Douglas Dodd, founder and president of EnWaste Recovery Systems, a pioneer in the development of environmental silver recovery in the U.S., hopes to expand his patented filtration system to Eastern Europe.

Dodd said his initial meetings with Ukrainian government officials in May revealed “significant interest” in using the company’s patented waste recovery system.

EnWaste Systems is now selling approximately 300 systems a month to the healthcare industry in the U.S., according to Dodd.  Hospitals and radiology clinics are not only able to reduce their hazardous waste but recover the silver and sell it, thereby offsetting the cost of operations.

A finalist for the Chamber’s Kruesi Award for Innovation, EnWaste addresses the healthcare industry’s need to recover silver and other heavy metals from the photo-chemical process in radiology departments.  The system not only allows the silver to be captured and recycled but also neutralizes and captures heavy metals, preventing contamination of the water system.

Dodd said EnWaste, which is located in Flintstone, GA, has formed a Ukrainian corporation and filed a patent application covering its technology in Ukraine. Dodd said he expects to lease space and open a facility to assemble, deliver, maintain and process its recovery systems in the Kyiv area soon.

“A Limited Partnership has been formed in the U.S. for the EnWaste Recovery System Corporation based in Ukraine,” Dodd said. “This will allow U.S. investors  to receive income from the manufacture of our products in Eastern Europe and realize an investment in a company which will make an environmental contribution in this region of the world. Our first priority in undertaking this project was to establish green technology in the countries of Europe which have concerns about wastewater contamination.”

The company’s recovery technology helps large-scale photo processors reclaim silver lost in the film-developing process.  “The recovered silver is then sold, providing processors with income that has previously literally gone down the drain,” Dodd said. “Reclaiming the silver also results in less pollution, as the wastewater is cleaned of potentially harmful heavy metals.”