File:April 18, 2013 - EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe Visits Student Designs on National Mall (8759098086).jpg

Landing a spot at the design expo not only gave students the chance to see the other creations, but it was also a chance for a personal visit from area environmental leaders.

Here, EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe and National Center for Environmental Research (NCER) Director, Jim Johnson, Jr. stop in to chat with a team member from the University of Utah.

Their project? A low-cost, sustainable solution for olive mill waste. Proven composting and trickling filtration techniques convert rural olive mill wastes into soil additives and dischargeable water.

Food production around the world often generates highly toxic waste products. This is a particular problem for small operations such as olive oil mills in the Mediterranean region. University of Utah students are working with a team from Birzeit University in the West Bank where disposal of untreated olive mill wastes generates odor, pollutes land and water and inhibits the growth of plants and animals. The students have developed a simple, cost-effective process to treat solid and liquid wastes generated by small-scale olive mills that will also provide treated irrigation water and fertilizer for the olive orchards.

University of Utah P3 page Olive Wastes Facebook Page

People Prosperity and the Planet: National Sustainable Design Expo on the National Mall 18-19 April 2013