Innovations that enable water reuse/recycling are core to the Climate Adaptation technology stack

Innovations that address water scarcity are a prime focus of VCs focused on early-stage and mid-market companies in Climate Adaptation Technology ('CAT'), including testing, monitoring, data analytics, predictive analytics, AI machine learning, and treatment.

Whilst the 'data' side in this vertical is compelling for VCs, for obvious reasons, Mazarine is also bullish on less 'sexy' innovations in treatment that are able to bring the cost of reuse/recycling down so that everyone can afford it. Repeat, so that everyone can afford it, translating into substantial social impact.

Some key water reuse/recycling treatment technologies we are bullish on include:

• Activated Sludge Process: This is a biological treatment process where microorganisms break down organic matter in the presence of oxygen.
• Membrane Filtration: Technologies like reverse osmosis (RO) and ultrafiltration use semi-permeable membranes to remove contaminants and impurities from water.
• UV Disinfection: Ultraviolet (UV) light is used to disinfect water by inactivating microorganisms, preventing them from reproducing.
• Ozonation: Ozone is a powerful oxidizing agent that can be used to disinfect water and break down organic and inorganic pollutants.
• Biological Treatment: Processes like biofiltration and constructed wetlands use natural biological processes to treat wastewater.
• Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs): These processes involve the generation of highly reactive hydroxyl radicals to break down and remove contaminants.
• Ion Exchange: This method involves exchanging ions in the water with ions attached to a solid resin, effectively removing impurities.
• Chemical Coagulation and Flocculation: Chemicals are added to the water to form larger particles that can be more easily removed through settling or filtration.
• Electrochemical Treatment: Technologies like electrocoagulation use electrical charges to destabilize and aggregate contaminants for easier removal.
• Sand Filtration: Water is passed through layers of sand to trap and remove suspended particles.

Isn't this just water-tech? While all of these might look like 'water-tech', and therefore a 'hard pass' for most Climate-tech checkbooks, Mazarine, and our CAT investor syndicate, see these innovations as Climate-tech, but not on the decarb/netzero 'side', rather, on the adaptation 'side' - enabling industry and society to deal with water risk in our new climate reality.

How is boring old 'sand filtration' Climate-tech? Ok, some opportunities are admittedly more compelling than others. Nevertheless, sand filtration in water treatment provides a low-cost physical barrier to remove suspended solids, debris, and other contaminants from the water. Yes, boring, and unlikely to be VC-backable, but might be part of the reuse/recycling solution for some communities.

The CAT 100: As of November 2023, the "CAT100: Water-risk" includes 9 companies with innovations that effectively bring the cost of water reuse/ recycling down so that more communities, companies, and farmers can afford to do it.

Why is bringing the cost down important? While the answer here might be obvious, many are promoting 'new' sources of water like desalination and atmospheric water generation as the future. While we need an 'all of the above' approach to water scarcity, a big 'wedge' in the addressing scarcity pie is reusing the same drop of water over and over and over, which, thanks to technology, is becoming much cheaper than creating 'new' water out of the sea or sky.

The combination of these above technologies in various treatment trains allows for the effective removal of contaminants, ensuring that recycled water meets the required quality standards for its intended use, whether it be for agricultural irrigation, industrial processes, or even potable water supply in some cases. The specific technology used depends on factors such as the initial quality of the wastewater, the desired level of treatment, and the regulatory standards for the intended reuse.

Mazarine welcomes discussions with those who share our view that technology companies, and the maverick entrepreneurs behind them, are a big part of how humanity gets out ahead of our climate-change-induced water risks, like scarcity.