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Texas small businesses making big environmental innovations

Release Date: 03/26/2008
Contact Information: Dave Bary or Tressa Tillman at 214-665-2200 or r6press@epa.gov

(Dallas, Texas – March 26, 2008) Two small businesses in Texas have each been awarded $70,000 contracts from the Environmental Protection Agency and its Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program.

BioTex, Inc. of Houston and QuantLogic Corporation of Sugar Land are among 25 small businesses nationwide to receive $1.75 million in SBIR contracts from EPA.

“Small businesses are important keystones for technical innovation in the United States,” said EPA Regional Administrator Richard E. Greene. “Through the SBIR program, EPA is helping small businesses make significant contributions to both the environment and the economy.”

The majority of U.S. new technologies are developed by America’s 25 million small businesses, which also employ more than 50 percent of workers. To participate in EPA’s SBIR program, a small business must have fewer than 500 employees, and at least 51 percent of the business must be owned by U.S. citizens.

Today’s awards will help small businesses develop new technologies in five areas: nanotechnology and pollution prevention, biodiesel and ethanol biofuels, solid and hazardous waste, air pollution control, and homeland security. Each company will receive $70,000 for Phase I or "proof of concept" awards. If Phase I is successful, the companies can apply for Phase II awards to commercialize their technology. EPA will be accepting submissions for the next year’s Phase I SBIR awards until May 21, 2008.

Since its inception in 1982, EPA’s SBIR program has helped fund more than 600 small businesses.

EPA is one of 11 federal agencies that participate in the SBIR program. The program was created to strengthen the role of small businesses in federal research and development, create jobs, and promote technical innovation in the United States.

Additional information on the Texas companies selected and their projects is available at https://www.epa.gov/ncer/sbir/08awards.

To learn more about activities in EPA Region 6, please visit https://www.epa.gov/region6.