Memphis floats plan for Freshwater Institute, research center to study and protect resources

An effort is under way to open a Freshwater Institute in Memphis, which would leverage the region's unique set of resources to study and protect freshwater sources more broadly.

The city of Memphis announced the institute proposal in a news release on Thursday, following a meeting where a group of stakeholders from local institutions, including the University of Memphis and Christian Brothers University, agreed to move forward with the concept.

The proposed institute is in a conceptual stage, but the vision is for a Memphis-based facility that could potentially become a local and national research and educational facility, city of Memphis Chief Operating Officer Doug McGowen said.

McGowen said the institute would aim to serve as a problem-solving organization.

"The possibilities are very exciting," McGowen said. "Where better than Memphis, Tennessee, with the assets we have here?"

The idea for the institute rose out of talks about cooling sources for the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Allen natural gas plant in Memphis, when concerns were raised around a proposal to drill wells in the aquifer.

The University of Memphis Center for Applied Earth Science and Engineering Research (CAESER) is already leading a more specific five-year water quality study into potential threats to the Memphis Sand Aquifer, including breaches that allow contaminants to enter the drinking water supply.

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Memphis Light, Gas and Water customers are funding that $5 million study, with an extra 18 cents tacked onto their monthly water bills since last year.

The Freshwater Institute is envisioned as a resource to study freshwater more broadly, where students and educators can participate in field experiments throughout the year. The facility would consist of a main office, education and engagement space and potential future satellite locations elsewhere in the region, according to a city news release.

“It’s the perfect opportunity with the Mississippi River and ground water that makes it the largest freshwater system in North America," CAESER Director Brian Waldron said in a statement. “Being in the middle of that places Memphis in the right place to do this.”

There isn't yet a committed funding source for the Freshwater Institute proposal.

Other partners in the Freshwater Institute project include Shelby County, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Tennessee Department of Environmental Conservation and the Mississippi River Parks Partnership, according to a city of Memphis news release.

The next steps toward establishing the institute are "refining the mission and vision," and approaching other potential partners, McGowen said.

Meanwhile, a public meeting about initiatives aimed at curbing Memphis Aquifer contamination is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. April 8 at the Benjamin Hooks Central Library.

Jamie Munks covers Memphis city government and politics for The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at jamie.munks@commercialappeal.com. Follow her on Twitter @journo_jamie_.