Recycling wastewater nutrients wins prize

NWRI

Nitrogen and phosphorus in wastewater effluent contribute nutrients that can feed tiny organisms and lead to eutrophication of water bodies. For his work in figuring out how to use microbes to reverse this problem, the National Water Research Institute awarded James L. Barnard of Black & Veatch, a construction and engineering firm in Kansas City, Mo., the Clarke Prize, accompanied by $50,000, in a ceremony on July 12.

Barnard started experimenting in the 1970s in South Africa with natural biological nutrient removal processes to remove both nitrogen and phosphorus without using chemicals. With the building blocks he developed, phosphorus can then be recycled to limit surplus nutrients.