06/06/2026
Innovation was on full display in the City of Altamonte Springs, and we did not just demonstrate a technology. We demonstrated a philosophy.
Communities across the country are waiting for someone else to solve PFAS. Altamonte Springs chose to participate in developing the solution. That is the difference between local government that manages problems and local government that helps solve them and then shares the solutions with others.
That philosophy is the foundation of AGīL — the Altamonte Global Innovation Lab. We exist on a simple premise: the future does not happen by accident. It is built by people willing to lead, willing to collaborate and willing to test new ideas before they become necessities.
In a controlled demonstration with our partners AECOM and , Hydrothermal Liquefaction (HTL) technology achieved approximately 96% reduction of PFAS "forever chemicals" from wastewater biosolids — while simultaneously producing renewable biocrude fuel and dramatically reducing biosolids volume and disposal costs. Producing energy from existing municipal waste products may provide a future revenue stream.
This project began with a relationship among innovators. In 2022, AECOM and Genifuel brought their algae-to-biofuel demonstration to our facility because of our history in successful public/private partnerships. We saw something in HTL worth pursuing. With funding from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection Wastewater Innovation Grant Program, we pushed further — spiking biosolids with elevated PFAS concentrations to test the technology under rigorous conditions to see if HTL could remove PFAS from water.
The results are encouraging! But the real story is what this moment represents. Cleaning water contaminated by PFAS is possible while at the same time producing biodiesel that can power the systems needed to clean the water. In the process, we can eliminate the need to convert biosolids to fertilizer, which reduces nitrogen and phosphorous loading in the aquifer. Our work checks a lot of boxes!
The next frontier is resource recovery — capturing and reusing valuable nutrients like phosphorus to close the loop, reduce environmental impact and create new value streams for our communities. That work is already underway at the Altamonte Global Innovation Lab!
