BUFFALO - Using a process he calls "simple chemistry," Buffalo resident Bruce Bandorick says he has discovered a low-cost method to clean water produced by coal-bed methane (CBM) production.

Named and trademarked CleanSweepBarium, the process removes barium from CBM water, thus creating environmentally sound and compliant discharges.

"It'll zap the barium right out of there," said Bandorick, chief scientist and president of Thunder Basin Environmental Consulting, Inc.

Though the amount of barium in CBM water varies, there are strict state and federal water quality regulations on the amount of barium and other potentially harmful elements allowed in discharged CBM water.

Above maximum levels allowed by the federal Environmental Protection Agency, barium can cause hypertension, gastrointestinal problems and muscular weakness.

And Bandorick said that's where his chemical injection process comes in. It uses a powerful acid as a reactant, causing barium ions to react with injected sulfate ions to produce barium sulfate, or barite, which is harmless, Bandorick said.

"You just have to add a little bit of the concentrated reactant, only a few gallons for 1,000 barrels of discharge, and it quickly sweeps the barium out of the water," Bandorick said.

While other processes for purifying CBM produced water exist, such as using powdered gypsum rock, Bandorick said his method is a lower-cost alternative for effective barium removal.

"Other processes are not quite as simple or direct," he said. "Once you get it set up, it's easy to maintain."

Bandorick's search for the chemistry that would become CleanSweepBarium started almost six years ago, but his time in Wyoming dates back decades.

Bandorick, who holds a master's degree in environmental management from Duke University, moved to Casper in the early 1990s for a job with the Department of Energy. He later moved to Lander and then to Buffalo after starting his own company, Thunder Basin Environmental Consulting, Inc.

In 2003, his company was searching for a cost-effective way to treat CBM water. In 2006, Bandorick was awarded a patent for his barium remediation process.

He began working with the Bill Barrett Corp. and in April 2007, a pilot station was activated in the field. In January, Bill Barrett Corp. activated five additional injection stations using Bandorick's process.

While the amount of barium in CBM water varies from site to site, Paul McElvery, Bill Barrett's water resource manager, said Bandorick's process has become a great solution to address water-quality issues in the Powder River Basin.

"It's simple and it's cost-effective," he said. "We plan on continuing to use the process at the current sites and possibly at new sites as well."

McElvery added that since the company's employees don't need to handle the acid, the process also is safe.

For Bandorick, activation of five new sites is exciting, providing him hope that his process will continue to be used in the CBM fields.