New Clean Air Technology Creates Jobs

McGuinty Government Helps BIOREM Create Jobs, Fight Air Pollution

Windows rolled up. That’s how Darren Malhman used to drive in to work. As the senior operator for the Ontario Clean Water Agency, Darren works at the Preston Wastewater Treatment Plant, and the closer he got to work, the more foul the air became.

But all that has changed since BIOREM Technologies Inc. installed its Unity technology.

The odour has now all but disappeared.

BIOREM designs and manufactures environmentally friendly air pollution control systems that remove odours and harmful contaminants from the air. Specially formulated particles are used in the biofiltration process, and promote the growth of bacteria and other organisms that clean the air by feeding on odour-causing chemicals.

Peter Bruijns

According to Peter Bruijns, president and CEO of BIOREM, “We can deliver 95 and in some cases up to 99 per cent total odour removal, which essentially makes odour non-detectable.”

That’s good news for neighbourhood communities like Preston that find themselves near wastewater treatment facilities, industrial complexes or municipal composting sites.

In North America alone, more than 14,000 wastewater treatment plants (including 465 sewage treatment plants in Ontario) require air filtration.

On top of that, BIOREM is looking to the growing global demand from international markets like China, the Middle East and South America.

For BIOREM, the Preston demonstration site will provide the data the company needs to introduce the Unity platform to major markets worldwide.

Getting the full-scale unit prototype into development at the Preston site required a lot of hard work from BIOREM and a significant investment from Ontario’s Innovation Demonstration Fund. The fund helps innovative Ontario companies commercialize promising new clean technologies by supporting them at the pilot or demonstration project stage. The pilot projects help the companies attract the customers and investors they need to move their technology to the global marketplace.

The $1.2 million investment in BIOREM will support two demonstration projects, plus the company anticipates hiring another 27 employees over the next five years.

Peter Bruijns says, “BIOREM is going to be a growing company in the province of Ontario. We are profitable, we are international and we are expanding our successful base and we are going to be creating high quality, green jobs right here in Ontario.”

Meanwhile, Derek Webb, Vice-President of Business Development, will tell you that working at BIOREM is more than just a job. “After 14 years at Biorem, I still enjoy coming to work every morning. I get a lot of job satisfaction driving into work each day seeing children playing and people outside enjoying their communities. It is a nice feeling knowing we’ve had a direct impact on keeping the air we all breathe safe and clean.”