HAYWARD, Calif. — Sept. 22, 2015 — The State Water Resources Control Board of California conditionally approved nitrate removal technology from Microvi Biotechnologies, according to a press release.
The technology went through months of testing before receiving the acceptance, noted the release. The conditional approval was given by the board’s Division of Drinking Water.
"We’re excited that the state of California, with its incredibly high standards, has conditionally approved our technology to treat drinking water. We look forward to bringing Microvi’s revolutionary, sustainable solutions to the market to help alleviate the unprecedented water shortages experienced across the state," said Dr. Fatemeh Shirazi, CEO of Microvi, in the release.
Microvi’s MB-N2 technology was shown to reduce nitrate levels in drinking water from 35 to 54 ppm to less than 5 ppm in minutes in a demonstration project, stated the release. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires that nitrates be at 10 ppm or lower.
The EPA estimates about six percent of the U.S. has groundwater nitrate contaminations over 5 ppm, reported the release. In California, it is estimated that 10 percent of the state’s groundwater exceeds 5 ppm. Nitrate can cause Methemoglobinemia, or “blue baby sydrome.”
Microvi has systems treating water around the world, including in Australia where nitrate-contaminated water is treated for Aboriginal communities, shared the release.
