WATER INDUSTRY FEATURES, INSIGHTS, AND ANALYSIS
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After The Fire: What The 2026 Wildfires And El Niño Could Mean For U.S. Lakes And Reservoirs In 2027
In July, smoke from Canadian wildfires spread across the upper Midwest and Northeast. Now a strengthening El Niño is set to influence the coming winter. Both events matter to lake and reservoir managers because their effects on water quality will continue to emerge long after the skies clear or the El Niño passes.
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Minneapolis Flexes Its Mussels For Source Water Monitoring Solution
Protecting municipal drinking water requires rapid visibility into changing surface source conditions. Discover how combining biological indicators with continuous inline spectrometry delivers real-time contamination alerts, preventing costly treatment plant shutdowns and safeguarding consumer health.
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DEXSORB® Treatment At Groundwater Pump Station
Discover how upgrading existing filter infrastructure with advanced adsorbent media provided over 600 days of continuous PFAS removal, treating millions of gallons of contaminated groundwater to achieve strict drinking water compliance.
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DEXSORB® Treatment Of Surface Water For Gravity System
Discover how a dual-vessel lead-lag media system achieved continuous non-detect levels for target legacy contaminants, treating over 250,000 gallons of surface water to support regulatory compliance and municipal drinking water goals.
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Pretreatment Systems Enable Complete And More Economical PFAS Solutions
For operators looking to optimize their PFAS removal systems, controlling the presence of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) offers an approach to minimizing operational costs due to granular activated carbon (GAC) reactivation and ion exchange media change-out.
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What Utilities Don't Know About GAC Reuse For PFAS For utilities building PFAS treatment systems, thermal reactivation of spent granular activated carbon (GAC) may sound like the obvious answer. However, service provider availability and location, specific media acceptance criteria including quantity thresholds, restrictions on GAC type and condition, and regulatory uncertainty can all determine whether reuse is a viable option.
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PFAS Funding Is Flowing — But Does The Water Sector Have Enough People To Deliver It? For several years, the PFAS conversation has centered on treatment options, testing, and funding. Those factors still matter, but they are no longer the primary constraint. Most utilities already understand the treatment routes available to them; the real challenge now is moving from technical possibility to operational performance, and that depends entirely on people.
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The Cost Of Waiting: Utilities Face A Narrowing PFAS Compliance Window For years, the water industry's PFAS conversation centered on monitoring, testing, and regulatory anticipation. Today, that phase is largely over.
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D.C. Circuit Upholds EPA's Hazardous Substance Designation For PFOA, PFOS
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit recently rejected industry challenges to the EPA's designation of PFOA and PFOS as hazardous substances under CERCLA, leaving the agency's April 2024 rule fully intact. While the case centered on the EPA's authority to make the designation, its practical significance for water utilities is simpler: the liability concerns that have accompanied the rule since its adoption remain unresolved.
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How Donner Summit PUD Cut Backwash Water Use By 45% With Ultrasonic Algae Control
Recurring algal blooms severely compromise water treatment efficiency, clogging filters and wasting finished water through frequent backwashing. Targeted ultrasonic suppression controls raw water algae growth at the source, significantly improving influent turbidity and lowering operational costs.
VIEWS ON THE LATEST REGS
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For years, the water industry's PFAS conversation centered on monitoring, testing, and regulatory anticipation. Today, that phase is largely over.
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The U.S. EPA is testing a new procedural strategy to remove four PFAS drinking‑water limits from ongoing litigation, asking the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to invalidate those limits on the grounds that the EPA itself committed a procedural misstep when issuing the 2024 PFAS rule.
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Despite renewed public concern over fluoride and cognition, the National Toxicology Program’s findings focus on high‑fluoride groundwater conditions — not the controlled levels used in U.S. drinking water systems. Understanding that distinction is critical for utilities navigating policy questions and community expectations.
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In this Q&A, Dr. Elke Süss of Metrohm addresses the urgent need for haloacetic acid testing in response to “one of the most significant updates to EU drinking water monitoring in recent years.”
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With the U.S. EPA's PFAS rules now in place, utilities are finding themselves with a growing number of questions regarding how to treat these chemicals, the potential costs, and much more. For answers, Water Online's chief editor, Kevin Westerling, hosted an Ask Me Anything session featuring Ken Sansone, Senior Partner at SL Environmental Law Group; Kyle Thompson, National PFAS Lead at Carollo Engineers; and Lauren Weinrich, Principal Scientist at American Water.
MORE WATER INDUSTRY FEATURES
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Relying on assumptions when designing water treatment systems creates unnecessary financial and operational risks. Adopting predictive modeling and data-driven testing provides the precise, actionable insights required to optimize performance, manage costs, and ensure compliance.
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AAV %Full analysis must distinguish full, empty, and partial capsids, with complementary methods selected according to sample characteristics, analytical needs, development stage, and context.
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Discover how science-based bio-decontamination strategies effectively eliminate invisible pathogens and rapidly restore facilities to operational safety following major infrastructure disruptions.
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Amid scrutiny of the financial conflicts of interest in biomedical research, new federal rules aim to improve transparency and preserve the integrity of publicly funded research.
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Achieving EPA compliance for electronic pretreatment reporting requires meeting Cross-Media Electronic Reporting Rule standards. Following a clear five-step application path ensures electronic submissions maintain legal enforceability equal to traditional paper signatures.
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PFAS rules are shifting fast. Learn how utilities can futureproof treatment strategies with flexible designs, smart staging, and emerging technologies — avoiding stranded assets and staying ahead of tomorrow’s regulations.
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Filtrasorb 400’s agglomerated pore structure and high volumetric capacity deliver unmatched PFAS removal, longer run times, and lower lifecycle costs — outperforming direct-activated carbons in real-world and lab testing.
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The Toledo water crisis exposed treatment gaps, highlighting harmful algal blooms as a core design challenge requiring flexible, multi-barrier systems and scenario-based planning.
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A CDMO guide to implementing EU Annex 1 for modern sterile fill/finish facilities, covering cleanroom design, contamination control, utilities, personnel, monitoring, and audit essentials.
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Despite growing sustainability efforts, our industry lags in climate goals, especially Scope 3 emissions. Discover why bold action and deep collaboration across the value chain are essential for real progress.
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Trenchless geopolymer rehabilitation offers a sustainable solution for culvert repair in sensitive ecosystems. Its rapid-curing, low-toxicity properties allow for quick service reinstatement, preserving hydraulic capacity and protecting local water quality and aquatic life without the need for disruptive excavation.
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mAb aggregation can arise from molecular properties, process conditions, and equipment‑driven stress. Learn where aggregation risk increases across downstream processing and formulation.
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Securing urban water futures requires shifting toward resilient, multi-source supplies. Advanced oxidation provides a critical barrier against emerging contaminants, enhancing treatment efficiency and ensuring long-term reliability without chemical residuals. Explore the foundations of engineering a decentralized, drought-proof water supply.
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Process intensification depends on more than facility changes. Smarter choices can help improve yield, throughput, and sustainability, turning an often-overlooked step into a meaningful contributor.
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A growing infrastructure funding gap requires utilities to maximize every capital dollar. Relying on continuous, trustworthy monitoring data allows systems to shift away from age-based asset replacement and target maintenance precisely where water quality degrades.
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Drought conditions force utilities to seek new water sources, yet reducing non-revenue water offers an immediate supply boost. Eliminating sample waste and targeting line flushing recovers fully treated water without expensive capital projects.
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Advanced X-ray inspection, metal detection, and checkweighing technologies ensure fill accuracy, eliminate contaminants, and protect nutraceutical brands.
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Cognitive endpoints in Alzheimer's trials haven't kept pace with the shift to earlier-stage treatment. Modern trials need tools built to catch subtle change.