Grantee Research Project Results

2012 Progress Report: Point Of Use (POU) Water Treatment Systems For Improving Sustainability And Environmental Justice in Colonias of the Paso del Norte Region

EPA Grant Number: R835179
Title: Point Of Use (POU) Water Treatment Systems For Improving Sustainability And Environmental Justice in Colonias of the Paso del Norte Region
Investigators: Walker, W. Shane , Palacios, Rebecca L. , Santiago, Ivonne , Tomaka, Joe , Walton, John
Institution: The University of Texas at El Paso , New Mexico State University - Main Campus
EPA Project Officer: Page, Angela
Project Period: December 1, 2011 through November 30, 2016
Project Period Covered by this Report: December 1, 2011 through November 30,2012
Project Amount: $498,906
RFA: Research and Demonstration of Innovative Drinking Water Treatment Technologies in Small Systems (2011) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Drinking Water , Water

Objective:

The objectives of this project are to: perform community-based participatory research (CBPR) through Water and POU Perception and Use Inventory surveys of residents in up to 12 colonias of the Paso del Norte region; design and test POU systems for specific water contaminants of these colonias; implement select POU systems in over 100 homes across at least three colonias: and evaluate the sustainability of the use of POU technologies with respect to environmental, social/user, and economic metrics.

Progress Summary:

Task 1: POU review and selection: Commercially available point of use water treatment systems are being reviewed and evaluated for possible implementation in colonias of the Paso del Norte region. Consideration is given to sustainability parameters such as price, type of treatment, volume treated, disposal, and replacement. We have acquired several products from Sawyer, Basic Water Needs (Tulip), Seychelle, and Vestergaard-Frandsen for testing in Phase 2, Task 3. The selection process for the filtration devices was accomplished by first surveying some of the available devices and then selecting a total of four units for further testing.

Task 2: Water sampling and quality analysis: It is expected that the two main types of drinking water contamination that will be encountered in the El Paso and Doña Ana Counties are microbiological and inorganic (especially arsenic and nitrate). Hence, a special focus was given to developing methods for microbiological and trace metal contaminants. The method developed for testing for microbiological contamination uses IDEXX’s Quanti-Tray system. IDEXX’s system is a most probably number (MPN) presence-absence test for total coliforms, fecal coliforms, E. Coli, and enterococci. The method developed for trace metals (EPA 200.7) uses a PerkinElmer ICP-OES Optima 7300 DV to detect more than 20 elements, among which are arsenic, chromium, cadmium, lead, and mercury at concentrations that range from 1-1,000 μg/L for trace metals and higher for alkali and alkaline earth metals.

Task 3: Laboratory testing of POU treatment systems: The general methodology to be used for the research centered on the manufacturer’s specifications and predicted usage for the filter. The combination of both principles yielded the general methodology of filtering five gallons of surrogate water, under the manufacturer’s usage specifications. The surrogate water will be created by filling a 1,500 gallon tank with tap water and inoculating it with water from the Rio Grande, a conservative scenario for microbiological contamination. Tests will be performed to confirm manufacturers’ claims regarding flow rates and bacterial log-removals.

Future Activities:

Although the progress of this research was significantly delayed by the EPA IRB, research continues by completing Phases 1 and 2. We expect to begin Phase 3 and 4 by the end of 2013.

Journal Articles:

No journal articles submitted with this report: View all 10 publications for this project

Supplemental Keywords:

Drinking water, small systems, colonias, hauled water, groundwater, point of use treatment, membrane filtration;

Progress and Final Reports:

Original Abstract

The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.