Category: Water and Waste

1) Problem: Wastewater from sewage treatment plants is often seen as more of a liability than a resource. Furthermore, treated sewage water, which can still contain elevated nutrient levels, is sometimes dumped into rivers and oceans, which hurts water quality and biodiversity.

2) Summary 

Article

Company website 

•  Ostara, the Vancouver-based company responsible for this new technology, uses it to collect phosphorous and ammonia from municipal sewage treatment plants, and then turns them into fertilizer pellets
• “Instead of viewing wastewater streams as waste, Ostara sees a renewable resource that can generate cost savings and revenues for the treatment plant while helping them meet increasingly stringent environmental regulations.”
• Process can save cities money by ensuring that treatment plants operate smoothly and efficiently, and reduces sludge and associated disposal costs
• Will likely reduce polluted agricultural runoff as the company’s fertilizer pellets are easier for plants to absorb than regular synthetic fertilizers
• Phosphorous is also in short supply, with the last big reserves located in Morocco, China, and Algeria, and prices have tripled since 2006

3) Stakeholders 

• Ostara and and investors
• Sewage treatment plants
• City governments
• NGOs
• Communities affected by agricultural runoff

4) Deployment 

• Target cities with largest sewage treatment plants
• Collect data to determine how effectively this technology reduces costs and sludge output
• Expand deployment to other US cities and other countries