NEWBURY, OH – December 28, 2010 – A new report from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) has found that tap water in 89 percent of the cities tested contains hexavalent chromium, also known as chromium-6. Made famous by the movie “Erin Brockovich,” chromium-6 is a highly toxic form of the naturally occurring metal chromium and has been linked to stomach and gastrointestinal cancers when ingested in drinking water.

Kinetico is committed to helping consumers understand the treatment options available, so they can restore confidence in their tap water and protect their families from chromium exposure.

Kinetico’s K5 Drinking Water Station is certified to remove more contaminants, including chromium-6, than any other system on the market.

“This new study serves as another signal to consumers – wherever they live – to understand what’s in their water,” says Jerry Kovach, Vice President of Research and Development at Kinetico. “While simply detecting chromium or other contaminants may not indicate a documented health risk, the effect of long-term exposure to even minute traces of contaminants like chromium 6 is really unknown. With the K5 Drinking Water Station, you can rest easy knowing the quality of the water your family drinks is clean and safe. ”

Reverse osmosis (R.O.) filtration is the most effective drinking water system for reducing contaminants such as hexavalent chromium in drinking water. Extensive third-party testing has found Kinetico’s R.O. systems to be among the best on the market.

Both the Kinetico K5 Drinking Water Station and the AquaKinetic A200 Drinking Water System have been tested and certified under NSF/ANSI Standard 58 to reduce chromium-6. In addition, the K5 can be customized to meet each resident’s individual water filtration needs now and in the future.

Consumers interested in learning more about the removal of chromium-6 from water and the K5 Drinking Water Station or AquaKinetic A200 Drinking Water System should contact their local Kinetico dealer by visiting http://www.kinetico.com/Locator.

About Kinetico
Headquartered in Newbury, Ohio, U.S.A., Kinetico is a leading manufacturer of water treatment systems. An extensive network of Kinetico dealers serving residential and commercial customers has helped more than a million people in nearly 100 countries experience the benefits of better water. Since 1970, Kinetico has prided itself on creating state-of-the-art water treatment systems that serve customers in an expanding variety of applications. The company also has offices and facilities in the United Kingdom, Canada, France and Denmark. Further information is available at www.kinetico.com.

Contact:
Lauren Craig
Hiebing
lcraig@hiebing.com
608-256-6357

It consists of a two-chamber design for drying sludge from a water plant lagoon, taking the material from 2.5% to 25% dry solids. This reduces sludge volume by 90%, which will dramatically reduce the plant’s hauling costs. Additionally, the plant will experience very low operating costs thanks to the chemical-free system operations, reliance on the sun’s free energy for 95% of the energy needed for drying, and a fully-automated process which will free up labor for other activities.

While the Waimea startup is the first of its kind in the United States, the THERMO-SYSTEM® technology has become a proven sludge drying technology with over 100 installations throughout the world, ranging from the freezing temperatures of the Swiss Alps to the hot and humid climate of south Florida.

“We are very pleased to see the THERMO-SYSTEM® product line enter the water treatment market. The extremely low operating costs, which have caused rapid growth of the technology in the wastewater market, will provide the same attractive operating benefits in the water treatment market as well,” says Mike Miller, Vice President of the Municipal Water and Wastewater Division for Parkson. Additionally, the THERMO-SYSTEM® perfectly meets the increasing interest for environmentally sound technologies.

About Parkson Corporation:
With 25,000 installations in its 50 years of existence, Parkson Corporation is a leading provider of advanced solutions in water recycling and treatment and is committed to providing clean water for the world. Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, with offices in Chicago, Montreal, Dubai and partners in Latin America, India and China, Parkson is an Axel Johnson Inc. company. To learn more, visit www.parkson.com.

Contacts
Parkson Corporation
Renato Sá, Global Marketing Leader, 954-935-6237
rsa@parkson.com

However, while continuous up-flow sand filters are capable of producing extremely high quality effluent (e.g., 0.03mg/l of phosphorous), they often result in reject water which needs to be treated again. Typically this reject water is pumped back to the beginning of the treatment plant to be processed again. The city incurs some expense for this reprocessing and the associated pumping costs.

Earlier in 2010, Parkson announced the new, patented EcoWash™ addition to its long-standing DynaSand® offering. After learning about this option, the City of Pompano was eager to launch a pilot project to test the results against their traditional DynaSand® filters (the city has a total of 24). In May 2010, Parkson modified two filters and commenced full-scale testing against the standard DynaSand® operations. The EcoWash™ enhanced filters delivered better filtrate quality while reducing reject water by 90%. In addition to the reject water savings, which has a direct energy savings impact, the test indicated that the EcoWash™ option is able to better handle high solids loading events.

The City of Pompano Beach has decided that it will add the EcoWash™ upgrade to all 24 of its filters. The upgrade will save the city an estimated $120,000 per year and result in a very fast payback to the city. The effort is still underway and Parkson hopes to complete the upgrade by the first quarter of 2011.

About Parkson Corporation:
With 25,000 installations in its 50 years of existence, Parkson Corporation is a leading provider of advanced solutions in water recycling and treatment and is committed to providing clean water for the world. Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, with offices in Chicago, Montreal, Dubai and partners in Latin America, India and China, Parkson is an Axel Johnson Inc. company. To learn more, visit www.parkson.com.

Contacts
Parkson Corporation
Renato Sá, Global Marketing Leader, 954-935-6237
rsa@parkson.com

Kinetico and Spotz Join Forces to Bring Clean Water to Everyone, Everywhere

NEWBURY, OH – November 8, 2010 – Kinetico Incorporated, a leading manufacturer of residential and commercial water treatment systems, announced today that Katie Spotz, an endurance athlete and advocate for clean water, has recently joined the company. Spotz, who set a record earlier this year as the youngest person ever to row an ocean solo, was honored today for her courage and inspiration as one of the 2010 Glamour Women of the Year.

Spotz joined Kinetico in the second half of 2010 as a marketing representative, assisting the company in its efforts to build awareness of water quality and help make clean water more available to people around the world. Kinetico’s corporate headquarters is located just miles from Spotz’s hometown; both are outside of Cleveland.

Glamour, who names a select group of women to its annual Women of the Year list, chose Spotz for her courageous 70-day solo row across the Atlantic Ocean in early 2010. Spotz joins Fergie, Julia Roberts, Queen Rania of Jordan and other global change agents on the magazine’s 20^th anniversary list.

Spotz’s Row for Water journey raised more than $100,000 for the Blue Planet Network, which brings safe drinking water to people in countries like Haiti, India, and Kenya. More than a billion people – one in six– lack access to clean, safe drinking water.

“With her unwavering courage and a commitment to moving the needle on water awareness, Katie inspires us all to do more,” said Shamus M. Hurley, Kinetico’s president and chief executive officer. “We’re proud of her achievement of ‘Glamour Woman of the Year’ and are excited to bring together our shared passion for safe drinking water to make an impact on the world.”

Spotz’s next planned challenge is The Race Across America, a 3,000-mile bicycle race across the United States in June 2011 to further raise funds and awareness for safe drinking water. Kinetico plans to sponsor Spotz and assist her in reaching her goals.

Spotz, who is working with Kinetico on additional ways to spread water awareness across the United States in the coming year, said, “Kinetico is a leader in the water treatment industry and a perfect partner for creating momentum around clean water. Joining a company that cares about water issues and is committed to making a difference was a natural fit, and I look forward to working together to grow public awareness even more.”

“It’s easy to think you’re just one person who can’t do much to help, but you can,” said Spotz. “Everything we do individually can help solve our world’s water crisis – one mile at a time, one person at a time. What will you do?”

About Kinetico
Headquartered in Newbury, Ohio, U.S.A., Kinetico is a leading manufacturer of water treatment systems. An extensive network of Kinetico dealers serving residential and commercial customers has helped more than a million people in nearly 100 countries experience the benefits of better water. Since 1970, Kinetico has prided itself on creating state-of-the-art water treatment systems that serve customers in an expanding variety of applications. The company also has offices and facilities in the United Kingdom, Canada, France and Denmark. Further information is available at www.kinetico.com.

Contact:
Lauren Craig
Hiebing
lcraig@hiebing.com
608-256-6357

The company focuses on providing high-quality and safe housing in close proximity to the university campus. Its properties are newly-renovated and well-maintained, offering a superior living experience to W2C’s three related customers – students, their parents, and the university.

“Walk2Campus is a solid, young company with an impressive management team and a compelling plan for long-term growth. The company’s discipline and commitment to partnership with its constituent university communities have served it well thus far, and we are excited to be working with Matt King and his team as they expand the markets they serve,” said Michael D. Milligan, President and Chief Executive Officer of Axel Johnson Inc. He added, “We believe that the market for high-quality off-campus student housing will continue to grow over time, and that Walk2Campus’s professionalism and commitment to service will make it the preferred partner for its selected universities.”

Axel Johnson Inc. acquired its interest in W2C through its wholly owned subsidiary, NewtrAx LLC, which focuses on making minority investments alongside owners and entrepreneurs who are committed to growing and building sustainable long-term businesses.

For further information, please visit www.walk2longwood.com, www.walk2winthrop.com, www.axeljohnson.com.

Contacts
Ben Hennelly
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Axel Johnson Inc.
(646) 291-2899