KANSAS CITY, KS, April 5, 2010 -- EPA has awarded $69,971 to AlburtyLab Inc., of Drexel, Mo., to develop new technologies for improved drinking water monitoring. AlburtyLab intends to market this technology through its partner, InnovPrep LLC.
EPA Region 7 Administrator Karl Brooks said, "EPA is pleased to award these funds which will ensure that new technologies are developed to protect water resources. Innovation by small businesses is key to helping us reach that goal."
The funds were given to AlburtyLab Inc., under EPA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. SBIR was established to ensure that new technologies are developed to solve priority environmental problems. EPA is one of 11 federal agencies that participate in the program, enacted in 1982 to strengthen the role of small businesses in federal research and development, create jobs, and promote technical innovation in the United States.
There are approximately 25 million small businesses in the United States today. As the leading source of employment growth, these firms have generated 60 to 80 percent of net new jobs over the past decade and are responsible for developing most of the country's new technologies. To be eligible to participate in SBIR, a small business must have fewer than 500 employees, and at least 51 percent of the business must be owned by U.S. citizens.
EPA oversees the protection of water quality and public health. The Agency supports high-quality research by the nation's leading scientists and engineers that will improve the scientific basis for national environmental decisions.
Visit EPA's SBIR web site: http://www.epa.gov/ncer/sbir
A list of all SBIR awards and more information about each project are available at: http://www.epa.gov/ncer/sbir/10awards/
###
