EMIT Water Discharge Technology, LLC, has been selected to receive the Severn Trent Services Environmental Leadership Alliance Award. The award was presented to EMIT in Sheridan, WY, to recognize the company's use of Severn Trent's Higgins Loop™ Continuous Countercurrent Ion EXchange (CCIX) system to purify byproduct water produced during the production of coal bed natural gas. Through this collaboration, EMIT is helping to conserve water resources by recycling and reusing water that meets federal purity standards.
To address increasingly stringent environmental, health, and safety regulations, Severn Trent personnel work together with clients like EMIT to achieve regulatory compliance, minimize and treat waste, reduce the use of toxic and hazardous materials, and conserve resources. Severn Trent established the Environmental Leadership Alliance program to acknowledge a select group of clients who have worked in collaboration with the company and, as a result, achieved economic savings as well as environmental conservation.
Federal and state water regulations prohibit the discharge of the untreated coal bed natural gas byproduct water into the environment or its use for irrigation due to its high salt content. Since chemical treatment of byproduct water can be economically prohibitive, EMIT looked at safe, affordable treatment alternatives to meet regulatory standards.
The patented Higgins Loop system uses I-X resins in a highly efficient resin-contacting system to remove sodium from the water, lowering its pH balance and reducing bicarbonate levels, making the water safe for reintroduction to the environment. The byproduct water, which once was an environmental problem, now is being reused by ranchers for irrigation and watering cattle.
"EMIT was a natural candidate for the award, demonstrating the Severn Trent principle that economic benefit does not need to come at the expense of the environment. We're privileged to have worked in alliance with EMIT to achieve impressive environmental and economic benefits to our client and the community," said Len Graziano, CEO, Severn Trent Services.
