

STAGE ONE
THE GEORGE BARLEY WATER PRIZE
Stage One of the competition was open to everyone, from top-tier universities doing cutting edge research to inventors working in their garage. 104 teams entered ideas, and offered their insights and inspirations on why they decided to embark on solving one of the most vexing challenges facing our planet.
In this stage the prize purse was $35,000 competitors were judged on
1. Performance indicators
2. Experiment description
3. Environmental outcome assessment
4. Overall presentation
Competitors were scored on
1. Phosphorus Removal
2. Environmental Sustainability
3. Overall Presentation

STAGE ONE
THE GEORGE BARLEY WATER PRIZE
Stage One of the competition was open to everyone, from top-tier universities doing cutting edge research to inventors working in their garage. 104 teams entered ideas, and offered their insights and inspirations on why they decided to embark on solving one of the most vexing challenges facing our planet.
In this stage the prize purse was $35,000 competitors were judged on
1. Performance indicators
2. Experiment description
3. Environmental outcome assessment
4. Overall presentation
Competitors were scored on
1. Phosphorus Removal
2. Environmental Sustainability
3. Overall Presentation



GRAND
CHALLENGE
THE GEORGE BARLEY WATER PRIZE
The final ‘Grand Challenge’ stage of the George Barley Water Prize will be the robust testing of contestants under field conditions in the Greater Everglades to validate whether these leading technologies can remove phosphorus from the Kissimmee River or a comparable water body under real conditions at significantly lower cost than currently possible.
The 9 Pilot Phase teams will be narrowed down to the final four, who will move on to the final stage of the competition. Advancers will be announced in October 2018, in Toronto, during Canada’s Water Innovation Week. While Stage 3 asked teams to perform through snowmelt conditions, Stage 4 will require teams to demonstrate their ability to perform in subtropical conditions. Four teams will receive continuous flow, averaging 1 million gallons per day (gpd), with a variable spike of 4 million gallons per day, over the course of 14 months.
A Grand Challenge winner will have demonstrated endurance in a range temperatures, proving their technology is globally applicable. With the support of the State of Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection and the St. John’s River Water Management District, the Grand Challenge will be hosted on the banks of Lake Jesup, in Oviedo, Florida.
In this stage the prize purse is a
$10 Million Grand Prize
$250,000 Secondary Prize
$170,000 Phoenix Prize
competitors are judged on
1. TP results from grand stage testing
2. Cost calculations
3. Background water characteristics
4. Waste disposal plan
5. Environmental outcome assessment
6. By-product recovery income plan
7. Twenty-page scalability plan
Competitors were scored on
1. Phosphorus Removal
2. Environmental Sustainability
3. Overall Presentation

GRAND
CHALLENGE
THE GEORGE BARLEY WATER PRIZE
The final ‘Grand Challenge’ stage of the George Barley Water Prize will be the robust testing of contestants under field conditions in the Greater Everglades to validate whether these leading technologies can remove phosphorus from the Kissimmee River or a comparable water body under real conditions at significantly lower cost than currently possible.
The 9 Pilot Phase teams will be narrowed down to the final four, who will move on to the final stage of the competition. Advancers will be announced in October 2018, in Toronto, during Canada’s Water Innovation Week. While Stage 3 asked teams to perform through snowmelt conditions, Stage 4 will require teams to demonstrate their ability to perform in subtropical conditions. Four teams will receive continuous flow, averaging 1 million gallons per day (gpd), with a variable spike of 4 million gallons per day, over the course of 14 months.
A Grand Challenge winner will have demonstrated endurance in a range temperatures, proving their technology is globally applicable. With the support of the State of Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection and the St. John’s River Water Management District, the Grand Challenge will be hosted on the banks of Lake Jesup, in Oviedo, Florida.
In this stage the prize purse is a
$10 Million Grand Prize
$250,000 Secondary Prize
$170,000 Phoenix Prize
competitors are judged on
1. TP results from grand stage testing
2. Cost calculations
3. Background water characteristics
4. Waste disposal plan
5. Environmental outcome assessment
6. By-product recovery income plan
7. Twenty-page scalability plan
Competitors were scored on
1. Phosphorus Removal
2. Environmental Sustainability
3. Overall Presentation



STAGE ONE
THE GEORGE BARLEY WATER PRIZE
Stage One of the competition was open to everyone, from top-tier universities doing cutting edge research to inventors working in their garage. 104 teams entered ideas, and offered their insights and inspirations on why they decided to embark on solving one of the most vexing challenges facing our planet.
In this stage the prize purse was $35,000 competitors were judged on
1. Performance indicators
2. Experiment description
3. Environmental outcome assessment
4. Overall presentation
Competitors were scored on
1. Phosphorus Removal
2. Environmental Sustainability
3. Overall Presentation



THE EVERGLADES
& CLIMATE CHANGE
Everglades restoration will make South Florida more resilient
to the harmful impacts of sea level rise and climate change.

SIGN-UP TO RECEIVE CONTENT REGARDING CLIMATE CHANGE & EVERGLADES RESTORATION.
EVERGLADES RESTORATION
will mitigate the effects of climate change by:





1) SUPPORTING OUR ECONOMY
Florida's environment is its economy. Climate change could have a devastating impact on Florida's unique and valuable environment. Tourism, real estate and recreation are essential industries that depend on a healthy Everglades. Everglades restoration will create 45,000 jobs and yield a 4:1 return on investment by rehabilitating the Everglades, South Florida's greatest tool in mitigating climate change harm.
2) PROTECTING CARBON SEQUESTRATION
At present, the Everglades is often deprived of freshwater in the dry season, and overdried areas of the Everglades become an emitter of carbon through fire or peat soil oxidation. By hydrating this massive peatland, Everglades restoration will help protect the carbon stored in peat soils and maximize carbon sequestration capacity across this 3 million acre ecosystem.
3) SAFEGUARDING DRINKING WATER
A drier Everglades and rising seas, due to climate change, threaten South Florida's drinking water wells. Everglades restoration will slow saltwater intrusion into South Florida's wells and protect the freshwater supply desperately needed by South Florida's growing population.
4) PROVIDING STORM SURGE RESILIENCE
Climate change is harming unique environments like mangroves around the coast of the Everglades. Mangroves provide invaluable environmental benefits including stabilizing the shoreline, reducing flooding from storm surges, and protecting habitats.
5) AIDING SPECIES AND HABITATS IN ADAPTING TO CLIMATE CHANGE
Increasing temperatures and sea level rise are impacting a variety of habitats within the Everglades, which is home to over 2,000 species of flora and fauna. Everglades restoration is the only measure that will increase the southern freshwater flow needed to stabilize these critical habitats which support world-renowned biodiversity. South Florida is home to two national parks, Everglades National Park and Biscayne National Park, which are among the most vulnerable to climate change.
THE IMPACT OF AMERICA'S EVERGLADES
THE EVERGLADES
& CARBON SEQUESTRATION
The Everglades is composed of a variety of habitats that play essential roles in absorbing and retaining carbon. These habitats require freshwater to remain healthy and functional. By increasing flows of freshwater, restoration will help conserve these unique habitats and prevent the release of carbon to the atmosphere.
The carbon and greenhouse emissions equivalencies, per the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of the carbon already sequestered in three integral Everglades habitats.

MANGROVES IN EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK
-
19.9-24.1 MILLION HOMES' energy use for one year, or
-
189.9-230.3 BILLION POUNDS of coal burned.

THE CENTRAL EVERGLADES
( water conservation areas )
-
670.7 BILLION POUNDS of coal burned, or
-
131.5 MILLION PASSENGER VEHICLES driven for one year.

SEAGRASS BEDS IN FLORIDA BAY
-
9.3-10.7 BILLION GALLONS of oil consumed, or
-
20.6-23.8 MILLION PASSENGER VEHICLES driven for one year.