Tuesday, November 20, 2018

NMSU researcher, collaborators prolong water contaminant treatment using ozone


NMSU researcher, collaborators prolong water contaminant treatment using ozone
DATE: 11/20/2018
WRITER: Melissa R. Rutter, 575-646-4211, mrrutter@nmsu.edu
CONTACT: Kenneth “KC” Carroll, 575-646-5929, kcarr@nmsu.edu

Kenneth “KC” Carroll, an associate professor in New Mexico State University’s College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, and his collaborators have discovered an increase in the lifespan of ozone, giving more time for it to treat water both in groundwater and in waste-water treatment systems.

Some water contaminants are more difficult to treat, remove or destroy and they require more reactive methods when traditional methods are inhibited, but these more reactive methods can be too rapid to transport significant distances in groundwater.

Some recalcitrant contaminants found in groundwater cannot be destroyed with traditional methods, so strong oxidants are needed.

“The problem with this type of approach is that strong oxidants are highly reactive so it’s difficult to transport them into the environment to treat the contaminants that are there,” said Carroll, a faculty member in the college’s Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences. “So, we came up with a method of incasing ozone inside another molecule.”

A novel molecular container, cyclodextrin, was used by NMSU, University of Rhode Island and Enchem Engineering, to stabilize ozone. This molecular container shields ozone from reacting with chemicals in water, which is why it decays so quickly.

“Cyclodextrin was created by pharmaceutical companies to deliver drugs into human bodies so, we’re extending it by applying it to deliver treatment to contaminated groundwater now,” Carroll said.

The research is transforming the ways people are able to remove contaminants in both groundwater and in waste-water treatment plants as we extend applicability of ozone as a treatment method for contaminated water.

“We try to see if we can treat contaminants within subsurface groundwater systems. We’re trying to take the treatment to the contamination as opposed to trying to extract contaminants for treatment in an above-ground plant. We believe it’s more effective to treat contaminants in place, because you can focus on the treatment instead of extracting them,” Carroll said.

This new water treatment method will decrease human exposure to carcinogens, results can be used worldwide, and results enable cleanup of contaminated groundwater.

“We were able to increase the lifespan of ozone. Ozone reacts very rapidly with water so typically in most groundwater systems ozone will have a half-life of up to one hour, which means every hour the concentration drops by one-half,” Carroll said. “We were able to extend the ozone lifetime such that the half-life increased up to 40-fold. This is a really significant extension of the reactive lifetime of ozone, and this extends our ability to treat water both in groundwater and also in waste-water systems.”

Carroll was unsure if the highly reactive ozone would react with the cyclodextrin. He found that part of the ozone does react and part of it does not, which allows for ozone to be stabilized within the cyclodextrin molecule and transported into groundwater.

“We were hoping that we would extend the lifespan of ozone even longer, but we didn’t realize that ozone was so reactive and so short-lived. So, it’s kind of a significant challenge, because it goes away quickly. But being able to extend it is really significant,” Carroll said.
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Thursday, November 15, 2018

Webinar interest in the Pecos Basin Study 20 November



Hello All,

Thank you for your interest in the Pecos Basin Study. 

WEBINAR – November 20
As discussed at our October 25 meeting, we have scheduled a webinar to review in more detail the study’s modeling work, associated inputs and relevant outcomes.  We had hoped to send a doodle poll for possible dates next week, however, given our team’s calendars that unfortunately was not possible.  Please join us for the webinar on Tuesday, November 20 from 9 to 11am.

Emma Kelly from Reclamation will send a follow up email with instructions on how to join the webinar.  Please let us know if you would like to receive notes / supplemental information after the webinar, whether or not you attend.  Given that we have scheduled during a holiday week, we will consider a repeat webinar after the holiday if we receive enough interest.  Please let us know.

COMMENTS on DRAFT
Please remember to send us your comments on the draft by November 21.   We are particularly interested in your thoughts on the sections regarding the purpose and need, irrigation district descriptions, and practical actions.  We welcome comments on the technical work as well, however, please know that the modeling effort is complete.  That said, your suggestions may help clarify how we report on that work or provide recommendations for future modeling efforts.

Best wishes to you all,
Hannah





Hi

Thank you all for being at the meeting and providing your insights into the Pecos River Basin Study. This modeling study will help examine a range of possible futures with the changing conditions in the Pecos River Basin and what effect possible actions would have on water supply and demand. 

We will be sending out a doodle poll shortly to determine the best time to have the follow up webinar that can explain results in detail--we hope to have this webinar the week of November 12th.


I have attached:
1) The powerpoint presentation we provided (we will go over the more detailed results in the webinar--we are incorporating the zeroing out ESA analyses now.
2) The notes from the meeting
3) The list of potential actions--with actions suggested in the meeting --please rank these actions and suggest other actions and send it to me  by November 21
4) The word document of the draft so far with the descriptions of the districts and strategies --please edit this and provide comments to me  by November 21


Again, thank you very much for all your work on this!  We hope to make this a good report that could set the stage for planning and future actions. 

Deena Larsen
Technical Writer
Bureau of Reclamation
Technical Service Center
85-827000 Bldg 67
Denver Federal Center
Denver Colorado 80225-0007
(303) 445-2584
delarsen@usbr.gov  

Tuesday, November 13, 2018

NMSU hosts “Indigenous Symposium: Water Protection” Nov. 14 - 15


NMSU hosts “Indigenous Symposium: Water Protection” Nov. 14 - 15
DATE: 11/12/2018
WRITER: Victoria Balderrama, 575-646-1614, vbalde@nmsu.edu
CONTACT: Kayla Myers, 970-779-1601, katmyers@nmsu.edu
CONTACT: Anna Strankman, 575-646-5161, amstank@nmsu.edu

In celebration of November as Native American Heritage Month, the University Museum at New Mexico State University will host a symposium bringing together Indigenous water protectors to share their perspectives and their work protecting water in a growing international water crisis.

The events surrounding “Indigenous Symposium: Water Protection,” will be held Nov.14-15 and will give an opportunity for the indigenous leaders to share stories and solutions to protect water resources. All events are free and open to the public. They are also bilingual.

The symposium will feature Jose Gomez, a Maya Mam Indigenous Water Defender from Guatemala currently on tour in the western United States to meet with other indigenous leaders and activists fighting to protect their waters.

“As Indigenous people, creating international links with communities from other countries strengthens our struggle for the protection and stewardship of our common resources,” Gómez said. “Solidarity helps us acquire information about, and intervene in, the capitalist system’s plans against our people.” Gómez is also the co-coordinator of the Association of Communities for Development and the Defense of Land and Natural Resources (ACODET) which is a coalition of Indigenous communities in Guatemala’s rural Ixcán region that has used grassroots organizing to halt construction on the Xalalá project – a mega-dam that, if built, would flood multiple communities and have a devastating impact on life in the region.

The opening ceremony will be held on Wednesday Nov, 14th from 9-10 a.m. outdoors near the Corbett Center and will feature NMSU anthropology professor Don Pepion and the Piro Dancers. That evening, Gómez will give a presentation from 5:30 –7 p.m. at the Branigan Cultural Center.

Multiple events are scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 15. The first is an unveiling of the Water Protector Mural at 4:00 p.m. with Barricade Culture Shop and Murals of Las Cruces at 1305 E University Ave. The Indigenous Water Protector Panel will follow from 5:30 –7 p.m. in the College of Health and Social Services Auditorium, Room 101A. This event features six Indigenous water protectors who will discuss their work and experiences.

The celebration will continue at the University Museum with the “Water is Life Celebration” from 7–9 p.m. with music, dance, Indian tacos and more. It will feature performances by the dance group Danza Omecoatl, Artson, Native American Music Award winner, and a local band Papayas con Chile

There will also be a silent auction of art by Ome, Francella, and Saba, with proceeds benefitting ACODET, as well as two Indigenous art installations on view in the museum: “Pictograff: The Art of War Prayer” and “Live Long and Prosper: Sci-fi Images in Contemporary Indigenous Art."
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