Water Technology Innovation Cluster to Start with Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana
Small business meets water protection in an effort to connect all the players who will promote economic growth and technological innovation.
Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator, Lisa P. Jackson, and U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Administrator Karen Mills traveled to Cincinnati, Ohio to announce a new collaborative effort called the : rain gardens (pdf) that will receive stormwater runoff from roads, roofs, and parking lots. Pollutants and nutrients in stormwater runoff are removed by rain garden vegetation and soils through biological and physical processes.
Based on the history of EPA’s laboratory in Cincinnati that conducts water research, Jackson selected this region to launch federal support of WTIC. Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana have a strong history of water research and water technology innovation. A large portion of the jobs created will be based in the region to assist with research and development as needed. WTIC and the region intend to use these assets as a platform for building a technology-driven economy that enhances environmental policy development, and helps protect human health and the environment at the regional, national, and international level.
The WTIC steering committee is the only formal cluster entity leading the planning and development. The committee is developing a framework and operating structure that will guide WTIC’s makeup and operating processes. The intention is for WTIC to flourish under its own power, with EPA as one of many participants collaborating to develop technologies to solve environmental challenges.