— The Water Council is touting a new agreement for a product that can remove phosphorus from stormwater, agricultural runoff and other municipal wastewater.
According to a release from the Milwaukee-based water technology organization, the phosphorus-absorbing pellets were developed by a Kentucky startup called Water Warriors. This company participated in The Water Council’s BREW 2.0 Post-Accelerator program for established startup businesses, and is now part of the group’s Pilot Program.
The distributor of the pellets will be Phoslock Environmental Technologies, one of the council’s overseas members that’s based in Australia. PET was introduced to Water Warriors through The Water Council.
“This is a prime example of the way The Water Council drives freshwater innovation and convenes, connects and showcases our members,” council spokeswoman Stacy Vogel Davis said in a statement.
PET will now be distributing Water Warriors’ product under the name Phosflow, the release shows. The distribution rights agreement covers Europe, USA, Canada, South America, China, Australia and New Zealand for at least two years.
High levels of phosphorus pollution in water can cause algae to grow faster than ecosystems can handle, the EPA says. This can harm water quality, animal habitats and food resources by lowering oxygen levels that sustain fish and other forms of life. Algal blooms can also lead to higher levels of toxins and bacteria that can harm humans who are exposed.
The Water Council’s release shows Water Warriors’ product has been tested in “various wastewater settings” over the past two years and found to be environmentally safe. The group says nutrients recovered with the pellets could be reused through soil enhancement projects.
“Our technology offers a turnkey, easy to implement solution, designed to simplify nutrient treatment for settings that do not have resources available to build new facilities or have unique application needs,” Water Warriors CEO John Gradek said in the release.
See the release: https://www.wisbusiness.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/8-5-Phoslock-and-Water-Warriors-agreement.pdf
— In the latest episode of “WisBusiness.com: The Show,” Jeff Daniel, co-chair of the Racine-based Tech-Prize effort, explains next month’s competition. The application window is open now.
The Show also reviews a recent Tech Council Innovation Network luncheon on “next-gen highways” and burying high-voltage transmission lines in existing highway rights-of-way. Also, learn more about a Sept. 8 luncheon in Wauwatosa that will focus on battery and storage innovation, as well as other coming events.
In the Tech Metrics section, Wisconsin Technology Council President Still talks about the CHIPS and Science Act that passed Congress with strong margins in both houses, and what it may mean for Wisconsin.
“This will boost American semiconductor manufacturing and pave the way for science and tech investments that will involve private-sector companies as well,” he said. “Included in this bill is the notion of regional tech-hubs, and there have been a number of applications already through institutions and companies in Wisconsin.”
Watch the show here: https://www.wisbusiness.com/2022/wisbusiness-the-show-with-jeff-daniel-of-tech-prize/
See more episodes: https://www.wisbusiness.com/wisbusiness-the-show/
See Still’s recent Inside Wisconsin column on the CHIPS and Science Act: https://wisconsintechnologycouncil.com/insidewis-passage-of-chips-and-science-act-will-help-u-s-wisconsin-over-time/
— Attorney General Josh Kaul says the state will likely see over $500 million from existing and prospective opioid settlement agreements.
During a press conference yesterday, Kaul said Wisconsin is expected to receive some of the $6.5 billion in proposed national opioid settlement funds through tentative agreements with Teva and Allergan, announced late last month. And he said the state is pursuing funds from Purdue Pharma and Mallinckrodt — “both of which have gone into bankruptcy, but which we are hoping to recover tens of millions of dollars from each of those companies.”
That’s on top of the over $400 million the state will be getting from existing settlement agreements. The state recently received the first $6 million payment from that total.
“All told, Wisconsin — if we are able to bring these resolutions to fruition — is likely to recover over half a billion dollars to support the fight against the opioid epidemic,” he said. “These funds have an opportunity to transform the response to the opioid epidemic, and to finally turn the corner in this fight.”
The state Department of Health Services recently submitted an updated proposal to the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee for how the state should use the $31 million in settlement funds coming to Wisconsin this year. Kaul says he hopes JFC will act quickly to approve the plan.
DHS Secretary-designee Karen Timberlake gave an overview of the three-phased proposal during today’s briefing. The first phase is focused on the state’s “immediate needs” and harm reduction strategies, including $3 million for expanding the state’s Narcan Direct program, $2 million for fentanyl test strips and $1 million for targeted grants to address housing instability and the effects of childhood trauma.
The second phase involves putting $11 million into capital projects and $6 million to tribal nations, she said. Timberlake noted Wisconsin’s tribal nations “urgently need this funding, as they have seen a dramatic increase in opioid deaths that has caused at least three tribes to declare states of emergency.”
Meanwhile, the third phase is focused on long-term project investments. That includes $500,000 to overhaul a DHS overdose alert system, $2 million for educational programs, $1 million for medication-assisted treatment expansion, $2.5 million for residential treatment facilities and $2 million for family support.
See more on the DHS proposal: https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/news/releases/080122a.htm
— A group of researchers including those from the UW School of Medicine and Public Health is spotlighting ways to improve emergency care for patients with dementia.
According to Dr. Manish Shah, a UW professor of emergency medicine and emergency physician with UW Health, individuals with unrecognized dementia can face “substandard care, safety risks and worse outcomes.”
“The goal of this work is to identify the areas of emergency care for people living with dementia that most critically need to be studied, and then address those problems,” Shah said in a release from UW-Madison.
The GEAR Network yesterday published several research papers in the Journal of the American Medical Directors Association highlighting where research efforts should focus to address these challenges.
These include: better recognition of dementia-related cognitive impairment; improved discharge of such patients to their homes; communication strategies between care providers and patients; and generally improving the quality of care for these patients in emergency settings.
The network, which is getting funding from the National Institutes of Health for its work, is made up of the UW SMPH, Yale University School of Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, and the School of Medicine at Washington University in St. Louis.
Find links to the research papers and more info here: https://www.wispolitics.com/2022/uw-madison-researchers-identify-ways-to-improve-emergency-care-for-people-living-with-dementia/
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— This month marks gener8tor’s 10-year anniversary.
Since 2012, the accelerator program has helped 840 startups create more than 7,400 jobs and raise more than $1 billion in total funding across the country and abroad. According to gener8tor, it now offers programming in more than 30 locations across North America after getting its start in Madison.
Fifty-four percent of gener8tor alumni have raised more than $1 million in follow-on financing or have been acquired, and 69 percent have raised more than $250,000.
Over the years, gener8tor has created a series of OnRamp conferences in agriculture, entertainment, education and healthcare, and it has launched an Accelerator Studio.
Gener8tor will host a 10-year anniversary party next week in Madison as part of Forward Festival.
See more at Madison Startups: https://www.madisonstartups.com/gener8tor-celebrates-10-years/
#TOP STORIES#
# Racine County’s InSinkErator being sold to appliance giant for $3B
# Oshkosh Defense sent a big contract to the non-union South. Will it keep future jobs in Wisconsin?
# Meatpacking industry limits Wisconsin farmers’ income, advocate says
#TOPICS#
# AGRIBUSINESS
– Wisconsin growers paying more to rent farmland
– Madison program empowers communities of color in agriculture
# EDUCATION
– As universal free school meals end, are Wisconsin families ready for it
– CVTC hosts signing ceremony for high school students entering Business Management academy
– American higher ed organization honors UW-La Crosse community program
# HEALTH CARE
– Wisconsin’s naturopathic doctors prepare for expanded duties
# MANUFACTURING
– Carnivore Meat Co. starts $55 million expansion in Green Bay
– Harley-Davidson union in Pennsylvania to vote again on labor contract
# REAL ESTATE
– Apartments that won 2019 Milwaukee approval proceeding on east side
– Milwaukee is the top U.S. city for buying fixer-upper homes, report says
– Developer wants to tear down Market Square Theater, build $22 million housing project
– Acts Housing launches fund to help low-income home buyers compete with out-of-state investors
# RETAIL
– CEO reveals why Franchise Group wanted to buy Kohl’s
# TECHNOLOGY
– Madison startup promoter gener8tor to celebrate 10 years, other events coming up at Forward Fest
# TOURISM
– Milwaukee ‘was an easy choice’ to host RNC: Republican senior adviser
– Is city ready for the RNC? Hospitality leaders say yes—with DNC’s help
– Homewood Suites hotel, Creekside Conference Center opens in Oak Creek
# TRANSPORTATION
– Green Bay, Fox Cities gas prices are below the state average. Why that is starts with a broken pipe.
# PRESS RELEASES
<i>See these and other press releases:
https://www.wisbusiness.com/press-releases/ </i>
Visit Milwaukee: Republican Party officially selects Milwaukee for 2024 convention
