AquaCare International, Inc. (AquaCare) is a minority-owned, full-service provider of equipment and services dedicated to the development and implementation of innovative technologies for the treatment of waste and wastewater. AquaCare, located in Morris, Minnesota, is a sister company to West Central Environmental Consultants, Inc. (WCEC).

SBEACR™ (single basin extended aeration cyclic reactor) was originally designed to treat municipal and industrial wastewater and water from aquaculture facilities. AquaCare purchased the SBEACR™ technology in the summer of 1996 from an engineering firm in the state of Washington. The SBEACR™ technology is the keystone of our complete waste management concept. AquaCare employs WCEC personnel for installation and system maintenance.

After purchasing the technology, AquaCare engineers modified it for use with other wastewater applications. Currently AquaCare is focusing on two industries involved in food production: agriculture and food processing. We offer our clients full waste and/or wastewater management services, which include the design, installation, and operation of turnkey treatment systems.

AquaCare serves as a single source for managing the cost of water and/or wastewater. We constantly review the ways in which water is used in various industries and look for ways to save them money.

The SBEACR™ is a biological system that can be operated under aerobic or anoxic conditions to treat wastewater. The SBEACR™ uses the same type of biological organisms as thousands of activated sludge wastewater treatment systems worldwide. However, the SBEACR™ is more efficient, cost-effective, and has a smaller footprint than any other system currently available. The system maximizes organic and nutrient reduction by utilizing bacteria specific to the nutrients available in the wastewater and by varying and adjusting retention time.

Between 1993 and 1996, nine SBEACR™ systems were installed at commercial developments in Mexico and two were implemented at food processing facilities in the state of Washington. The Mexican projects, primarily domestic sewage treatment facilities, are currently running at 10% of the cost of conventional activated sludge systems. The systems in Washington have been operating similarly, and are exceeding design expectations.

AquaCare and WCEC installed a SBEACR™ system at a family-operated hog farm near Raymond, Minnesota during the spring of 1998. Another system will be fully-functioning at a beef processing plant in Buffalo Lake, Minnesota by September 1, 1998.

Visit their Web site at www.aquacareinternational.com for further information.