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$10M prize finalists selected after Holland Marsh research

Bradford West Gwillimbury was selected as a location for the international research due to its cold temperatures and warm climates

All the Canadian teams were eliminated this week in the $10-million George Barley Water Prize competition, the research for which was done in the Holland Marsh.

Bradford West Gwillimbury Mayor-elect Rob Keffer attended an event in Toronto this week, where four finalists and one runnerup were announced.

The finalists, three teams from the U.S. and one from the Netherlands, will now prepare for the final phase — using one million gallons of water a day from Lake Jesup near Orlando, Fla., with the goal to reduce phosphorus levels that pollute nutrients and create green algae and duckweed.

“This is a global problem. We’re really trying to have a ripple effect,” said Loren Parra, director of the prize, which is hosted by Florida’s The Everglades Foundation.

Although the two Canadian teams, including Toronto-based Econse Water Purification System, did not win, all the eliminated groups got $50,000 for their participation.

The four finalists each received $125,000, and the runnerup from China got $100,000.

The top four teams were selected based on four criteria: total phosphorus removed, cost effectiveness, environmental sustainability, and the ability to scale up their projects on a bigger level.

“These finalists represent our best hope for solving the algae crisis that is choking waterways worldwide,” said Eric Eikenberg, CEO of The Everglades Foundation.

The teams will have one year to prepare before setting up their projects in January 2020, with field testing expected to start that June, said Parra.

The testing will last 14 months, and then it will take two to three months for an independent, anonymous panel of judges to select the winner, which is expected to be named by the end of 2021, she said.

The research previously done in the Holland Marsh was completed by nine teams, narrowed down from an initial group of 104 competitors, between February to May of this year.

Teams tested their technologies in cold weather conditions using 2,500 to 8,500 gallons of water a day, so it will be a huge jump for the finalists who now have to test their projects on one million gallons per day, Parra said.

Holland Marsh was chosen for the competition because the area experiences cold temperatures and warm climates.

“I want to thank the Ontario Ministry of the Environment. We were really lucky to find a great partner,” Parra said, adding the ministry recommended BWG for the research. “I will certainly be looking for reasons to come back (to Ontario).”


Jenni Dunning

About the Author: Jenni Dunning

Jenni Dunning is a community editor and reporter who covers news in the Town of Bradford West Gwillimbury.
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