Innovation: The Key to a Dynamic Water Sector
WEF believes that innovation is the lifeblood of a dynamic water sector, and therefore has made innovation a crucial part of its strategic direction. This direction has manifested itself through the Innovation Showcase at WEFTEC, which continues to grow exponentially. The showcase highlights the important areas of innovation through a series of educational sessions, networking events, and exhibits.
Innovation topics that WEF is focused on include:
- New products
- Technology evaluation
- Utilities and early adopters of new technologies
- Financing and alternative project delivery
- Water clusters and other innovation incubators
- Regulations and their key relation to new technology
- Operations – where creative workforces innovate, test, and partner to make everything happen
WEF Research and Innovation Community
The WEF Research and Innovation Community supports the execution of WEF's programs for academics and other researchers, as well as WEF's efforts to foster collaboration among these professionals and meet their needs.
Water Innovation Clusters
Environmental technology innovation clusters are regional groupings of businesses, government, research institutions, and other organizations focused on innovative technologies for clean air or clean water. These dense networks can help solve the nation's environmental challenges by spurring technology innovation. Nearly 20 water clusters are active in North America, plus many others globally.
- One of the leading water clusters can be found in the Innovation Showcase at WEFTEC every year: The Water Council in Milwaukee, Wis. Winners from their BREW (Business. Research. Entrepreneurship. In Water) accelerator program are featured in the Innovation Pavilion as well as in the Water Council’s own exhibition in the Innovation Showcase at WEFTEC.
- Ontario has more than 900 water industry companies. WaterTAP exists to champion and support the province’s status as a world water technology hub.
- The New England Water Innovation Network is another leading cluster that has an innovation pavilion with the New England Water Environment Association (a WEF Member Association) and is also featured at WEFTEC.
- Cleveland Water Alliance runs Aqua Hacking 2017 to drive innovation and data analytics solutions in the Lake Erie region.
WEF Innovation Partners
Imagine H2O and BlueTech Research are WEF’s Innovation Partners, featured at the WEFTEC Innovation Pavilion each year since 2012.
Imagine H2O inspires and empowers people to turn water challenges into opportunities. Their impact is direct – new solutions to key water problems, and systemic – developing the Silicon Valley for water, offering a path to market for promising entrepreneurs and innovations. Imagine H2O’s activities an annual competition for startups, a virtual business accelerator, and a water policy program.
BlueTech Research is a global provider of water technology market intelligence, founded in 2011 as a subsidiary of O2 Environmental. Through our offices in North America, Europe and Asia, as well as our presence at conferences and meetings worldwide, BlueTech is in constant touch with innovators in the water industry, large and small.
EPA Water Innovation and Technology
Our water resources are limited and face mounting pressures from climate change, pollution, population growth, and aging water infrastructure. Technology innovation can help address our water challenges and help put us on a more sustainable path while also supporting economic growth. EPA’s Office of Water issued the Blueprint for Integrating Technology Innovation into the National Water Program, which highlighted EPA’s initial ideas and plans for advancing technology innovation across various water programs
EPA aims to be a catalyst to promote and support technology innovation to restore, protect and ensure the sustainability of our water resources. EPA’s Water Technology Innovation Blueprint – Version 2 outlines the business case for investment in new tools in the ten most promising market opportunities of the water quality sector.
As a followup to its 2014 Blueprint Version 2, EPA has issued Promoting Innovation for a Sustainable Water Future – A Progress Report. Over the past year, EPA has collaborated with a wide spectrum of partners, all of whom play a critical role in advancing water technology and innovation. The Progress Report highlights numerous examples of how communities and the water sector are using water technology and innovation practices to accelerate progress toward clean, safe, and sustainable water resources.
An article in World Water magazine in 2015 highlights some of these in overcoming barriers to access to water and sanitation. Education, regulation, communication, and the value of water are key tools to help overcome innovation barriers in the water and sanitation sector.
Intelligent Water Systems
WEF has recognized that there is a growing interest in intelligent water systems by many in the water sector and has provided several different resources as an introduction to the topic.
- Technical Report on Intelligent Water Systems: The Path to a Smart Utility
This report outlines the 2016 Knowledge Development Forum discussions on intelligent water systems, and serves as the basis for expanding the vision for intelligent water systems. The hope is that through continuing the conversation, we will be able to separate fact from fiction regarding the implementation of intelligent water solutions and practices and moving towards implementing intelligent water systems in the industry.
- Big Data Analytics
Data analytics are helping to drive innovation in the water sector. The Imagine H2O Data Challenge as discussed in this 2016 World Water article, and the Cleveland Water Alliance’s Aqua Hacking program are examples of this. For an overview of more startup companies and latest trends in the water analytics sector, see this article in World Water .
Books
Automation of Water Resource Recovery Facilities
ISBN :978-1-57278-275-4
As automation continues to be a growing component of the water industry, new technologies and applications are constantly being developed and are producing great benefits.
Moving Toward Resource Recovery Facilities
ISBN :978-1-57278-303-4
Resource recovery is an emerging societal need around the globe. Due to the ever-increasing pressures on increasingly limited environmental resources, it is critical that recovery of resources (water, nutrients, and energy) from waste streams be implemented.
ISBN :978-1-57278-314-0
The Nutrient Roadmap, written to help utilities achieve the goal of a zero net impact with regard to nutrient discharges by 2040, is a first step toward accelerating the transition to smarter nutrient management, facilitating the shift from removal to recovery, and anticipating future requirements.
ISBN :978-1-57278-273-0
The Energy Roadmap serves as a guide for utilities of all sizes on the path to sustainable energy management. In it, you will explore innovative approaches to cost-effectively recover and reuse resources to transform “wastes” to valuable products.
WEFTEC Innovation Pavilion
WEF’s Innovation Pavilion at WEFTEC, operating each year since 2012, highlights a selection of the most promising technology businesses in the industry while championing an important dialogue about innovation in our industry. WEF and its Innovation Partners, BlueTech Research and Imagine H2O, are creating a unique program for entrepreneurs, investors, customers, and regulators.
The Pavilion featured a selection of early and growth stage companies honored by BlueTech Research, Imagine H2O and the WEF Innovative Technology Awards. Many of these companies are investor-backed and working with high profile customers in the industrial and municipal markets. In addition, additional partners such as NSF, The Water Council, and former winners from the Imagine H2O, BlueTech Research and BREW awards have exhibits in an every growing Innovation Showcase neighborhood.
Highlights of the past Innovation Showcases can be found here.
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