the Gulf of Mexico.

Nitrates that don’t directly enter surface waters and groundwaters are typically removed from the wastestream at wastewater treatment plants, either via efficient processes like Ostara’s Nutrient Removal Technology (which removes nitrogen in the from of NH3, aka ammonia) or via energy intensive processes utilizing aerobic bacteria.

But now a couple of rocket scientists and a waste expert from Stanford have devised a way to safely and efficiently dispose of nitrates while powering wastewater treatment plants without an external energy source.

Greenhouse Gases as Resources

Rocket Engine via Stanford — Rocket Engines Burning Nitrous Oxide produce pure Nitrogen and Oxygen / Photo: Brian Cantwell at Stanford

As we’ve discussed previously, wastewater treatment processes utilizing aerobic bacteria require energy intensive aeration in order to operate (up to half of operating costs). Anaerobic bacteria require much less energy, but convert nitrates into nitrous oxide – a greenhouse gas 300 times more potent than C02 – and Natural Gas in the form of a methane biogas.

The scientists, Craig Criddle, Brian Cantwell, and Yaniv Scherson, have decided excess gases aren’t such a bad thing. In fact, they want to utilize produced Natural Gas to power wastewater treatment plants off-the-grid, enabling plants to be placed in areas without a reliable energy supply. The plants could recycle fresh water for water–stressed regions.

What happens to the nitrous oxide is equally remarkable.The nitrous oxide is burned off in a small rocket engine. Says Cantwell, “When it decomposes, nitrous oxide breaks down into pure nitrogen and oxygen gas. At the same time, it releases enough energy to heat an engine to almost 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit, making it red hot, and it shoots out of the engine at almost 5,000 feet per second, producing enough thrust to propel a rocket.”

To propel a rocket, or, put to better use, to generate electricity.The scientists’ plan harvests resources commonly occurring in wastewater. “For too long we’ve thought of treatment plants as places where we remove organic matter and waste nitrogen,” Criddle said. “We need to view these wastes as resources, not simply something to dispose of.”

Saving Money while Saving the World

In the developed world, the technology could produce wastewater treatment plants with low emissions (some natural gas will be emitted when combusted).

That’s important because wastewater treatment plants accounted for 4.9 TgCO2 equivalents of nitrous oxide in the US in 2008 (equivalent to 4.9 million metric tons of C02).

When you utilize instead of emitting the methane produced by wastewater treatment, which reached 24.3 TgCO2 in 2008, and eliminate expenditures and emissions from energy used to power aerators, you begin to see the scale of potential energy, emissions and cost savings.

It’s a remarkable advance: a self-sufficient, low-emission wastewater treatment plant that produces nitrate-free fresh water, thereby protecting water’s end-users: aquatic and human life.

Via PhysOrg / Stanford