AECOM

Daniel J. Levy, PG, has over 35 years in the environmental industry and has led nationally recognized projects in algae harvesting, nutrient recovery, and renewable fuel production. He is the inventor of patented environmental technologies and has received awards, including the National Environmental Excellence Award. He also serves on the Board of the Algae Biomass Organization.

Daniel's work under the BlueCycle framework focuses on turning waste streams into clean water and sustainable fertilizers, producing scalable solutions with global impact. He shared his expert insight for the 2025 edition of CIOReview.

Moments Shaping Leadership Journey

As a geologist, I was trained to see the Earth as dynamic and interconnected. Most people are unaware that what goes down the drain eventually returns to the environment. Biosolids from wastewater plants are widely applied to farmland, and with eight billion people on the planet, the nutrients from human waste and agriculture are overwhelming waterways. Combined with warming temperatures, this overload is fueling harmful algal blooms (HABs) that threaten ecosystems, pets, wildlife, and even human health.

What was once a nutrient resource has become a global disposal problem. Unless we close these loops, the consequences are shared by all. With approaches like the BlueCycle framework, we can turn waste back into clean water, renewable fuels, and sustainable resources.

  ​By harvesting algae and applying hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL), we can recover nutrients, return clean water, and produce carbonneutral biocrude oil   

These realities pushed me to think differently, leading to the creation of BlueCycle. Its foundation is simple: work with nature, not against it. By harvesting algae and applying hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL), we can recover nutrients, return clean water, and produce carbon-neutral biocrude oil.

“HTL lets us do in minutes what nature takes millions of years—turning waste into fuel and value.”

Evolving Practices to Tackle Nutrient Pollution

The “do nothing” model has become a recipe for disaster. Every day, nutrients from wastewater and agriculture pour into waterways. With warming waters, HABs are rising to unprecedented levels. When blooms die, they release methane, a potent greenhouse gas, while decaying biomass sinks and re-releases nutrients. The cycle feeds on itself.

Technologies like SEDCUT dredging and Hydronucleation Flotation algae harvesting enable us to physically intercept and remove the nutrient loads that drive these blooms. By pulling both sediments and algae, we disrupt the cycle before it spirals further.

The bigger opportunity is to redefine wastewater treatment. Most plants still run on models built a century ago, designed for disposal rather than value creation. By reimagining these plants, we can capture nutrients, recycle them, and transform waste into resources.

Through BlueCycle and HTL, we can position facilities as hubs of energy and nutrient recovery. HTL transforms organic waste into renewable biocrude oil, nearly identical to fossil crude but carbon neutral. These are refined into aviation fuel, biodiesel, and marine fuels that are essential for hard-to-electrify sectors.

At the same time, nutrients can be returned to agriculture, algae harvesting can deliver clean water, and bio-based feedstocks can power sustainable products. Algae is already used in shoes, inks, plastics, and 3D printing. Biosolids are converted into renewable fuels.

The exciting opportunity is shifting the mindset: waste is not a liability but a resource. If we succeed, wastewater plants will become power plants of the future.

"Today, nutrients are pouring into our waterways. By redefining wastewater treatment, we can finally turn off the faucet and transform waste into clean water, renewable fuel, and sustainable products."

Overcoming Biggest Challenges

The biggest challenge is scale. The science is proven—the question is how quickly regulation, funding, and public acceptance can align. Too often, people look for quick fixes, but the nutrient crisis is systemic. You cannot fight nature; you must work with it.

The BlueCycle framework is designed for this moment, integrating natural systems like algae with breakthrough processes like HTL. Florida has been a leader in this area. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection has advanced innovative technologies addressing HABs and biosolids, and the support we’re seeing is encouraging.

“Florida is proving that an environmental crisis can become an engine for innovation.”

Hybrid Leadership Style

I balance being strategic with staying hands-on by staying close enough to the science to grasp its potential, while also operating at a level that translates it into strategy. I still review process diagrams and nutrient balances, but I also spend time with entrepreneurs, policymakers, and community leaders to move projects forward.

I thrive in collaboration, especially in the gray areas where no clear solution exists. That is where innovation happens, and where I do my best work.

“The future belongs to professionals who can connect the dots between water, carbon, and energy.”

Advice for young professionals

Never stop learning or sharpening technical skills is the advice to young professionals who are eager to build careers in environmental planning and sustainability. This field demands continual growth. Real change requires collaboration, cross-disciplinary work, and the willingness to face uncertainty.

Most importantly, reframe the problem. Instead of asking, “How do we get rid of this waste?” ask, “How do we harness it as a resource?” That shift led to BlueCycle and the “Flush-to-Fuel” campaign, where biosolids once destined for disposal are now feedstocks for renewable fuels, fertilizers, and bio-based products.

“If we get it right, algae and biosolids could power the 21st century the way oil powered the 20th.”

Work on Global Stage

From Europe to Asia and Africa, biosolids and livestock waste are piling up and pose a global challenge. Land application is shrinking, disposal costs are rising, and climate impacts are escalating.

The BlueCycle framework is scalable worldwide. Whether in Florida, the Great Lakes, or the Mekong Delta, the principles are the same: close the loop, recycle nutrients, and replace fossil carbon with renewable carbon.

“Pollution doesn’t respect borders—and neither should our solutions.”

Future of Environmental Technology

What excites me is that the future is here. With HTL, we can transform waste into carbon-neutral fuels in minutes. With algae harvesting, we can clean water, recover nutrients, and capture CO₂ directly from the air. With AI, we can accelerate innovation at unprecedented speed.

This convergence means we’re not just managing waste, we're creating prosperity. Wastewater plants can become energy hubs, algae can supply advanced materials, and biosolids can power planes and ships.

I couldn’t think of a better time to be on planet Earth.

“We are building the foundation of a regenerative, 21st-century economy.”