Competition, in its ninth year, is part of Metropolitan’s Spring
Green Expo

LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–College student projects aimed at creating a more sustainable future by
expanding the use of biogas, reducing groundwater contamination and
increasing the safety of treated wastewater claimed the top awards today
at Metropolitan Water District’s ninth annual ECO Innovators Showcase
competition.

The projects created by students from University of California,
Riverside, Loma Linda University and University of California, Los
Angeles, respectively, were selected from more than two dozen projects
from colleges, universities and trade schools that competed in
individual and team categories.

The showcase was part of Metropolitan’s 11th annual Spring Green Expo,
an educational event featuring more than 50 exhibits of sustainable
products, services and research by students, businesses, conservation
groups and public agencies at Metropolitan’s downtown Los Angeles
headquarters building.

“With climate change challenging water supplies and ecosystems
throughout the West, we are relying on innovative thinking and solutions
to ensure we stay on a sustainable path,” Metropolitan General Manager
Jeffrey Kightlinger said.

“Our colleges and universities are where many of these advancements will
germinate. Through the ECO Innovators Showcase, we’re looking to inspire
and encourage students to apply their academic thought to the real world
challenges we face,” he said.

UCLA’s Victoria Whitener was awarded the top prize in the individual
category for her project studying the safety of using treated wastewater
for agricultural irrigation in northern Mexico. Her project’s goal is to
increase the use of recycled water in farming.

A team from UC Riverside won top honors in the team category for their
project designing and installing biogas systems in Costa Rica, which
they hope to share with other countries. Through the project, students
helped rural families start small pig farms and use the pig waste and
biogas systems to produce gas for cooking and fertilizer for farming.

The winner of the ECO Spirit Award, given in memory of longtime Spring
Green organizer Nancy Kavin, was Sarah Snyder of Loma Linda University
for her project to reduce contamination in community water wells in Chad.

Second place in the team category went to a separate UC Riverside team
project to develop a more water-efficient scrubber that reduces ammonia
emissions in dairy facilities. Third place was claimed by UC Davis for a
solar-powered water treatment system that could be used in rural,
underserved communities to treat contaminated water either as it enters
homes or as it leaves faucets.

In the individual category, second place honors went to Rae Chye, of the
Art Center College of Design, for a project aimed at improving the
health of coral reefs, with third place going to Joshua Chang of OTIS
College of Art and Design for the design of a green skyscraper that
would produce all the energy it uses on-site.

In addition to the schools earning awards, other universities and
colleges participating in the ECO Innovators Showcase competition
included California State University Bakersfield; California State
University Long Beach; California State University, Los Angeles;
California State University, Northridge; Cal Poly Pomona; Chapman
University; Claremont Graduate University; Los Angeles City College;
Loyola Marymount University; Riverside STEM High School; Saddleback
College; San Diego State University; and University of Southern
California.

The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California is a
state-established cooperative of 26 cities and water agencies serving
nearly 19 million people in six counties. The district imports water
from the Colorado River and Northern California to supplement local
supplies, and helps its members to develop increased water conservation,
recycling, storage and other resource-management programs.

Contacts

Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
Rebecca Kimitch,
(213) 217-6450; (202) 821-5253, mobile
Bob Muir, (213) 217-6930;
(213) 324-5213, mobile