Sounding the
alarm on contaminated water
Thursday, May 13, 1999
Scientists will test the water
contamination detection system in the Ohio River
Basin and New York Harbor, as well as in the Gateway
National Recreation Area, N.Y.. |
Scientists this summer will field test a new
remote sensing system designed to detect water
contamination. If successful, the system may help protect
valuable ecosystems from toxins and pollutants.
In a project funded by the EPA,
researchers will test the Genesis Alert system, a series of
remote sensing buoys designed by Baxter Technologies Inc..
The buoys will be placed in the Ohio River Basin and New
York Harbor.
Twenty-four water treatment facilities
serving cities such as Cincinnati, Ohio and Pittsburgh, Pa.,
will be included in this pilot test. The U.S. National Park
Service is also beginning a pilot test site for the Gateway
National Recreation Area, N.Y., to help identify and protect
the ecosystem from toxins and pollutants. Additional test
projects are scheduled for Berlin, Germany, Taiwan and
Malaysia.
"This technology will allow instant
detection and continuous tracking of a variety of substances
that could contaminate our water supply, from an oil spill
to Pfiesteria," said John F. (Jack) Baxter, inventor of
the patented technology and president of Baxter
Technologies.
Baxter asserts that this technology will
help water authorities detect contaminants at their source,
before they have a chance to pollute essential water
supplies.
The Genesis Alert buoys contain remote
testing mechanisms that monitor water in real time and
transmit data via satellite or microwave radio to land-based
dispatch centers. When a buoy detects contaminants,
authorities are immediately alerted and a smaller buoy can
be released from the mother buoy to track the spill or other
toxic plumes, where applicable. Real-time transmissions may
be made via Internet over the companion Enviro/Watch
Internet-based patent pending technology.
BTI, based in Marco Island Florida and New
York City, is a high technology development company offering
environmental monitoring services and equipment.
Contact Lisa Pellegrin, Baxter
Technologies, (703)455-6101, email: lpelleg@erols.com.
Copyright 1999,
Environmental News Network, All Rights Reserved
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EPA
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Ohio
River Valley Water Sanitation Commission
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