Koch Fertilizer Enid LLC has received the first Oklahoma Water Resources Board Water for 2060 Excellence Award for its approach to reclaim water at the newly expanded plant.
The award was presented this morning at the annual Oklahoma Governor’s Water Conference.
OWRB’s Water for 2060 initiative is the first in the nation to establish a statewide goal of consuming no more fresh water in 2060 than what was consumed in 2010.
With the expansion of the nitrogen fertilizer plant, a newly constructed 26,000-square-foot water treatment facility saves more than four million gallons of drinking water per day.
“We are thrilled to receive this award, and I want to recognize our Koch Fertilizer team as well as our partners in this project, the city of Enid,” Koch Fertilizer Plant Manager Marc Hoss said. “Water previously discharged from the city is now reclaimed through the Koch Fertilizer water treatment facility to be used in our production processes.
“This is an ideal example of how public and private institutions can work together for a cleaner environment and more efficient use of valuable resources.”
The award was created to recognize entities making contributions to promoting and implementing water use efficiency and conservation of the state’s fresh water resources.
“If Oklahoma is to achieve the goal established under the Water for 2060 Act of 2012 — consuming no more fresh water in 2060 than consumed in 2010 — it will require large-scale innovative water reclamation projects like Koch Fertilizer’s Enid plant,” OWRB Executive Director Julie Cunningham said. “The Water for 2060 Advisory Council congratulates Koch Fertilizer on this well-deserved honor.”
During the design phase of the $1.3 billion expansion of the plant, engineers estimated significant increases in the amount of needed water to support the additional fertilizer production.
Technology from Koch Membrane Systems — a Koch Fertilizer affiliate, and a developer and manufacturer of membrane water filtration systems — is central to the project, which is one of the largest industrial water reuse projects in the history of Oklahoma, officials have said.
The plant’s new water treatment facility can process up to eight million gallons of reclaimed water per day.
“Water is the lifeblood of a community like Enid,” Enid Regional Development Alliance Executive Director Brent Kisling said. “Without this project, millions of gallons of valuable reuse water would be lost down Skeleton Creek near Enid. Koch Fertilizer’s water treatment facility allows the production of quality products with reuse water, which leaves the city of Enid with abundant, clean drinking water for our citizens and businesses.”
Story provided by: Enid News & Eagle
Written by: Jessica Miller
