Envirogen Technologies, Inc., announced the successful start-up of a new treatment system that will produce potable water from perchlorate-laden groundwater for a major hospital facility in San Bernardino County, Calif. Located in Colton, Calif., the Arrowhead Regional Medical Center is a state-of-the-art 373-bed facility owned and operated by the County of San Bernardino, the company said.
The new Envirogen system limits the hospital’s dependence on the city of Colton for its water supply. Under a 10-year services agreement with the county, Envirogen will provide all warranty and maintenance services for the treatment system while its operation is handled by medical center personnel.
According to Orlando Carreno, vice president, West region for Envirogen, the new system is an example of the company’s focus on delivering versatile drinking water solutions to meet specific customer needs.
“Envirogen’s expertise at designing high-efficiency, custom-designed smaller systems was put to good use at this site to attain real cost and operating benefits for the county,” Carreno said. “By solving the perchlorate-contamination problem with this well and offering a life cycle performance approach to the installation, Envirogen Technologies is offering the Arrowhead Regional Medical Center a reliable and lower-cost source of quality drinking water today and into the future.”
Due to the perchlorate contamination, output from the County’s Pepper Street Well has been limited to non-potable uses since the State of California’s adoption, in 2007, of a 6 parts per billion maximum contaminant level (MCL) for perchlorate. The 600 gpm-capacity treatment system, designed and supplied by Envirogen, consists of two compact mobile units and utilizes high-efficiency ion exchange technology to reduce perchlorate levels to below the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency or California Department of Public Health MCL of 6 ppb, the company said.
Along with the environmental benefits of reclaiming a local water source, the company said, the system utilizes no chemicals in the treatment process and does not require electricity to operate.
