The Waterly
"The Waterly" is a weekly all-things-water newsletter we share with our community covering the latest innovations and investment deal flow in the water sector and recent news on climate change and water-related crises.
How can web3 and blockchain help save the oceans? Scientists can now make water out of moisture in the air. Plastic upcycling startup Novoloop raises $10M. Water restrictions begin in Southern California. The UN wants to harvest new water sources. More than 6,400 PFAS-related lawsuits were filed since 2005. Dr. John Grant is this week's highlighted WELL member.
Your weekly Bonus - Mina Guli, the woman running 200 marathons in 200 countries to raise awareness for the global water crisis.
This week's water fact:
The largest plant on Earth is a 112-mile seagrass
Tech & Innovation
Scientists found a low-cost way to make clean drinking water from air in the desert
“The advantage of taking water moisture from the air is that it’s not limited geographically,” says Youhong “Nancy” Guo, lead author of a new study in Nature Communications that describes the technology.
Ten projects and collectives using web3 and blockchain to support ocean and marine conservation and regeneration
Blockchain and web3 solutions can and should be a part of addressing this crisis.
3D-printed seawalls may be coming soon to a beach near you, thanks to this Miami startup
One Miami-based company has developed a tech-forward solution to turn back the tides of climate change. The Addition Company is working to create a system for 3D printing so-called ‘living’ seawalls, mimicking coral reefs and mangroves.
Corporate & Deals
Kenya’s Victory Farms nets $5m as it edges towards precision fish farming
Kenyan aquaculture company Victory Farms, East Africa’s largest commercial fish farmer, has raised $5 million in equity funding to expand its operations into Rwanda, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Plastic upcycling startup Novoloop raises $10M Series A extension to accelerate commercialization
“This round brings together mission-driven financial investors and industry strategics who believe in our vision of a circular economy for plastics.”
Ellicott City, Md. wins $75M WIFIA loan to mitigate flood risk
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced a $75 million Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loan to Howard County, Md., to mitigate flood risk.
Water & the Environment
United Nations: Harvesting new water sources can benefit 'billions of people'
It's time for the human race to tap Earth's more unconventional resources for water — where hundreds of thousands of cubic miles of water lie in deep-seabed and land-based aquifers, according to an embargoed release shared with IE.
Sweeping water restrictions begin in Southern California as drought worsens
The new rules, set by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, limit outdoor watering to once a week in many jurisdictions.
Why hydropower is the forgotten giant of clean energy
But in spite of hydropower’s outsize impact, we don’t hear much about it in the U.S. While the past few decades have seen wind and solar plummet in price and skyrocket in availability, domestic hydropower generation has remained relatively steady, as the nation has already built hydropower plants in the most geographically ideal locations.
Current policies will bring ‘catastrophic’ climate breakdown, warn former UN leaders
The policies currently in place to tackle the climate crisis around the world will lead to “catastrophic” climate breakdown, as governments have failed to take the actions needed to fulfil their promises, three former UN climate leaders have warned.
PFAS & Chemicals
Companies Face Billions in Damages as PFAS Lawsuits Flood Courts
E.I. du Pont de Nemours was named as a defendant in more than 6,100 PFAS lawsuits since 2005.
TAKING THE ‘BATTELLE’ TO PFAS WITH MOBILE TREATMENT
A closed-loop on-site destruction solution powered by supercritical water oxidation, the system demonstrated its capability to mobilise and destroy PFAS chemicals that were present in the contaminated water.
John’s corporate career consisted of 33 years of progressively responsible management experience at 3M, where he gained significant global experience in a variety of technologies and industries. During the last 5 years of his corporate career, John led strategic planning and business development for the Separation and Purification Sciences division of 3M, and gained significant global perspective and expertise in water purification.
In addition to WIA, John mentors entrepreneurs through involvement with MedTech Innovator (Los Angeles) and Holmes Center for Entrepreneurship (Minneapolis). He is a member of the advisory board of Terapore Technologies, an advanced membrane filtration platform with initial focus on bioprocessing (San Francisco) and was previously a BOD member for GMSI, a designer of advanced materials for semiconductor processing (Phoenix).
Thank you John for sharing your leadership, expertise, and passion in the water industry with WIA and the WELL community.
Sport & Water
Water runner: 200-marathon journey begins in desert and dust – in pictures
On World Water Day on 22 March, Mina Guli started a challenge to run 200 marathons across 200 countries to draw attention to the global water crisis.
