EPA Awards P3 Grants To College Teams For Environmental Innovation

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded grants to six college teams across the country, including Drexel University, who participated in the 7th annual EPA People, Prosperity and the Planet P3 Award Competition held at the National Sustainable Design Expo on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
            A team of students from Drexel University will design a roof system using a combination of light weight materials that can grow and sustain roof vegetation while reducing the heat island effect and harmful water runoff.  Currently, most green roof systems are considerably heavier and require structural reinforcement of an existing structure.
            Applying a Lightweight Green Roof System to a building can assist in managing storm water runoff, decreasing heat gain, yielding energy savings, and mitigating the heat island effect.
            Honorable mention went to Lehigh University for an arsenic removal and containment technology.
            The P3 award competition and National Sustainable Design Expo were a part of the 2011 EPA Earth Day celebration event April 16-17. Since 2004, the P3 annual competition has provided a platform for teams to showcase their sustainable projects designed to protect the environment, encourage economic growth, and use natural resources more efficiently. These projects provide innovative, cutting-edge sustainable solutions to worldwide environmental problems.
            "EPA’s P3 Award winners are the environmental and economic future of our nation,” said Paul T. Anastas, assistant administrator for the EPA's Office of Research and Development.  “Their sustainable innovations, from agriculture to architecture to energy production, keep our nation competitive and protect our health and the environment.”
            After an initial peer review process, this year winners were selected from 55 competing teams following two days of judging by a panel of national experts convened by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Each P3 award-winning team receives a grant of up to up to $75,000 to further develop the design, implement it in the field, or move it to the marketplace.
            For more information, visit the P3 Award Competition webpage.


4/25/2011

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