Latest news with #Osmosis
Hans India
26-05-2025
- Hans India
FIR filed against 14 officials over misuse of funds
Chamarajanagara: In a major development, an FIR has been registered against 14 officials in connection with the alleged misappropriation of funds related to 21 drinking water units within the Kollegal Town Municipality limits. The financial irregularities are said to have occurred over a span of eight years, between July 21, 2014, and July 27, 2022. The complaint was filed by Kollegal Municipal Commissioner A. Ramesh, following which the Kollegal Town Police registered the FIR on May 22. Those named in the FIR include both current and former municipal officials and staff. According to sources, crores of rupees collected from the Reverse Osmosis (RO) water plants were misused by officials over the years. The issue first came to light when town municipal council member Jayamari submitted a formal complaint to the Directorate of Municipal Administration and the Deputy Commissioner's (DC) office. Acting on the complaint, the then Sub-Divisional Officer Geetha Huded, now serving as the Additional Deputy Commissioner, was instructed by DC Shilpa Nag to conduct an inquiry. A detailed investigation was carried out and a report was submitted to the DC on December 13, 2022. Based on this investigation, the then DC D.S. Ramesh recommended that a criminal case be filed against the officials involved. He issued directions to the Municipal Commissioner to initiate legal proceedings against those who had served in various capacities at the Kollegal Municipality office. This included seven former municipal commissioners, the current office manager, accounts superintendent, a former Assistant Executive Engineer (AEE), a Junior Engineer (JE), and other subordinate staff. The DC also instructed the municipal authorities to submit a follow-up report regarding the actions taken in response to the complaint. The FIR names several key individuals, including former Planning Director of the DUDC K. Suresh, retired municipal commissioner Nagashetty, former commissioners D.K. Lingaraju and Vijay, former AEE Altaf Ahmed, current accounts superintendent Hanumantharaju, office manager Lingaraju, retired assistant engineer C.M. Nataraju, retired junior engineer Siddappa, retired second division assistant Jayachitra, and four current watermen of the municipality—Mallappa, Chikkasiddayya, Nagaraju, and Sagar. Chamarajanagar Deputy Commissioner Shilpa Nag has confirmed the registration of the case and stated that legal proceedings will be carried out in accordance with the law.
Los Angeles Times
21-05-2025
- Los Angeles Times
This California spa buries you up to your head in compost. Would you try it?
Before our appointment at Osmosis Day Spa Sanctuary, a peaceful retreat off the Bodega Highway in West Sonoma county, a friend and I popped into a nearby gift shop. We told the owner that we were destined to try Osmosis' storied treatment — a so-called 'cedar enzyme bath' — and her eyes widened with excitement. 'You'll feel like you're a plant being composted,' she said, adding that the spa's recycled bath materials lined the path of a neighboring garden. When we were eventually led into Osmosis' tidy changing rooms to disrobe, I smelled what she meant before I saw it. A dank, earthy odor hung in the air, as if mounds of fresh pencil shavings had been scattered over a newly excavated farm plot. It's the signature scent of a spa whose marquee treatment involves being blanketed up to your neck in a box of steaming compost. Known in Japan as an ion bath, it combines many spa treatments in one: a heated, weighted feeling to relax and soothe the body and a calming aromatherapy to pique the senses. Much like the mud baths of Calistoga, the experience is just as much about a novel brush with natural elements as it is an opportunity for release. 'I like to say that what's going on in there is a fundamental impulse in biology,' Osmosis owner Michael Stusser said. 'All these microorganisms get a chance to talk to each other. They all have infinite wisdom. They all communicate. So there's this energy going on. There's a whole flow.' Stusser estimates that Osmosis has slung compost onto half a million guests in its 40 years of business. For much of that time, it was the only place in North America where you could consistently book a cedar enzyme bath, currently priced at $155 a person or $127.50 per person for a shared two-person vat. (In May 2023, Tahoe Forest Baths opened in Lake Tahoe and began offering them in partnership with the Japanese company Ohtaka Enzyme Co. Though Santa Monica's Willow Spa once gave cedar enzyme baths, it has discontinued that service.) Now the creekside 5-acre spa is expanding its offerings, which include sound therapy sessions in zero-gravity loungers, meditation workshops and all-day retreats. The smell that permeates Osmosis' halls is the byproduct of a very intentional process, said Stusser. The enzyme bath concoction is a mix of fragrant Douglas fir and Port Orford cedar (a tree that the native Karok people of northwest California once used to construct sweat lodges) and rice bran, which activates the composting process. 'There's literally billions of organisms in there feeding on nitrogen and generating heat with their bodies, breaking down carbon,' Stusser said. 'That's what they do.' The spa's staff is responsible for keeping the mixture from becoming hygienically dubious both by replacing it and churning it multiple times a day, thus ensuring there's enough oxygen to keep that activity moving. We observed the process before our personal meeting with the mulch. Our spa attendant for the day, Samundra Sutcliffe, lodged a large pitchfork into the vat shavings and turned it over on top of itself as steam emanated from the pile. 'If it doesn't get fluffed enough, the material starts to compact and it starts to break down, what's called anaerobically, which is without oxygen,' said the spa's general manager, Heather Bishop. 'Sometimes we'll end up with less appealing smells.' Stusser, 78, has a deep education in biodynamic gardening. He studied Agroecology at University of Santa Cruz under organic gardening and farming pioneer Alan Chadwick, who founded the school's 'French-intensive' garden in 1967. (Stusser went on to film a 1971 documentary, 'The Garden,' about the project.) As Stusser got more into the bio-intensive gardening scene, he became enamored with compost. 'I saw the alchemical power of compost to transform not only the soil, but everything that was put into it,' he said. 'And I had a secret wish that I never was willing to admit to anyone, which was to be buried in a compost pile.' After living on and tending to the land at the Farallones Institute Rural Center (now the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center in Sonoma County), Stusser traveled to Japan in 1981 to become a landscape gardening apprentice. The program, a seven-days-a-week dawn-til-dusk grind, proved to be far too intense, so he quit and went to live in a Zen temple in Obama-shi. There Stusser developed a serious case of sciatica and went on a quest to heal himself. He ended up on the island of Kyushu, where he stumbled upon an enzyme bath center where people of different ages and ailments had come to heal. 'As soon as I saw what was happening, I realized this is actually the same dynamic that exists in compost,' Stusser said. 'I said, I'm going to finally get my wish.' A farmer in southwestern Hokkaido named Noboru Ohtaka came up with the idea for a so-called 'ion bath' after stepping on a sawdust enzyme fertilizer he'd developed and noticing it felt pleasant. His company, Ohtaka Enzyme Co. opened its first ion house in Sapporo City in 1964, said company President Seiichi Imai. Seven years later, when the city hosted the Winter Olympics, organizers built enzyme baths for athletes to use in the Olympic village. 'As the facility was continuously featured in newspapers and on television, the concept of the enzyme bath spread across Japan,' Imai shared in an email. The enzyme bath Stusser tried was consistent with the original practice. It involved undergoing the treatment two times a day for a week, during which he fasted save for an enzyme drink, and received ashiatsu massages (in which a practitioner walks on your back). He said the treatment resolved his sciatica. He also had a spiritual experience. 'I was in the enzyme bath and as part of that experience, like in a millisecond of this vast experience, I saw the whole creation of Osmosis unfold before my mind's eye in an instant, crystal clear, undeniable, and I knew it was my calling to do this,' he said. He returned to the U.S. and got to work. On May 21, 1985, he opened Osmosis. At first, he said, it was hard to persuade people to live out the same wish of being composted that he'd held for so many years. 'I could barely give it away in the beginning,' he said. 'But once they did it and discovered how much better it made them feel, we have had a lot of people coming for decades.' As my friend and I sat robe-clad in a tea room staring out at a glass door that opened to a private Zen garden and sipping a hot enzyme herbal tonic with yarrow, red clover and peppermint, I contemplated my imminent encounter with the compost. I'm an avid gardener who has dusted my plants with compost and brewed her own kombucha. But even I felt a trickle of hesitation at being smothered in a bacteria-laden mulch. Before I could give it a second thought, our attendant, Samundra, led us into a separate room with what looked like an adult sandbox. Two human-sized seats had been carved into the enzyme cedar mix to ensure we had sufficient support as we gazed out onto another private zen garden. We were left alone briefly to settle in and cover ourselves in the mix. When she reentered, she began shoveling it on to both of us until only our heads were visible. 'If you do get too hot, you can always pull out your arms, and I'll just be coming out to check on you,' she said. Up close and personal, the musk of the odor dissipated, and I breathed in the grounding spice of the cedar and the energizing citrus notes of the Douglas fir. It felt as though my body was wrapped in a hot compress. I tend to overheat easily in jacuzzis and hot springs but the enzyme bath felt breathable. (I later learned that this is because wood has a lower thermal conductivity than water, and the cedar enzyme mix allows for more aeration.) As my friend and I began to sweat, Samundra arrived with cold compresses and draped them across our necks. With our arms still buried under the compost, she brought ice-cold waters with straws up to our mouths so we could hydrate — a truly luxurious part of the service. The allotted 20 minutes went quickly. And when our time was up, she dug us out enough for us to break free. We used special grated mittens to wipe the mixture off of our bodies in the private zen garden, then rinsed off in the shower. My body was warmed from within, my typically tight-and-achy lower back and shoulders, slack and painless. After a trip to a spa I can sometimes feel like I'm on the verge of a nap, but in this case I felt invigorated and present, ready to tour the gardens that awaited outside. When I later relayed my journey of skepticism to convert to Stusser, he said it was a common one. 'You can't really explain it to somebody until you've done it,' Stusser said. 'A lot of people will be very inquisitive on the phone. They go, 'Well, can you tell me something more about what is it really doing?' Then they get here and they look at it, and they're not even sure they want to go in. And then they get in and get a big smile. 'Oh, this is what it is like.'' It was true. I had been composted like a plant — and I liked it.
Associated Press
03-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Moazzma Hunain Becomes First Female Franchise Owner of FuelFox Dallas, Breaking Barriers in Oil & Gas Industry
Moazzma Hunain makes history as the first female franchise owner of FuelFox Dallas. A Pakistani-American entrepreneur, she is reshaping the oil and gas industry while empowering women and minorities to break into traditionally male-dominated sectors. Dallas, Texas, USA, May 3, 2025 -- Breaking New Ground in the Oil & Gas Industry Moazzma Hunain, a Pakistani-American entrepreneur and philanthropist, has made history as the first female franchise owner of FuelFox, a mobile fuel delivery service. Operating under FuelQueen Texas LLC, FuelFox Dallas provides efficient and innovative fueling solutions for commercial fleets, including diesel and gasoline delivery, DEF fluid supply, and emergency fueling services. With a focus on operational efficiency, FuelFox's patented technology offers real-time fuel usage data, enhancing cost savings for businesses across Texas. Hunain's entry into the male-dominated oil and gas sector is a testament to her leadership and determination to challenge traditional industry norms. She is reshaping the landscape of the fuel delivery business, not just through innovation but by redefining leadership with a customer-first mindset. A Journey of Empowerment and Impact Before stepping into the oil and gas industry, Hunain gained prominence as the 2018 Mrs. Pakistan USA, where she used her platform to advocate for gender equality and empowerment. Her entrepreneurial journey spans multiple industries, including real estate, luxury services, and now fuel logistics. As a top producer in Texas real estate, she has co-owned five locations of the renowned Zelene Head Spa and has demonstrated a track record of success. Through her work at FuelFox Dallas, she is using her platform to inspire other women and minorities to enter industries where they have historically been underrepresented. Hunain's passion for empowering others is evident in her leadership style, which blends innovation with a strong focus on relationship-building and customer service. 'I'm not just delivering fuel; I'm delivering proof that women, especially women of color, belong in every room — from center stage to boardrooms & truck yards,' says Hunain. 'As the first female FuelFox franchise owner, I'm not just leading a business — I'm building a legacy that opens doors for the next generation.' Making a Difference Beyond Business In addition to her business ventures, Hunain is deeply committed to giving back through her charity, the Moazzma Hunain Foundation. The foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, focuses on providing clean drinking water to underserved communities in Pakistan. From installing water wells and Reverse Osmosis plants to supplying water chillers to schools, mosques, and senior homes, the foundation is improving lives across the country. 'As a philanthropist, I believe in serving humanity and using my success to create positive change,' Hunain states. 'Through my foundation, I hope to leave a legacy of service and empowerment, helping others, especially in my home country of Pakistan.' Empowering the Next Generation of Leaders Moazzma Hunain's journey is not just about business success; it is about challenging the norms and opening doors for the next generation of women and minorities in industries like oil and gas. Her leadership and commitment to service are paving the way for a more inclusive and diverse future. 'Breaking barriers isn't a buzzword for me — it's how I live, work, and lead every day,' she explains. FuelFox Dallas, under her leadership, is not only providing a vital service to Texas businesses but also making a significant impact on the community, offering both fuel and empowerment to those who need it most. About FuelFox Dallas (FuelQueen Texas LLC) FuelFox Dallas, a local franchise of FuelFox, is a mobile fuel delivery service based in Dallas, Texas. The company specializes in on-site fueling for commercial fleets, providing services such as diesel and gasoline delivery, DEF fluid supply, and emergency fueling. FuelFox's patented technology enables real-time fuel usage data, helping businesses improve efficiency and reduce costs. Operating within Texas, FuelFox Dallas is committed to delivering fuel directly to client locations to minimize downtime and lower labor costs. Media Contact: Moazzma Hunain Phone: 817-630-1555 Email: [email protected] Contact Info: Name: Moazzma Hunain Email: Send Email Organization: Moazzma Hunain Website: Release ID: 89159171 In case of identifying any problems, concerns, or inaccuracies in the content shared in this press release, or if a press release needs to be taken down, we urge you to notify us immediately by contacting [email protected] (it is important to note that this email is the authorized channel for such matters, sending multiple emails to multiple addresses does not necessarily help expedite your request). Our dedicated team will be readily accessible to address your concerns and take swift action within 8 hours to rectify any issues identified or assist with the removal process. We are committed to delivering high-quality content and ensuring accuracy for our valued readers.
Observer
26-04-2025
- Business
- Observer
MOU signed for Oman's first desalination membrane plant
BUSINESS REPORTER MUSCAT, APRIL 26 Muscat Gases Company, a leading player in the gas and energy sector in the Sultanate of Oman, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with IonClear, a US-based technology company headquartered in Silicon Valley, California. Signed under the auspices of Eng Dawood bin Salim al Hadabi, CEO of the Public Establishment for Industrial Estates (Madayn), the MoU aims to establish the first-of-its-kind facility in the Sultanate in Al Rusayl Industrial City for manufacturing advanced water treatment and desalination membranes. The plant, covering an area of 3,000 sqm, represents a strategic move that supports the Sultanate's commitment to water security and environmental sustainability. The partnership with IonClear, which is specialised in the production of Reverse Osmosis (RO) and Nanofiltration (NF) membranes, will introduce innovative technologies used in seawater and brackish water desalination. These membranes are also employed in key sectors such as power plants, chemical industries, and industrial water treatment, thereby enhancing the Sultanate's capabilities in this key sector. The MoU also aims to bring advanced technology to the Omani market and localise strategic industries that contribute to increasing the In-Country Value, hence aligning with Oman Vision 2040 and generating quality employment opportunities for the Omani youth, while positioning the Sultanate as an ideal investment hub in the field of environmental manufacturing. This project also comes along the lines of the Sultanate of Oman's efforts to achieve carbon neutrality, by supporting clean energy and water industries and investing in advanced environmental solutions. Established in 1983, Muscat Gases Company stands as a model of Omani industrial growth, having expanded its core activities to include clean energy projects such as LPG generators, gas recovery technologies, composite gas cylinders, self-service systems, and its new venture into water and environmental treatment industries.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Lackawanna County landfill causing controversy
THROOP, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — The treated liquid that permeates through garbage piles at a local landfill is causing quite a controversy Wednesday night. The landfill says it's all about coming up with new options, including a new route for the liquid to go. The Keystone Sanitary Landfill wants to discharge its treated leachate water through Throop's sewer system. It's not a route of water county residents here are fond of, but one the landfill says there's no problems with. Keystone Sanitary Landfill consultant Al Magnotta drank a sample of landfill water at a Throop borough meeting Wednesday night. He was trying to prove his point. 'The RO meets Pennsylvania drinking water standards,' Magnotta stated. RO stands for Reverse Osmosis, the water purification process that takes place at the landfill, but convincing the people who showed up at the meeting was easier said than done. 'Unless I saw it come out of that system and saw you drink it right there, I would never believe you,' said Throop resident James Baranak. The Keystone Sanitary Landfill proposed to discharge its treated 'leachate' through Throop's sewer system, which flows into the Lackawanna River Basin Sewer Authority's wastewater treatment plant. 'We deserve better than what they are planning,' said Susan Green. Home damaged after Madison Township fire The landfill currently uses Pennsylvania American Water as its discharge system. Magnotta says this new plan would be better, based on a recent hydraulic analysis. He says it detected several issues with the current system, including pipe separations and cracking. 'What we have, what you have, resembles a 100-year-old pipe system,' Magnotta explained. He says the old one has got to go. The new line would run through several wooded areas surrounded by many streets in Lackawanna County. The landfill is requesting permission from Throop Borough to flow leachate at their discretion.. Subject to wet weather. 'The foul odor is atrocious,' said Dunmore resident Olivia Jackson. Jackson is no stranger to the issue. She lives in a neighborhood where the current system runs. The Lackawanna County landfill recently underwent a large expansion, looking to triple its volume of waste by 94,000,000 tons. 'Leachate management is probably the most essential operation that must be maintained to operate a landfill,' Magnotta added. Magnotta says the landfill will not discharge treated leachate during a rain event. A verdict on the new system has yet to be decided at a future meeting. If the plan gets approval, Magnotta says it will look to restore the Throop sewer system and complete a thorough cleaning check. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
