One of EPA’s research goals is to focus on recycling resources rather than only treating waste products. For example, the high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus in wastewater could be used as nutrient resources for farming instead of ending up in water bodies that may already be overloaded with these nutrients. 

Research is being conducted to develop new technologies that will increase the effectiveness of resource recovery for nitrogen and phosphorus in water systems . Studies are also being conducted to demonstrate nutrient recovery options in order to test, assess, and better understand recovery technologies.