You don’t have to go far to find a fight over water. When it comes to the top 10 problems we face in the world today clean water nears the top of the list. Whether it’s California or India, water is an issue. Whether it’s Scottsdale, AZ, or the beaches of Japan, water concerns are everywhere. We all wish there was an easy answer and to be honest many are surprised there isn’t one.
David Jones, inventor, and owner of the Water Whale technology might just be the genie in the bottle we’re looking for. For decades, author and expert David Jones has been perfecting his system for water reclamation. It may be just in time, as Senate Bill 1383 brings new regulations for California.
We learn that the “Water Whale” is designed to be used as a medium to separate ice from drinks, collect ice in the first chamber, melt it, and filter it while chlorinating this water using their patented process. Because the unit treats the water it receives with chlorine, it is in fact a mini water treatment system, similar to a swimming pool. Presenting this same water after treatment to a storage tank, where it is dispersed into toilet or lawn applications. The system is multifunctional. It also contains the ability to recycle liquids from multiple input sources, such as shower water, melting ice water, or roof runoff water.
David breaks water into different types including drinkable as well as non-drinkable but still usable. He remains shocked to this day that we use clean water for toilets. “Here on the 3rd rock from the sun, we have gotten in the habit of peeing in freshwater. Long ago I realized the concept of urinating in freshwater is very selfish and privileged…it just made sense to recycle ice water. It is not necessary to pee in freshwater!”
Jones wants to see businesses use the Water Whale in 2 major ways. In fact, it’s not just a potential solution to water issues, but also the recycling of other items. In restaurants, it all begins with how items are disposed of after your meal, so the goal is to separate the edible and inedible matter, divert organic waste from restaurants and feed animals with it. Then the water can be diverted to the toilets or for lawn and landscaping maintenance applications.
Save the Ice and Separate the Liquids
Let’s look closer at the first step, handling the ice and liquids. The first way is managing the liquids, including ice and specifically to separate the liquids from the other garbage, keeping it out of the black-liner trash bags. Jones says “When Americans eat out, we each throw away half a pound of water, usually in the form of ice. This represents half the contents of a 16 oz of beverage. Ice cubes are fresh water, and with this system now it can go toward your lawn or your toilet.” Water and other liquids can all be dumped into the Water Whale.
Garbage Acid Rain
“Our failed system of dealing with waste is causing pollution to go into our landfills, it is poison to the environment. Animal and vegetable waste forms a toxin unknown to man. The liquids merge with all of this matter and create a poison that leaks out into our Earth in landfills. It’s an excitotoxin.” This is what Jones calls “garbage acid rain.” He says that “all this pollution on the earth is connected, it is killing the bees, and the earthworms.”
Jones cautions, “Once it’s all dumped into a trash bag together, the elements within can no longer be separated.” On the other hand, once the water is out, the rest of the waste is recyclable or manageable in some way.
The ways to collect and manage water are customizable with the Water Whale. The inputs and outputs can be customized, so each restaurant can have it work for their setup, depending on their ice and water usage. Places with a salad bar, for example, are wasting more water in the form of ice, and Jones claims his machine can easily be configured for situations like this, too. This system can also do rain barrel collection. All potable water can be collected and managed and then distributed for other uses.
The Water Whale system can help businesses improve their recycling efforts by possibly providing a more efficient way to sort and process recyclable materials. This ensures that more materials are diverted from the landfill and put back into the recycling stream. These efforts are now more crucial than ever because of Senate Bill 1383 for managing waste in California.
Senate Bill 1383 requires that residents and businesses divert organic material away from landfill. Organic byproducts like food scraps, food-soiled paper products, compostable paper, and yard trimmings make up a large portion of the waste that is dumped in landfills each year. “This machine,” says Jones, “can make a huge difference in restaurant settings, where large volumes of food waste are generated daily. By using the Water Whale, restaurants could significantly reduce their waste disposal costs and increase their recycling rates. The system separates food waste from other waste streams, making it easier to compost or digest, and reducing the amount of waste sent to landfills.”
Reducing Contamination is Key to Recycling
The Water Whale system can help businesses reduce contamination in their waste streams by providing a clear and easy-to-use system for separating materials. This reduces the risk of cross-contamination and helps ensure that materials are properly disposed of or recycled.
“This machine allows the city municipalities to get this water back, clean it, and reuse it for other purposes. By utilizing this machine, your restaurant will be in compliance with SB1383, and the machine will monitor how much water that passes through for reporting purposes.” This is critical because the government measures in metric tons how much waste a city has. All of this is being monitored more closely now due to SB1383 and based on this State Bill, the contribution to city landfills must be reduced by 75%.
Perhaps this innovation can be a solution to the woes of water that Californians are facing. Not only could this help with the water issues we all wish to solve, but it seems it could maybe even minimize what is sent to landfills.
David Jones is the Founder and CEO of his non-profit One Man’s Trash, OMTsystem.org. See more at thewaterwhale.com