Two New Hampshire startups selected for funding, support for ocean-focused technologies

From left to right: Matt Oriente, head of fertilizer at HydroPhos Solutions; co-founder Jason Plant; CEO Derek Long; and CFO Katie Remeis. (Courtesy photo)

Two New Hampshire startups have been selected to participate in a program aimed at helping ocean health companies grow.

The program, founded by SeaAhead, Inc. and the New England Aquarium, is known as BlueSwell. It aims to help early-stage companies find their footing. The New Hampshire startups will be part of the program’s fifth cohort.

One of the startups selected to participate in the project is HydroPhos Solutions, founded by students from the University of New Hampshire.

The founders, who are now recent graduates, got the idea for Hydro-Phos from an ecology class one of them was taking. They learned that nutrients like phosphorus were causing toxic algal blooms and problems for aquatic ecosystems.

“We did some research and found that phosphorus specifically — there’s a global shortage. We as humans can’t function without it, and plants can’t grow without it,” said Daisy Burns, one of the co-founders. “So we thought, hey, there’s a real need here.”

Now HydroPhos is developing technology to remove phosphorus from wastewater, reducing the nutrients that can get into water bodies. Then they plan to put that phosphorus into fertilizer.

“We’re essentially closing the loop on taking phosphorus from places where it’s very harmful and polluting our waterways and getting it to where we need it to feed our population,” Burns said.

Coastal Measures, the second New Hampshire company selected for the program, is cleaning up environmental data.

The accelerator program pairs startups with other business leaders, mentors, and peers who are also starting companies focused on water and marine health. Startups also receive $25,000.

Burns says she’s excited about the opportunity to learn from other startups, make new connections and expand the company’s operations beyond lakes and rivers. HydroPhos plans to use the funding to test filtration and fertilizer technologies as they begin piloting their idea.

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