Goals and Progress

The goals of the Arsenic Treatment Technologies Research Program are to:

• Provide interim reports to the Office of Water and water supply utilities on the performance of arsenic treatment technologies and on engineering approaches in order to aid in the implementation of the Arsenic Rule and the protection of human health
• Provide results of full‑scale treatment demonstration projects and evaluations of other approaches for managing arsenic in drinking water for the Office of Water, states, local authorities, and utilities in order to support implementation of the Arsenic Rule
• Develop and evaluate innovative methods and cost‑effective technologies to improve the assessment and control of arsenic contamination

From 2001 to 2005, considerable progress was made toward meeting the major goals of the Arsenic Treatment Technologies Research Program. Accomplishments include the following:

• EPA launched the Arsenic Removal Technology Demonstration Program in 2001 to research and develop more cost‑effective technologies, training, and technical assistance for water systems in violation of the new Arsenic Rule.
• Round 1 arsenic removal demonstrations were completed in 2005, with 11 new systems installed across the United States. Several evaluation reports were published.
• Twenty arsenic treatment technologies were verified or reported on through the Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) Program.
• Eight Phase I studies and three Phase II studies were funded under EPA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program for emerging technologies.
• As part of the Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Program's New Technologies for the Environment, three projects have been funded for exploratory research into innovative, cost‑effective, arsenic treatment technologies.
• EPA’s in‑house and field research on arsenic is improving analytical methods, treatment process optimization, management of residuals from arsenic treatment, and distribution system studies. In‑house bench‑scale jar testing is used to predict arsenic removal during iron removal. Full‑scale pilot plant research simulates arsenic/iron removal.
• Numerous publications describing research findings from laboratory and field studies have been made available to the public.