Environalgae – Sustainable Wastewater Treatment with Algae Solutions
Indian start-up Environalgae develops and implements microalgae-based wastewater treatment plants tailored to the specific waste streams of each customer.
Powered primarily by sunlight, the treatment process requires relatively low energy input and is inherently “clean-tech”: while the microalgae clean the wastewater, they simultaneously produce oxygen. This approach reduces greenhouse gas emissions associated with conventional wastewater treatment, lowers operational costs, and has the potential to significantly decrease the carbon footprint of such facilities.
For these reasons, the International Sustainable Chemistry Collaborative Centre (ISC3) has chosen Environalgae as the ISC3 Start-up of the Month for June 2026.
Conventional wastewater treatment relies on fossil energy to process carbon, nitrogen, and other compounds, producing greenhouse gases and bio-sludge as by-products. Environalgae addresses this by using microalgae as a universal platform, customised to each wastewater stream. Microalgae capture carbon via sunlight and absorb pollutants − nitrogen, carbon, and nutrients − as growth medium, simultaneously treating the wastewater and generating valuable biomass including lipids, proteins, and carbohydrates, which the company converts into products for agriculture, aquaculture, and animal feed applications.
The whole success story of the ISC3 Start-up of the Month in June 2026 is currently told by the ISC3 on its website at Environalgae (isc3.org).
Three questions for Ninad Gujarathi (Founder & Director of Environalgae):
What led to your solution in Sustainable Chemistry?
Ninad Gujarathi: I realized that many environmental problems are actually local and specific and those problems are often underserved by large corporations. A flexible organisational structure, like that of a start-up, is suited better for this kind of sustainability problems. That led me to the decision to start Environalgae.
What does being chosen as ISC3 Start-up of the Month mean to you?
N. Gujarathi: The ISC3 is an organisation that genuinely believes in and actively promotes Sustainable Chemistry, providing exceptional support to promising start-ups. We are confident that policymakers, decision-makers, and large corporates genuinely committed to sustainability closely follow ISC3. Being chosen as Start-up of the Month is therefore a recognition that will bring significant and meaningful exposure for Environalgae.
What’s next up at Environalgae?
N. Gujarathi: We are focusing on the valorisation of microalgal biomass to produce high-value biochemicals, while continuing to explore the vast range of product combinations possible in agricultural inputs and animal feed. We are in discussions with leading academic and research institutes in India to jointly pursue these product innovation opportunities. Beyond that, we see significant potential for this technology to treat wastewater and deliver regenerative freshwater reserves in some of the world's most water-scarce regions.
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