PHOENIX: Artificial intelligence has impacted every facet of daily life, even in ways we are blind to. Examples include automated services and self-driving cars. Artificial intelligence in Phoenix is assisting the city from below.
The Israeli AI startup Kando and the city’s Water Services Department initiated a six-month wastewater treatment pilot program in October.
The amount and method of wastewater treatment in Phoenix were misrepresented in a previous version of this article. Although this story has been updated, users of earlier versions are advised to apply the update available here.
The goal of the wastewater intelligence platform Kando Pulse, according to Guy Cohen, chief product officer at Kando, is to “improve people’s lives and the environment.” The technology collects data from wastewater using sensors, then converts that data into insights to find any abnormalities in the sewage.
These anomalies, which are mostly the result of illicit dumping at industrial sites, can range from high temperatures to pH problems. Fuels, solvents, and oils are examples of pollutants that can harm wastewater treatment plants and pipelines, resulting in increased time, energy, and financial costs for the city to clean and treat the sewer system.
Phoenix’s assistant director of water services, Nazario Prieto, described the technology as “adding eyes through our sewer mains 24/7.” When problems occur, the sensors can notify city officials nearly instantly, which speeds up the process of identifying the perpetrators of illegal dumping.
As opposed to three or five days from now, it allows us the chance to react, according to Christine Nunez, Phoenix’s coordinator of environmental projects. Additionally, it allows Nunez and her staff at the 23rd Avenue Wastewater Treatment Plant additional time to redirect the material, potentially affecting just one plant.
Phoenix: Pioneering Water Conservation Experiments
Despite Arizona’s protracted drought, Phoenix has taken the initiative to construct systems and infrastructure in order to meet its 2050 target of having a clean, dependable 100-year water supply.
To achieve this goal, the city has implemented wastewater recycling and groundwater replenishment.
97% of Phoenix’s wastewater is recycled once it has been treated and tested. It is then used for subterranean water resource replenishment, irrigation, and cooling the Palo Verde Generating Station, and Tres Rio Wetlands.
“So, no fresh water has emerged? We are all repeatedly utilizing the same water,” Prieto remarked. “What’s happening right now is that we have the technology and capacity to accelerate the process that the Earth goes through naturally.”
According to Prieto, the purpose of the Kando Pulse devices is to ensure that “wastewater is as clean as it can possibly be” before it enters the wastewater treatment plants.
The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality would soon need sewer monitoring, he continued, and these devices will help the Water Services Department achieve those requirements.
For a trial project that began in October, Phoenix’s Water Services Department and artificial intelligence startup Kando teamed together. It is anticipated that Kando Pulse devices will track data in the wastewater system and contribute to cleaner effluent. Photographed in Phoenix on November 8, 2023. Ellie Willard/Cronkite News provided the photo.
For a trial project that began in October, Phoenix’s Water Services Department and artificial intelligence startup Kando teamed together. It is anticipated that Kando Pulse devices will track data in the wastewater system and contribute to cleaner effluent. Photographed in Phoenix on November 8, 2023. Ellie Willard/Cronkite News provided the photo.
Leading the way in wastewater innovation in the country, Phoenix has 16 Kando Pulse devices put in sewer drains, making it the fourth city in the US to use the technology.
According to Jeff Schultz, an employee of RDH Environmental Services, a business that has helped the city install Kando Pulse sensors, the number of devices put in the city will double in the next six to twelve months.
According to Prieto and Nunez, the city is giving creative approaches to help conserve water top priority and is excited about the new opportunities that will arise from developing artificial intelligence and technology.
“We will require that to guarantee that our wastewater is as pure as possible, offer a superior product, and safeguard the environment,” Prieto stated.