Technology

Approved nitrogen-reducing technologies

If your property ever needs a Best Available Nitrogen Reducing Technology (BANRT) upgrade, MassDEP does not let you install just anything. Only technologies MassDEP has approved for Massachusetts, in the flow range your property needs, qualify. This page is a reading of MassDEP's current approved list — not a recommendation of any product.

What "BANRT" actually requires. 310 CMR 15.002 defines Best Available Nitrogen Reducing Technology as achieving effluent Total Nitrogen (TN) of 10 mg/L or better. As of this check, no General Use technology meets that threshold -- the lowest General Use TN limit is 19 mg/L. Per 15.002, when no General Use system meets 10 mg/L, BANRT falls back to: (1) the General Use system with the lowest certified TN value for the facility's flow, or (2) a Provisional- or Piloting-approved system with a TN performance value of 10 mg/L or less if one exists for that flow, or otherwise the lowest-TN Provisional/Piloting system available.

2026 performance data, checked 2026-08-21. "Pass rate" is the share of installed systems that met the TN limit in MassDEP's own field sampling that year — not a lab spec, actual systems in the ground. Most technologies below performed worse in 2026 than 2025. MassDEP's own note on SeptiTech's drop: fewer systems qualified for inclusion (a minimum sample history is required), which can swing the rate year to year on top of any real change in performance — small sample sizes make single-year swings less reliable, not necessarily a sign the technology itself changed.

General Use — the strongest approval tier

General Use certification means MassDEP considers the technology proven through broad field use. These can be installed anywhere a conventional Title 5 system could go.

Company	Technology	Facility type	Flow (gpd)	TN limit	2024	2025	2026	Sources
SeptiTech, Inc.	STAAR by SeptiTech / Bio-Microbics of Maine, Inc.	Residential	<2,000	19 mg/L	80% (45/56)	85% (70/82)	72% (48/67)	Approval · Data
Orenco Systems, Inc.	Advantex Treatment System (AX20 models)	Residential	<2,000	19 mg/L	64% (62/97)	67% (104/156)	63% (100/159)	Approval · Data

Provisional Use — under 2,000 gallons per day

Provisional Use is an earlier tier: MassDEP has approved the technology for evaluation under real field conditions, but it has not yet accumulated the track record General Use requires. These are still legitimate, legal options — several carry lower TN limits than anything in General Use.

Company	Technology	Facility type	Flow (gpd)	TN limit	2024	2025	2026	Sources
Fuji Clean USA, LLC	Fuji Clean (CEN5, CEN7, CEN10)	Residential and commercial	<990	19 mg/L	N/A	83% (34/41)	82% (36/44)	Approval · Data
Lombardo Associates, Inc.	Nitrex Filter	Residential and commercial	<2,000	10 mg/L	100% (8/8)	100% (9/9)	91% (10/11)	Approval · Data
KleanTu LLC	NitROE Waste-Water Treatment System	Residential and commercial	<2,000	11 mg/L	63% (15/24)	54% (31/57)	71% (56/92)	Approval · Data

Nitrex is the standout on this page — the only technology meeting the strict 10 mg/L BANRT definition outright, and it held 100% pass rates for two straight years before dipping to 91% in 2026 on a small sample (11 systems). Note that Nitrex is a polishing filter installed after another treatment technology (commonly Advantex), not a standalone system — its performance depends partly on what precedes it.

Provisional Use — 2,000 to 10,000 gallons per day

For larger flows — multi-unit properties, small commercial systems — fewer technologies are approved, and the TN limits are looser.

Company	Technology	Facility type	Flow (gpd)	TN limit	2024	2025	2026	Sources
F.R. Mahony & Associates, Inc.	Amphidrome Process	Residential and commercial	2,000-10,000	25 mg/L	N/A	N/A	67% (4/6)	Approval · Data
Aquapoint.3 LLC	Bioclere	Residential and commercial	2,000-10,000	25 mg/L	78% (25/32)	78% (25/32)	65% (32/49)	Approval · Data
Lombardo Associates, Inc.	Nitrex Filter	Residential and commercial	2,000-10,000	25 mg/L	100% (4/4)	100% (4/4)	100% (4/4)	Approval · Data

Amphidrome was newly designated BANRT in 2026 — MassDEP had no data to evaluate it in 2024 or 2025. Its 2026 result (4 of 6 systems, 67%) is a very small sample; treat it as early, not settled.

Approvals that have expired

MassDEP publishes a list of technologies whose approvals lapsed and were never renewed. A system installed years ago under one of these may still be legally in the ground and functioning, but none of these can be newly installed today. Two entries below share a name with an active approval elsewhere on this page — read the note carefully, since the expired version and the current version are not interchangeable.

Technology	Status
Amphidrome Process	Piloting Approval expired 5/30/2006; Provisional Use Approval (the pre-2015-renewal version) expired 10/15/2020. Not the same as the current Provisional Use approval listed above -- that one is active.
Anua PuraSYS SBR/Puraflo Peat Fiber System (Clearwater Recovery)	Piloting Approval expired 3/28/2022.
Biocycle 525	Remedial Use Approval expired 12/30/2004.
Biolet XL	General Use Approval expired 1/16/2007.
Clear Rex Bubbler (PekaSys, Inc.)	Piloting Approval expired 2/15/2016.
Dominator Septic Tanks (Snyder Industries)	General Use Approval expired 9/2/2014.
Ecoflo Biofilter	Remedial Use Approval expired 11/8/2005.
ECOPOD-N (Delta Environmental / Pentair Water)	Piloting Approval expired 8/21/2019.
GPC Filter (Ground Penetrating Carbon, Inc.)	Piloting Approval expired 12/8/2019.
Hydro-Kinetic Wastewater Treatment System (NORWECO)	Piloting Approval expired 11/7/2023.
Jet J-335 Tertiary Sand Filter	Remedial Use Approval expired 11/2/2006.
MicroSeptec EnviroServer	Piloting Approval expired 10/18/2005.
Modular FAST (Smith & Loveless, Inc.)	Provisional Use Approval expired 1/29/2014. Remedial and General Use approvals for Modular FAST remain active.
NITREX-PLUS (Lombardo Associates)	Piloting Approval expired 2/26/2012. Not the same as the active Nitrex Filter approvals listed above.
OMNI-Cycle System	Piloting Use Approval expired 1/16/2014.
OMNI Recirculating Sand Filter	Piloting Use Approval expired 4/4/2010.
Orenco High-Rate Intermittent Sand Filter (Saneco)	Remedial Use Approval expired 11/2/2003.
RetroFAST (BioMicrobics)	Piloting Approval expired 6/5/2019.
RUCK CFT (North Coast Technologies, LLC)	Piloting Approval expired 12/11/2017.
ZenoGem/Cycle-Let (Zenon)	Provisional Use Approval expired 8/6/2003.

What this means for a BANRT upgrade

If your property is ever required to install BANRT — because your town's watershed protection lapses, or you're building new construction in a designated area past the extension date — your engineer or system designer picks from the tables above, matched to your property's flow and facility type. A licensed System Inspector or Soil Evaluator can tell you which flow range your property falls into; see our directory of Cape Cod-registered inspectors and evaluators.

Source: MassDEP's "Approved Title 5 innovative/alternative technologies" page, checked 2026-08-21. https://www.mass.gov/info-details/approved-title-5-innovativealternative-technologies

This is a reading of a public MassDEP technology list, not engineering advice or a product recommendation. MassDEP explicitly states that inclusion on its approved list does not constitute an endorsement of any specific technology. Confirm current approval status and get a design tailored to your property from a licensed engineer or system designer before choosing anything here.

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