Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2004 02:49:15-1000Anyone heard of this?
From: Alan Tice MD <alantice@idlinks.com>
Subject:
To: "Fujioka, Roger" <roger@hawaii.edu>, Grieg Steward<grieg@hawaii.edu>,
Steve Seifried <seifried@hawaii.edu>,
"Ed Laws (Edward Laws)" <laws@soest.hawaii.edu>,Phil Loh <pilip@hawaii.edu>,
'Bruce Wilcox' <bwilcox@hawaii.edu>, walterb@hawaii.edu
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AltaVista
August 25, 2004 04:13 PMUS Eastern Timezone
Long Beach City Council ApprovesMillion-Dollar Contract to Reduce City's Stormwater Pollution UsingAbTech Industries' Newly Patented AntimicrobialTechnology
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 25, 2004--Recently, the LongBeach City Council unanimously approved a contract of up to $1 millionfor installing and monitoring AbTech's Ultra-Urban(R) Filter series withSmart Sponge(R) Plus antimicrobial technology for use in their stormdrainsystem. AbTech Industries holds a U.S. patent on the Smart Sponge Plus,the only fully recyclable filtration system that destroys bacteria at thestreet level.
Tom Leary, Stormwater ManagementDivision officer, Long Beach Public Works Department, explained that thecontract would provide for a pilot program designed to protect localwaterways that are threatened by the highest level of pollutants.
"A primary goal of Long Beach'sStormwater Management Plan is to protect receiving waters -- rivers,estuaries, lagoons and the ocean -- by reducing and controllingpollutants from entering the storm drain system. With about 395 miles ofpipes in the system that take water and debris straight from Long Beachstreets to the ocean -- and nearly 4,000 catch basins -- this is aformidable task," he said.
Leary said the pilot program involvedinstalling AbTech's filtration systems in the areas that were most neededthroughout the community and then monitoring the water quality to measurethe systems' effectiveness. "Our No. 1 priority is to install theUltra-Urban Filters in drains that are tributary to waters used forrecreation. We aim to improve the water quality in the beaches andrecreational areas where people swim and play. We've had advisorypostings and some beach closures in the past. The presence of bacteriaand other harmful pathogens in stormwater, particularly after rain, posesthe greatest risk to human health."
The Ultra-Urban Filter series with SmartSponge(R) Plus is designed to encapsulate and successfully remove harmfulsubstances, including hydrocarbons, oil, grease and other toxins, beforethey enter local waterways. The antimicrobial technology adds thecapability to destroy dangerous disease causing microorganisms, such asstaphylococcus aureus, E. coli and fecal coliforms.
Leary said the contract includesinstalling the filter systems and monitoring them for one year. He saidthe contractor will take samples of the runoff just prior to it enteringthe filtration units and again as the runoff exits. "This type ofmonitoring will continue throughout the year to gain insight on this BestManagement Practice and to measure the filtration systems' effectiveness.Because of the size of Long Beach's storm drain system and the fact thatthis is a demonstration project, not all catch basins will be covered. Weexpect a learning curve. We've selected a wide variety of locations basedon land use and projected pollutant loads. We need to make sure that weinstall these units properly and maintain them to achieve maximumperformance," he said.
The city of Long Beach selected theUltra-Urban Filter series with Smart Sponge(R) Plus because it's the onlyproduct of its kind patented to capture bacteria and health-threateningpathogens in addition to trash, sediment and hydrocarbons. "We'reexcited by the prospect of measurably reducing pollutants to ourwaterways through this high-technology solution," Leary said.
An added bonus of AbTech's filtrationsystems is flexibility. "The filters can be installed very quickly.If we find they are needed more critically in a different area, we caneasily relocate them. After the filters reach saturation, they can simplybe replaced. Fortunately, I am told that they are fully recyclable, andthey will not add to the toxic waste problem," Leary said.
Glenn Rink, AbTech's president and CEO,said water pollution is one of our nation's most critical environmentalissues. "According to the Environmental Protection Agency,stormwater runoff is the leading cause of the poor quality of ournation's waterways, inland and coastal. For some years, local governmentsnationwide have been using AbTech's cost-effective filtration systems atthe entrance of their storm drain-sewer systems. With our newly patentedproduct, Smart Sponge Plus, we can now offer cities, such as Long Beach,an opportunity they have never had before -- to destroy dangerousdisease-causing microorganisms," Rink said.
The Environmental Protection Agency hasincluded AbTech's Ultra-Urban Filter series with Smart Sponge technologyas a Best Management Practice under the federal guidelines that localgovernments must follow.
Rodolfo Manzone, Ph.D., AbTech'sexecutive vice president and chief technology officer, explained thatSmart Sponge Plus employs an antimicrobial agent, chemically bound to theSmart Sponge polymer filtration material, which deactivateshealth-threatening microorganisms without releasing chemicals orleaching. Independent field testing has validated the effectiveness ofthe Smart Sponge Plus in multiple locations with a variety ofmicroorganisms found in stormwater runoff.
"Unlike other antimicrobials thatact by poisoning harmful microorganisms, Smart Sponge Plus technology isbased on the antimicrobial agent's interaction with the microorganism'scell membrane. Simply put, it acts by rupturing cell membranes --preventing potentially harmful microorganisms from functioning,developing, or reproducing. Because no chemical or physical change occursin the antimicrobial agent, the filtration system maintains long-termeffectiveness," Manzone said.
AbTech Industries, headquartered inScottsdale, Ariz., is dedicated to developing innovative clean watersolutions to meet community and industrial needs. It produces BestManagement Practice equipment for nonpoint source pollution andstormwater control, filters for storm drains and catch basins, anddevices that skim and capture oil from still or flowing water. AbTech'sproducts are based on its proprietary polymer-based filtration materialthat's fully recyclable and provides a complete, closed-loop solution forremoving pollutants from water. AbTech's filtration systems are currentlyfiltering contaminates from urban and stormwater runoff in 27 states. Formore information, visitwww.abtechindustries.com orcall 800-545-8999.
Contacts
AbTech Industries, Scottsdale
Don Thompson, 800-545-8999
Alan D. Tice, MD, FACP
Suite 709, Physicians Office Building
1380 Lusitana Street
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
808-523-0941 or answering service808-524-2575
FAX 808-523-0942 or home fax 808-373-9924
Water Resources Research Center/University of Hawaii
Ph. (808) 956-3096 Fax. (808)956-5044 email. roger@hawaii.edu