In order to keep New Zealand’s water clean, tech company Hydroxsys raises $3 million and partners up with University of Auckland and the New Zealand Product Accelerator.

In recent studies by the United Nations, by 2035 the world will be 40 percent short of freshwater requirements.

Another study by World Bank says that 80 percent of all industrial wastewater enters the environment without any form of treatment.

Despite all these predictions, the industry is still seeing outdated practices.

Investors in the water industry are now looking at companies that are enhancing wastewater recovery through less carbon intensive methods, the ability to reuse at scale while being cost effective.

And the Auckland-based clean tech start-up Hydroxsys is all about that.

Using patented membrane filtration technology, Hydroxsys is recovering clean water from waste allowing water molecules to pass through their novel membrane system that rejects suspended solids such as fats, oils and grease.

“Our purpose is to secure the future of water, and we aim to help customers globally recover and reuse one billion m3 of water in the next 20 years,” says Chris Macbeth, CEO of Hydroxsys.

Hydroxsys’ patented technology has helped them in a recent seed round of raising $3 million.

Read more: Decarbonising start-up raises $23 million

Alongside their recent funding, the company has also been able to partner up with the University of Auckland and the New Zealand Product Accelerator to further develop and commercialise their technology.

With University of Auckland’s years of research, Hydroxsys expects that this will help advance their technology.

“Partnering with the University of Auckland and the New Zealand Product Accelerator will advance our strategy of helping industry reduce the volume of wastewater at source before it reaches municipal treatment systems or waterways,” says  Macbeth.

“In addition to the financial and reputational benefits for individual customers, this will have a positive knock-on effect in the social chain encompassing environmental and human health, infrastructure maintenance costs and carbon emissions.”

Working alongside the New Zealand Product Accelerator will also help reduce the cost and carbon impact of their existing systems, helping to deliver humanitarian water solutions to communities where access to safe drinking water is limited.

“Hydroxsys’ membrane technology is highly innovative and scalable, and meets the growing demand internationally for a ‘whole of environment’ approach to sustainability,” adds Mark Taylor, Co-director of the New Zealand Product Accelerator.

“These research resources and specialised skills will speed up the deployment of Hydroxsys wastewater solution on farms, vineyards, dairy processing and other industrial settings throughout New Zealand and the world.”