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EPA awards ODU 15K toward research into lead removal from drinking water

Posted at 2:13 PM, Mar 22, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-22 18:29:32-04

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – Old Dominion University will receive a $15,000 grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to develop a way to remove lead from driving water at a low-cost.

The grant will focus on using a water filter through biochar for removing lead from drinking water, according to a press release from the EPA.

The People, Prosperity, and the Planet (P3) grants program is part of more than $463,000 in funding nationally for 31 Phase I university student teams across the nation.

“This year’s P3 teams are applying their classroom learning to create valuable, cutting-edge technologies,” said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. “This next generation of scientists is designing sustainable solutions that will help protect public health and the environment and ensure America continues to lead the world in innovation and science for decades to come.”

The P3 grant is part of a two-phase competition that will allow these student-led teams to compete for more money towards research.

Teams that are apart of Phase 1 will share their ideas and research at the National Sustainable Design Expo in Washington, D.C., on April 7-8.

According to the release sent to News 3, the Old Dominion Team also believes this project will provide a good outreach opportunity for educating the public, especially school students in the local community.

If ODU’s student-led team makes it to Phase 2, they will be awarded 75,000 to further develop the ideas in-which they created in Phase 1 of the challenge.