The market
Chlorine is one of the most abundant elements in the biosphere, representing approximately 2% of the ocean's water mass. Global production reached around 50 million tons, with an estimated turnover of $30 billion in 2010. Approximately 2.5 million tons, worth just under $1.5 billion, are used for water disinfection. More than 70% of wastewater treatment plants in North America, Europe, and Japan use chlorine in this process. These three markets account for more than two-thirds of the chlorine used for water treatment worldwide, but they have reached maturity and are not expected to grow. Chlorine consumption is increasing by 9% annually in the rest of the world.
The World Bank has embarked on a ten-year campaign for clean water with an investment budget of approximately $450 billion to make public drinking water accessible to at least half of the 1.1 billion citizens who currently lack it. China is the largest investor in water treatment plants, opting for large-scale facilities. India has chosen a different path, focusing on small-scale water treatment centers. An estimated 20,000 companies offer their services worldwide, and the growth prospects are enormous. Globally, only 14% of wastewater is treated; in South America and Africa, this figure drops to 2%. The average chemical cost of chlorine is $100 per cubic meter of drinking water. Siemens is the largest supplier of gaseous chlorine disinfection systems.
Innovation
Chlorine is the cheapest primary disinfectant currently available on the market. It has an unlimited shelf life and is readily available. However, the product is toxic. Exposure to more than four parts per million damages the lungs, and although transportation and handling are strictly regulated, accidents can occur. Unfortunately, chlorine is ineffective against Giardia (a parasite that causes intestinal infection) and Cryptosporidium (a microscopic parasite that causes diarrhea). Today, these are the two most common causes of waterborne diseases in North America. Recent studies have shown that chlorine use creates two byproducts (THMs and HAAs) that are known causes of cancer. Although ozone and ultraviolet filters have complemented chlorine in reducing health risks, their cost is considerably higher than that of chlorine, and therefore beyond the reach of the millions of small treatment plants that will need to be built in the near future.
Matías Sjögren Raab is a civil industrial engineer, a graduate of the Catholic University of Chile in Santiago, and complemented his scientific training with an MBA from the same institution. His exposure to agro-industrial projects brought him into contact with earthworms. Just as his first encounter with this animal inspired Tom Szaky to found his company TerraCycle (Cas 52), Matías realized he was facing an innovation that would allow him to escape the traditional trap of high public works costs. After research, he concluded that a biofilter made from earthworms would be ideally suited for developing small water treatment plants. Not only would it eliminate the need for chlorine, activated carbon, and flocculants, but he also saw an opportunity to generate additional revenue. This is one of the fundamental principles of the blue economy.
Matías then founded Biofiltro Ltda, a Chilean supplier of water treatment systems. He tested aerobic water treatment systems based on a worm filter that purify water without creating sludge. Even better, the biological sludge produced by traditional treatment systems can be treated on-site. Since biogas production from this sludge is only commercially viable on a large scale, the earthworm-based biofilter is positioned as an ideal alternative for the small-scale installations that represent the bulk of global demand. The company subsequently won the 2011 Green Start-Up of the Year award from Fundación Chile and UDD Ventures, the venture capital arm of the private Universidad del Desarrollo.
The first cash flow
The main competitor to the biofilter is activated sludge, which controls perhaps 95% of the market. However, the first two commercial-scale projects confirmed that the investment cost is 30% lower and, more importantly, that operating expenses have decreased by 70%, primarily due to a 66% reduction in electricity costs. Furthermore, on average, each cubic meter requires polymers and flocculating agents. None of this is necessary in the biofiltration system. Moreover, while each traditional wastewater treatment plant generates 500 grams of sludge per cubic meter treated, this system generates none. The system reduces labor requirements, allowing approximately 15,000 earthworms per square meter to work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
An additional benefit is that each cubic meter of treated water generates 60 grams of humus, a byproduct in increasing demand. While earthworms have been used medicinally in China, their use as an immune system stimulant in patients undergoing chemotherapy or infected with HIV has been recognized in various studies. The combination of reduced costs and increased revenue is a game-changer. This gives the simple, basic technology of biofilters strong market potential.
The opportunity
The market for small water treatment plants is booming. With increasing pressure to produce more drinking water, one of the obvious first sources is wastewater. In Chile, where 85% of community water is already treated, the wastewater treatment market is still worth $450 million. The industrial wastewater treatment market is exceeding €1.5 billion, driven by new regulations for wineries and salmon processing plants. The mining sector is another prime candidate for earthworm-based biofilter water treatment plants. Thanks to the versatility of earthworms, which quickly adapt to the different waste streams and toxicity levels characteristic of each industry, performance can be guaranteed without genetic engineering or chemical control.
Aristotle called earthworms the intestines of the Earth; now it seems that this animal, which most people cannot distinguish head from tail, is the Earth's source of water. While large-scale application would impose economies of scale that are not ideal for a biological process, small-scale processing offers an ideal opportunity for entrepreneurship. Matías is already expanding his operations throughout Latin America and establishing his first company in India, and we hope many will follow.
