Liquid Assets

Rapidly warming surface water temperatures in lakes around the world are threatening freshwater supplies and ecosystems. That's according to a 25-year study of 235 lakes on six continents.

Greater Cincinnati's Water Technology Innovation Cluster Confluence is putting on a private summit Wednesday to address ways of keeping harmful algae blooms out of the local water supply.

Just this August a toxic algal bloom in Lake Erie near the Toledo water intake prevented nearly 500,000 residents from getting their drinking water for three days.

Think of it as a big laboratory where new water technology is tested. The EPA's Testing and Evaluation Center, right next to the Metropolitan Sewer District, played host to a group of people who wanted to figure out better ways to solve their water problems.

Richard Seline  with the Texas Water Cluster Initiative and others are now armed with new information after their visit to Cincinnati. He says, "You kind of see around the country who's doing what cool things with technology."

More than 780 million people worldwide lack access to clean drinking water and 2.6 billion don't have access to proper sanitation. For local water technology companies those numbers are a call to action and a major business opportunity.

The most recent statistics show the Tri-State has the highest concentration of water technology patents per capita in the United States. As of October, 2010, the number stood at 687, according to the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Each day people from Lima to Cincinnati get their drinking water from an underground river known as the Great Miami Buried Valley Aquifer. It encompasses about 136 square miles and contains 1.5 trillion gallons of water

In fact, 1.6 million people rely on water from the Great Miami Aquifer, including companies like Procter and Gamble and the region's growing number of breweries.

Richard Dube is Vice President of Brewing and Quality for Christian Moerlein and he knows a thing or two about needing water.

The Greater Cincinnati Water Works (GCWW) will add yet another layer of treatment in October to make your drinking water safer. This technology and others like it are a model for the world and that's why Cincinnati is attempting to become a global leader in the area of water technology.

You might say we have some of the cleanest drinking water around. The Greater Cincinnati Water Works treats it with five key steps:

By the year 2020 the water industry, including treatment, management and infrastructure, could be worth $1 trillion globally. Cincinnati, armed with experts, new technology, and a reputation as a worldwide water leader, is looking to cash in.