Nutrient runoff is a significant and costly environmental problem in the U.S. This challenge requires focused monitoring to evaluate progress toward reducing the problem, the success of various interventions to mitigate it, and assessment to understand where to target investments. New technologies are emerging that allow for sustained measurement at relevant scales; however, organizations and agencies have a limited capacity to purchase these technologies.
In response, the Water Environment Federation (WEF; Alexandria, Va.) hosted a planning meeting in May with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Geological Survey, and the Association of Clean Water Administrators (Washington, D.C.) to discuss the next steps to bring market efficiencies to nutrient sensor technology. The market for nutrient sensors currently is fragmented among environmental, industrial, municipal, academic, governmental, and coastal monitoring groups. The planning group hopes to bring community leaders together from the users’, influencers’, and suppliers’ perspectives to discuss beneficial market efficiency strategies that will enable the proliferation of sensor uses.
The Water Environment Research Foundation (Alexandria, Va.) created a compendium on water quality sensors and monitors that is a resource for anyone working with or considering the use of online instrumentation for water quality monitoring.
July 30, 2015
Technologies, WEF Resources & Efforts