For decades, rising sulfate levels in the nation’s waters have been a problem without an affordable solution. Due largely to industrial outputs and atmospheric trends, sulfate pollution has drawn increasing concern from environmental regulators and often stymied industrial cleanup efforts.

But a solution is now at hand: Clearwater BioLogic has developed an efficient, cost-effective sulfate remediation system that offers the first true alternative to reverse osmosis systems. For industries such as mining that have found RO too expensive, Clearwater BioLogic offers a breakthrough tool that reduces sulfate to targeted levels, complying with water quality regulations and bringing win-win solutions to multiple stakeholders. This three-step process can achieve any such target—even if the goal is zero– by reducing the sulfate biologically, converting it to sulfur, and removing it.

The process has been developed and tested in a demanding setting: northern Minnesota, where taconite mines have contributed to high sulfate levels, and where nearby native wild rice beds are highly sulfate-sensitive. With these challenges on both sides of the equation, the sulfate solution developed here is one that can be applied confidently in any setting.

This brief video frames the issue in northern Minnesota.