VANCOUVER, BC — Ostara Nutrient Recovery Technologies Inc., based here, recently launched commercial production of Crystal Green, which the company describes as the world’s first slow-release, renewable and environmentally safe fertilizer.

Crystal Green is a clean by-product of a revolutionary, new wastewater treatment technology developed at the University of British Columbia, and commercialized by Ostara whereby the phosphorus and ammonia are recovered from wastewater to create a highly effective fertilizer, said the news release.

Crystal Green is the only slow-release fertilizer with a combination of nitrogen, phosphorus and magnesium (5-28-0+10Mg). Compared to conventional fertilizer manufacturing, which involves mining phosphorus and using chemicals to extract the phosphate rock, the production of Crystal Green is not polluting to the atmosphere as it is made from a recycled resource – nutrients extracted from wastewater.

Also, due to its slow release properties, this phosphorus fertilizer is absorbed by plants over the entire growing season with one application, meaning it will not leach into adjacent waterways, which damages natural ecosystems and is a pressing environmental concern, the company claimed.

Phillip Abrary, President and CEO of Ostara, said the environmental advantages of Crystal Green result from its production process and from its zero impact on the water table.

“Unlike fertilizers mined or derived from hydrocarbon sources, Crystal Green is produced from a recycled and renewable product that is safe to use on plant material,” said Abrary. “In addition, the product’s slow release characteristics provide a source of phosphorus that will not leach into the water table.

“Compared to conventional fertilizer manufacturing, the production of Crystal Green is highly energy-efficient and is produced without adding greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. No other commercially available fertilizer has renewable and environmental safety attributes comparable to Crystal Green.”

Crystal Green has been proven in industry and university trials to have commercial benefits for applications in turf, nursery, and specialty agriculture industries, as well as in fisheries and silviculture. The fertilizer is being produced in suburban Portland at the Durham Advanced Wastewater Treatment Facility in Tigard, OR, by Clean Water Services, the water resource management utility serving more than 500,000 customers in urban Washington County west of Portland. The product is being marketed throughout North America and Europe by Ostara.

Ostara’s nutrient recovery process has been implemented on a pilot scale at more than a dozen municipalities in North America, the UK, Asia and the Middle East. Nutrient Recovery facilities using Ostara’s technology will begin operating later this year at wastewater treatment plants in Suffolk, VA, and York, PA, providing an environmental and cost-effective solution to ensuring that unwanted polluting nutrients are removed from the treatment plants’ wastewater stream, ultimately protecting the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The discharge of nutrients - such as nitrogen and phosphorus - into Chesapeake Bay causes algae blooms that choke surrounding marine life and cause eutrophication, identified by the 2005 United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment as one of the most significant environmental issues facing the planet.

Ostara Nutrient Recovery Technologies Inc., founded in 2005, is a Vancouver-based company commercializing proprietary technologies that recover resources from wastewater and recycle them into valuable products.