This project will evaluate costs of treatment (capital and operational), treatment performance, and residuals handling/disposal, particularly targeting small water systems (LT;10,000…

This Project Grant award, totaling $1,538,523, was provided by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Innovative Water Technology Grant Program (CFDA 66.521). The project aims to evaluate costs, performance, and residuals handling/disposal for manganese treatment technologies, particularly targeting small water systems (less than 10,000 population).

Key activities include providing technical assistance for deploying innovative, affordable, and easily operated manganese treatment technologies; investigating areas such as treatment performance, operational considerations, residuals issues, distribution system impacts, and treatment costs; and developing recommendations for stakeholders and small utilities to improve manganese treatment implementation and maintenance. The project involves sub-awards to the University of Colorado - Boulder ($296,694), the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators ($21,000), and the Water Research Foundation ($70,011) to support model development, state regulator engagement, and utility outreach and education activities. Expected deliverables include reports, journal articles, and an analysis of appropriate treatment solutions for various scenarios, with the goal of enhancing small utilities' ability to implement and sustain manganese treatment.

This project will evaluate costs of treatment (capital and operational), treatment performance, and residuals handling/disposal, particularly targeting small water systems (LT;10,000 population).activities:the project team will provide technical assistance for the deployment of demonstrated innovative, affordable, and easily operated (and maintained) commonly used manganese treatment technologies. In order to meet this objective, the team will investigate five primary research areas including: manganese treatment performance and sustainability; operational considerations and maintenance; residuals issues involving characteristics, quantity, handling, and disposal; distribution system management or impact on colored water events and legacy manganese; and treatment costs and capacity, such as economic viability of manganese treatment technologies operating over an extended period of time, including system maintenance and residuals handling/disposal costs. Recommendations will be provided to stakeholders and small utilities to better implement and maintain manganese treatment for drinking water.subrecipient:subawardee university of colorado - boulder ($250,121 federal + $46,573 cost share = $296,694 total) will build the MN removal assessment model and integrate engineering data with the guidance and workshops. Subawardee the association of state drinking water administration (aswda) ($10,000 federal + $11,000 cost share = $21,000 total) will identify states that would be interested in participating on a states' regulators' advisory panel; work with those states to identify water systems to participate in the project; survey the states to obtain data on how many states used the IIJA emerging contaminant funding for manganese removal and the number of systems and the dollar amounts for the treatment; manage the regulators' advisory panel to provide input as needed; and facilitate information transfer between states after the project is completed. Subawardee the water resource foundation (WRF) ($53,061 federal + $16,950 cost share = $70,011 total) will conduct outreach to small utilities including holding three workshops, hosting webcasts (one for utilities and one for regulators), providing certificates of completion and professional education credits for attendees; and providing editorial review of published materials for the project.outcomes:expected deliverables include annual progress and final reports and journal articles, as well as an analysis to determine the most appropriate treatment solutions for multiple site scenarios. Expected outcomes include a greater understanding of the challenges small utilities face in implementing and maintaining manganese treatment for drinking water. Intended beneficiaries include state and local regulators, managers of small drinking water systems, and the communities they serve.