Engineering researchers use sensors to track water pollutants

Institute of Technology researchers are using a network of five wireless sensors stationed near the Twin Cities' Minnehaha Creek to monitor” in real time” when and where storms wash road salt, lawn chemicals, and other pollutants into area waterways. Civil engineering professors William Arnold and Miki Hondzo, who are leading the study, hope to have 100 stations in the next five to 10 years. An expanded system could help urban designers tailor their plans to minimize the runoff of chemicals in local watersheds during a rain, or allow farmers to decide the best times to apply fertilizers. Read more>>

June 2, 2009

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