Future of Municipal Reuse Concentrate Workshop
October 21-22, 2022
Leading experts from academia, advanced wastewater treatment utilities, and other water reuse stakeholders met in Newport Beach, California, to brainstorm about the future of brine management.
Presenters and attendees were from across the United States and around the world. Outcomes of the workshop will prioritize future NWRI brine research and will generate content for a journal article.
Dr. Menachem Elimelech of Yale University, Dr. Pedro Alvarez of Rice University, Dr. Paul Westerhoff of Arizona State University, and NWRI Executive Director, Kevin Hardy, organized the program. The agenda included expert presentations and brainstorming sessions by focused teams that looked at water reuse trends, regulations, and technologies. Live polls during the workshop gave immediate feedback on the ideas and opinions that people raised.
The Workshop brought together Clarke Prize Laureates and leading reuse practitioners to consider the critical drivers, challenges, and opportunities to manage water reuse concentrates in the coming decades. The topic is timely because of the growing trend of municipal wastewater reuse, which often uses membrane-based processes that result in waste brine concentrates.