JANE KNECHT WERF CHRISTINE HANDOG WERF

CEE’s Water/Wastewater Committee has engaged a number of industry stakeholders in an effort to learn more about the opportunities for efficiency in this sector – and the best ways of addressing them.

An important ally in this process is the Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF), a nonprofit organization that is studying the many aspects of optimizing wastewater treatment.

Christine Handog, Research Program Manager for WERF, and Jane Knecht, the organization’s Director of Development, attended the June program meeting, presenting their ideas about “exploring common interests” with energy-efficiency program administrators.

WERF, founded in 1989, collaborates with municipal utilities, corporations, academic institutions, industry and the federal government. A bulk of the funding comes from municipal utilities, a group that is targeted by CEE’s water/wastewater initiative.

Equipment manufacturers and engineering firms also support WERF financially. “One of our main challenges is to develop strategies, methods, processes and tools for the cost-effective management of energy used in wastewater operations,” said Knecht.

WERF is also striving to find ways to reduce the volume and quantity of wastewater treatment solids. The treatment and transportation of these solids appears to be an energy-saving opportunity.

WERF is looking to CEE members for input about best practices in wastewater treatment. Several CEE members, including Pacific Gas & Electric and NYSERDA, have conducted extensive research of their own (see related story).

CEE’s role could be to coordinate this information sharing (and thus avoid duplication of efforts) among CEE members, WERF, ENERGY STAR^® and the American Water Works Research Foundation, another CEE ally. This arrangement has the potential to bolster WERF’s research efforts and, at the same time, provide useful information for program design.

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