Science Inventory

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Protein processing operations include animal slaughtering, meat and poultry product production, and/or rendering of byproducts. These facilities utilize large volumes of water for hair/hide/feather removal, carcass washing, chilling, trimming and cutting, cooking, and cleaning/sa...

The analysis of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) has been an ongoing priority due to their potential for adverse effects on environmental and human health. Wastewater is a source for many CECs, and surface waters that receive wastewater discharge often serve as source wate...

Atmospheric water harvesting can provide a high-quality water source for potable or non-potable applications.  However, like other water sources, collected condensate must be managed appropriately to prevent microbial growth.  Of particular concern are opportunistic pathogens suc...

Wastewater is a source for many contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) and surface waters receiving wastewater discharge often serve as source water for downstream drinking water treatment plants. Non-targeted analysis and suspect screening methods were used to characterize chem...

Increasing water shortages and aging infrastructure have broadened interest in using alternative source waters for a range of end uses. Developing fit-for-purpose treatment approaches requires consideration of both the proximal risks of reuse-related exposures and the more distal...

Background/Objectives. Targeted chemical analyses, non-targeted analyses, and bioanalytical tools each provide a unique but incomplete understanding of the chemicals in a sample.  The US Environmental Protection Agency and US Geological Survey are collaborating to examine the sou...

There is growing interest in promoting the treatment and beneficial re-use of production water from onshore oil & gas operations. A significant challenge to re-use strategies is the variable and complex chemical composition of produced waters. Produced waters (PW) may come from m...

Non-targeted analysis (NTA) studies of environmental systems generate a wealth of data that can be used to identify unexpected and/or unknown compounds that may affect human and ecological health. Though abundant environmental data ultimately enables a more complete assessment of...

Complex, dynamic human-environment coupled water systems require a paradigm shift from the traditional “siloed” (drinking water, wastewater, stormwater etc.) management approach and a move towards more holistic approaches to address the multiple issues facing municipal water syst...

Water is a defining issue of our time. Cities across the world are rethinking the traditional linear approach to water systems in the face of drought, extreme weather, and associated impacts on water quantity and quality. Reuse of alternative water sources for a variety of non-po...

This presentation is an overview of ORD's drinking water, stormwater, wastewater and water reuse models that are being used to design, improve, optimize and enhance the resilience of water systems.  This is being presented by Regan Murray, Caleb Buahin, Terra Haxton and Jeff...

Presentation to the Global Water Research Coalition (GWRC) on holistic assessments of water reuse configurations that consider both proximal, short term risks (e.g., acute infection following exposure) and distal, long term ones (impacts of climate change).

Non-targeted analysis (NTA) utilizing high-resolution mass spectrometry is an increasingly popular tool for environmental science given its ability to facilitate exploratory exposomic investigations and identify contaminants of emerging concern. Generalized reporting standards, l...

Urban water systems are not self-contained units, economically or ecologically.  They rely on larger biophysical supports from natural capital.  The behavior of such systems as a whole and the interactions between subcomponents can be observed.  The optimization at system level t...

Our nation's water infrastructure is in need of billions of dollars of repairs, upgrades, and replacements. This presentation provides an overview of recent EPA Office of Research and Development research on the topic of resilient water infrastructure, including free models and t...

Rain contains encapsulated bacteria that can be transported over vast distances during relatively short periods of time. However, the ecological significance of bacteria in “precontact” rainwater -rainwater prior to contact with non-atmospheric surfaces -remains relat...

System-based accounting tools for such system-wide evaluations are showcased and provide in-depth analyses of the economic trade-offs, environmental impacts and system performances.  The detailed holistic evaluation helps the decision-makers design more robust, effective and...

Onsite non-potable water systems (ONWS) collect and treat local source waters for non-potable end uses such as toilet flushing and irrigation. Quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) has been used to set pathogen log10-reduction targets (LRTs) for ONWS to achieve the risk b...

This talk summarizes our current research on decentralized water systems, focuses on both our development of risk-based guidance for fit-for-purpose reuse of alternative waters and integrated assessment of  the life cycle costs/impacts of different decentralized system scena...

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has been identified as one of the top medical issues worldwide, leading many countries to place greater emphasis on combating resistant bacteria through a multipronged, coordinated approach.  A consensus has emerged among the greater public hea...

Multiple States have explored the implementation of in vitro new approach methodologies (NAMs) as component of water quality monitoring programs to detect biological activity indicative of potential contaminant and/or contaminant mixture occurrence. Polycyclic aromatic compounds ...

Increasing water shortages and aging infrastructure have broadened interest in using alternative source waters for a range of end uses. Developing fit-for-purpose treatment approaches requires consideration of both the proximal risks of reuse-related exposures and the more distal...

Summary: A life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle cost analysis (LCCA) study that estimates environmental impact and cost of operating an existing indirect potable reuse (IPR) system in Gwinnett County, Georgia and compares that impact to two hypothetical direct potable reus...

In the United States, onshore oil and gas extraction operations generate an estimated one trillion gallons of produced water annually, making it the largest waste stream associated with upstream development of petroleum hydrocarbons by volume. Produced water is defined as the inc...

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has been identified as one of the major public health threats of the 21st  Century. In 2019, 2.8 million American were infected with antibiotic resistant bacteria, leading to over 35,000 deaths and between $21-24 billion in health care costs. G...