Peter Petrich, BIOTOP CEO and the Inventor of Natural Pools, compares the US market for natural pools with its European origin.
DENVER, Nov. 11, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — Natural pools operate completely free of chemicals and require absolutely no chlorine or other substances for the ultimate swimming enjoyment in natural water, very much like a crystal clear mountain lake. Peter Petrich, who invented the BIOTOP natural pool system in the early 1980's, was the first to commercialize natural pools and still is the main innovator of the industry. Here he compares his experiences of building natural pools in the US and in Europe.
Question: Mr. Petrich, natural pools seem to be more of a European thing? Is this a correct take?
Petrich: Apparently, Europeans started focusing on environmental issues earlier than the Americans. For me the reason is very straight forward: More than 500 million Europeans share a land mass that is significantly smaller than the +300 million Americans. The Europeans simply had to take care of their environment earlier since they had less. The green topic materialized in the German speaking world in the 1970's, with the organic wave – in German we abbreviate everything that is green and organic with "bio" which comes from biological – starting in the 1980's. The natural pool was a logical consequence of that development. People want to swim in natural water, even when they swim in a pool. BIOTOP made that possible. Recently, 30 years and 5,000 worldwide BIOTOP pools later, the US catches up and green topics and natural pools now get a lot of attention. There are far more hybrid and electric cars – I love the Teslas, – on US roads than in Europe. President Obama has just vetoed against the Keystone pipeline. Environment is important, but Americans still take health over environment.
Question: What do you mean by health over environment?
Our US clientele is much more concerned about the bad health impact a conventional chlorinated pool has on their families than how the same pool badly impacts the environment. A chlorinated pool has to be emptied at the end of every season and the entire volume of chlorine-contaminated water goes directly into the environment. That is a large concern of our European customers. A major trigger for our US customers to decide for a BIOTOP natural pool is the fact that you protect your family from the potential health issues that come along with the use of chlorine and other chemicals. A mother of a family, who in our case is normally the decision maker for a BIOTOP pool, simply has so much more comfort and relief when her kids splash around in a pool that is 100% chemical free.
Question: Health and environment are vital. But pools are an important design element of a property. Do natural pools still have to look like ponds?
Not at all. Every design you desire is possible. You want more / fewer plants, light blue / turquoise or a water color that is a mixture of light shiny green with a touch of transparent grey? You can have it. You want water falls, canals, and grottos? You can have them. You want an indoor natural pool? We can make that happen. We can even do the look of a conventional pool but the feel of a natural pool. I am talking no plants at all. Only pool. Our latest innovation which makes this possible is the Living Pool. Only BIOTOP can build a Living Pool. We did extensive R&D before we developed that unique filter technology.
Question: How do you perceive the future of swimming pools?
The future of pools is certainly the natural pool. Besides all the health and environmental advantages, all the beautiful and tailor-made designs that are possible, itjust feels so much better to swim in a natural pool than in a chlorinated pool. Your eyes, your skin, your hair, your entire body and even your mind feel better. And here comes the best news: You own a conventional chlorine pool? Convert it easily into a 100% chemical-free natural pool with our BIOTOP converter kit!
Meet the BIOTOP US Team at GREENBUILD 2015 in Washington, DC, the premier event for sustainable building.
Nov 18-19, 2015 at the Morial Convention Center, booth 2411
For further US media enquiries please contact:
Gregor Vogrin, Email
BIOTOP Natural Pool Inc., 3801 E Florida Avenue, Suite #400, Denver, CO 80210
Tel.: (303) 691-3674, www.biotop.us or www.living-pool.us
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Notes to Editors
BIOTOP Natural Pool Inc. – BIOTOP Landschaftsgestaltung GmbH – www.biotop.us
BIOTOP was the first company worldwide to introduce an ecological alternative to the conventional swimming pool – the natural pool – in 1987. Subsequently, the product was developed further and patented and received numerous international awards.
BIOTOP is with around 75 licensees – including six US partners – number 1 worldwide. Over 1,000 natural pools have been built by BIOTOP and more than 5,000 pools in cooperation with its partners. BIOTOP Natural Pools are built in the USA, in Europe, in Israel, New Zealand and Australia.
Market leadership is maintained through consistent R&D. The latest innovation is the Living Pool, a biological swimming pool that looks like a classic pool, but uses no chemicals. The Living Pool already accounts for roughly 40% of total sales. Thanks to the Converter System, conventional pools can also be converted to a Living Pool at minimum cost.
The headquarters are located in Klosterneuburg, Austria. BIOTOP's US subsidiary is domiciled in Denver, CO. Sustainability is an important aspect of the organizational culture, both on an economic and environmental level.