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<br />~ <br /> <br />co <br />r- <br />oo <br />(~ heating revenues should generate an additional $331,000 and $694,000 <br />C::' per year respectively. Consequently the total potential earnings <br />(~ projected for the STEP process is $1,305,000 per year. <br /> <br />Returns to investors will not be realized for four years, Assuming <br />private investor demand for return is 25% per year, the present value <br />of this annual cash flow is about $535 thousand. The perpetuity <br />value, and thus the value of the commercial side of this business, is <br />$2.14 million. This is the amount that private investors could <br />invest in this technology and still realize the return on investment <br />they require. <br /> <br />RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FURTHER WORK <br /> <br />Recommendations for further work can be broken down into 2 major <br />categories: (1) biological and natural resource investigations and <br />(2) engineering investigations. Each is briefly described below <br />along with the estimated costs of the major components. <br /> <br />Biolo~ical and Natural Resource Investi~ations <br /> <br />The need for certain types of information is evident. This report <br />has shown that the focus of previous research was on salt marsh <br />ecosystem value, the taxonomy of aquatic plants, the physiology of <br />arid land halophytes, and the use of seawater in coastal <br />agriculture. Efforts in general have concentrated on improving the <br />water-use efficiencies of crops, not on increasing water-use <br />inefficiencies. Attention has been directed toward arid regions and <br />marginal lands, frequently coupled with an abundance of ocean water <br />and little difficulties in salt disposal. This gave an orientation <br />towards water stress management, use of arid land halophytes, <br />development of low volume irrigation technologies, and the capacities <br />of land plants to cope with waters having seawater salinities. While <br />this body of work has made important contributions to agriculture, it <br />has not gone far enough to generate the performance data needed to <br />efficiently size and guide operations of STEP facilities. <br /> <br />This leads to the following recommendations in order of priority as <br />additional work: <br /> <br />A. Define the Performance Capacity of Selected Emergent Halophyte <br />Species with Respect to Salinity, <br /> <br />This entails field studies of evapotranspiration and growth <br />rates, as well as chemical composition, as affected by salinity, <br />Estimated cost: $241,400 <br /> <br />B. Provide Definition of the Specific Product Options Available <br />Through the STEP Process, <br /> <br />This involves <br />attractive plant <br />in field plots, <br /> <br />the extended characterization of <br />species, including demonstration <br />Estimated cost: $206,880 <br /> <br />commercially <br />of production <br /> <br />E-I0 <br />