A Ten-Year Partnership Supporting Industrial Water Conservation

In 2022, MnTAP marked the 10th anniversary of a partnership with Metropolitan Council Environmental Services (MCES) Water Supply Planning Unit with funding through a grant from the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment. The work is focused on industrial water efficiency in geographic areas served by MCES. This highly successful collaboration supports MnTAP interns working with industrial facilities to identify and launch implementation of projects that reduce industrial water use and help maintain sustainable water supplies across the Twin Cities region.

Apply for Your 2023 MnTAP Intern

Just in case you may have missed it, this is it – Only 3 weeks left before we select companies for the 2023 MnTAP Intern Program! Don’t miss your opportunity to add an extra person to resolve those stubborn waste, water or energy utilization challenges in your facility that you just have no time to tackle.

Outstanding Wastewater Nitrogen Treatment

In 2021 the Whitewater River Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant had an average effluent total nitrogen level ranging from 29 – 74 mg/L. In 2022 the facility received a new nitrogen permit limit of 10 mg/L and knew they needed to try something new to meet these limits. The plant manager explored strategies to achieve biological nutrient removal within the oxidation ditches in partnership with MnTAP. The team discovered that cycling aeration on a timer in the main oxidation ditch while maintaining solids suspension using a smaller pump would result in much better treatment for nitrogen and phosphorus.

2022 Solutions for Minnesota Businesses!

MnTAP is proud to announce the publication of the 2022 Solutions. This annual report highlights the results from our summer internship program. This year our group of 16 talented and industrious interns identified environmental reductions and process improvements that could save their companies gallons of water, kWH of electricity, therms of energy, pounds of waste, and pounds of chemical waste.

The Metal Fabrication Industry Spoke & MnTAP Listened

From 2020 to 2021, MnTAP asked businesses in the metal fabrication industry about their general waste reduction practices. A total of 14 companies participated in these guided informational interviews focused on identifying successful best practices for pollution prevention and waste reduction as well as barriers to implementation. From these interviews, current areas of focus around waste reduction and pollution prevention were identified, as well as challenges found when implementing waste reduction strategies.

MnTAP IMPACT for Minnesota

Help us celebrate the accomplishments of the 2022 MnTAP interns as they wrap up their summer projects. MnTAP staff are grateful that in collaboration with our sponsors, host companies, and interns, we have been able to carry out safe, high-impact projects for pollution prevention, energy and water efficiency during the 2022 MnTAP Intern Program.

MnTAP IMPACT for Minnesota

MnTAP was again honored with the privilege of working across Minnesota to provide source reduction technical assistance to businesses and organizations across the State. Whether supporting 14 MnTAP Intern Projects, providing needed services to 360 organizations, working with numerous student researchers, or supporting businesses through 61 site visits, we are pleased to participate in improving the environmental and economic performance in collaboration with our partners. The results of our work for 2021 are summarized in the 2021 MnTAP IMPACT annual report.

2022 MnTAP Intern Program Launched

For the 2022 MnTAP Intern Program students are back working at their facilities full time. The 2022 cohort of 16 young professionals is comprised of students from University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, University of Minnesota, Duluth, Macalester College, and St. Cloud State University. These interns bring expertise from the fields of Chemical Engineering, Environmental Chemistry, Mechanical Engineering, Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering, and Sustainable Systems Management.

MnTAP Honored with CSWEA/R2E 2021 R2E Award

The Central States Water Environment Association Minnesota Resource Recovery and Energy Committee (CSWEA/R2E) has honored MnTAP with the 2021 Minnesota Section Resource Recovery & Energy Excellence Award. MnTAP has been working directly with Minnesota wastewater treatment facilities for many years to support both nutrient reduction in discharge and operational energy efficiency projects.

Cutting Oil Recovery: Quality = Performance + Savings

MnTAP has been leading a project focused on supporting precision manufacturing and metal fabrication companies. The first phase of the project was to interview local manufacturers to identify operational best practices that could be shared with the rest of the industry. Coolant reuse was found to be a high priority for companies in this field.

Hot Topics From 2021

Top 3 topics from MnTAP readers in 2021: Healthcare, Intern Program, and P2 Webinar Series

2022 Business Applications

Don’t be left out in the cold – summer will be here in a flash. Make sure your site has the opportunity to improve your resource utilization and prepare for your sustainability reporting, apply for a 2022 MnTAP Intern TODAY!

2021 MnTAP Intern Program a Success!

MnTAP is proud to announce the publication of the 2021 Solutions. This annual report highlights the results from our summer internship program. This year our group of talented and industrious interns identified environmental reductions and process improvements that could save their companies millions.

2021 MnTAP Intern Program to Wrap up with Symposium

Join us on August 18, 12:30 – 5:00 pm for the 2021 MnTAP Intern Symposium. This event will be live streamed to share these results broadly. Help us celebrate the accomplishments of the MnTAP interns and student researchers as they wrap up their 2021 projects.

Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Automotive Repair Shops Implement Safer Degreasers

The job is to repair, and tune cars and trucks. Keeping these vehicles running requires the use of an engine degreaser or brake cleaner to remove grease and grime so the mechanics can identify issues and make repairs. Unfortunately, most brake cleaners contain chemicals that are harmful to human health and the environment, and identifying economical safer products within the local supply chain is challenging.

The 2021 Intern Program has Launched!

For the 2021 MnTAP Intern Program we are hosting a mix of research projects and traditional MnTAP Intern projects at facility sites. This cohort of 15 young professionals will focused on source reduction of process waste, energy and water.

MnTAP Continues to IMPACT Minnesota Businesses

The impact of Coronavirus with remote work restrictions, distancing requirements and general business slowdowns resulted in the need to reinvent MnTAP’s approach to deliver technical assistance services to Minnesota businesses. The MnTAP 2020 IMPACT annual report summarizes the outreach activities and environmental outcomes achieved for the year. Briefly, assistance was provided to nearly 400 organizations across the state including 70 site visits to 57 unique facilities.

City of Baudette, MN: Wastewater Operations Changes Produce Big Returns

Achieving cleaner water is the goal of all wastewater treatment professionals. The LCCMR Nutrient Optimization Project Team has been working with pond system operations staff since 2018 to identify strategies to improve treatment.

Metal Fabrication Best Practices - New Project for 2021

MnTAP is launching a research project in collaboration with the Minnesota Precision Manufacturing Association (MPMA) to define current, non-confidential, best practices in the metal fabrication industry for hazardous material and waste reduction. Technical assistance services from MnTAP engineers will be available to metal fabrication businesses as part of this project.

Now is the Time! Call MnTAP to Plan Your Project for 2021

Are you ready to optimize your process, minimize waste and decrease operating costs? Could you use some help with water and energy conservation in 2021? Apply online or call now to schedule your appointment with a MnTAP specialist to discuss technical assistance and intern project proposals for 2021.  MnTAP anticipates supporting up to 15 projects that could focus on water conservation, energy efficiency, paint efficiency, solid waste, and pollution prevention.

2020 Intern Program an Outstanding Success

MnTAP Solutions highlights the successful projects from the 2020 intern program. By implementing the recommendations identified by the 2020 interns, host companies could realize the following benefits: 148,000,000 gallons of water, saving $360,000 annually; 27,000,000 kWh electricity, saving $1,900,000; 1,9000,000 pounds of waste, saving $320,000; 130,000 pounds of chemical waste, saving $100,000; 190,000 therms of energy, saving $70,000; $1,500,000 in production impacts.  Combined, these reductions have the potential to save companies $4,250,000 annually!

Clean Water - Strategies for Wastewater Nutrient Reduction

High levels of nitrogen and phosphorus in lakes and rivers can cause excessive growth of algae leading to depressed oxygen levels and an inability for the waterbody to sustain aquatic life. MnTAP is conducting a project with the help of student researchers and an elite team of wastewater experts to identify low cost options to optimize nutrient removal from wastewater treatment facilities and wastewater ponds (WWTFs) prior to discharge to surface waters. The project is using both nutrient source reduction for facilities upstream of wastewater facilities and identifies improved treatment strategies at the facility to protect Minnesota water quality.

Celebrating Pollution Prevention Week

Don’t Miss Out – Register for the 2020 MnTAP Intern Symposium NOW!

Join us virtually August 19th to celebrate the accomplishments of the MnTAP Interns and their 2020 projects! This year’s symposium features intern projects at companies around the state and student research projects.  These 21 projects will highlight the opportunities identified for saving water, energy, and waste. The agenda page will have abstracts for each of the projects and will be updated over the next weeks. These abstracts briefly describe the focus of the projects and the approach the Interns and Student Researchers took to identify solutions.

Record Year for MnTAP

The 2020 intern program has launched! This year we have a mix of research projects and traditional MnTAP Intern projects at facility sites. This cohort of 21 young professionals is the largest group ever coordinated by MnTAP staff focused on source reduction of process waste, energy and water.

Minnesota Legislature Enacts Nation's First TCE Ban

Starting in 2019, MnTAP began a project in conjunction with the University of Massachusetts’s Toxics Use Reduction Institute to find safer alternatives to trichloroethylene (TCE), an industrial solvent used in manufacturing that has been linked to negative health effects, including cancer. As the dangers of this chemical became more well known, Minnesota will become the first state in the country to enact a partial ban of TCE in June of 2020.

$1.1 Million in Savings in MnTAP's 35th Year!

MnTAP celebrated a milestone anniversary in 2019 – 35 years of providing high quality technical assistance to industrial facilities across Minnesota! The MnTAP 2019 IMPACT annual report summarizes the outreach activities and environmental outcomes achieved for the year. Briefly, assistance was provided to over 400 organizations across the state including 124 site visits to 78 unique facilities.

Clearing the Air in the Phillips Community

Locally, poor air quality affects Minnesotans by triggering a range of health problems, from itchy throats to asthma attacks. It also contributes to smog and acid rain, leading to the contamination of water bodies. That’s why MnTAP has been working with community partners Lake Street Council and Hope Community to encourage local business owners to use less toxic, lower-emission cleaning and degreasing products to reduce air emissions in and around the Phillips neighborhoods in Minneapolis.

See a Clear Path for a 2020 Intern

If your company could use another set of eyes to achieve similar results, now is the time to start thinking about developing a project for the summer of 2020. We anticipate supporting up to 15 projects that could focus on water conservation, energy efficiency, paint efficiency, solid waste, and pollution prevention. Applications are currently being accepted and will be reviewed upon receipt. Companies will be contacted by MnTAP technical staff within two weeks for additional project development and scoping.

2019 Intern Program an Outstanding Success!

MnTAP Solutions highlights the successful projects from the 2019 intern program. By implementing the recommendations identified by the sixteen 2019 interns, host companies could realize the following benefits: 96 million gallons of water; 6 million kWh electricity; 3,500,000 pounds of waste; 415,000 pounds of chemical waste; 340,000 therms of energy. Combined, these reductions have the potential to save companies $2,385,000 annually!

Reflections on MnTAP's 35th Anniversary & Intern Symposium

On Wednesday August 21, 2019, the Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP) hosted a celebration of their 35 years providing no-cost, confidential pollution prevention technical assistance to Minnesota businesses. Way back in 1984 a small group formed at the University of Minnesota in the School of Public Health to promote waste minimization and pollution prevention for businesses across Minnesota in an effort to improve public health and the environment.

MnTAP's 35th Anniversary Celebration & Intern Symposium

Join us August 21st for the 2019 Intern Symposium and 35th Anniversary.  This year’s symposium features 16 Intern projects as well as MnTAP’s 35th Anniversary of reducing waste at the source to improve public health and the environment.

Energy Efficiency Implementation in Minnesota Wastewater Treatment Facilities (2015-2017)

Delivering wastewater treatment services to communities can be a high cost effort due to the energy intensity of the operating equipment and the need to meet increasing effluent quality requirements for positive public health and environmental outcomes. Across the U.S., the water and wastewater treatment sectors account for 3% of total electricity use.

Cut Your Chemicals & Your Costs

Food processing is a vital part of the Minnesota economy, providing jobs to 46,000 people throughout the state. Excellent food products are supplied by the industry, but processing these products comes with challenges; the industry emits over 4.5 million pounds of TRI chemicals each year.

Introducing Source

Welcome to our new newsletter.  We have combined our printed quarterly newsletter –Source – and our monthly e-newsletter into one, more informative online newsletter.  In doing this, we are following our own advice and reducing the amount of paper products we use and send to our readers.