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use computational fluid dynamic modeling, or CFD. We’re
designing systems to circulate water and to target certain
areas. If we’re working with a swim-up bar, we’re making
sure that additional water and chemicals can go to that
area, because we understand that by nature, people may
not get out of the water when they’re at a bar drinking.”
This realistic, nonjudgmental approach accounts for human
behavior at the design stage, and it has enabled Martin
Aquatics to design some attractions “where, even if you
have a fecal incident, you may not be required to shut the
entire body of water down if you have the proper CFD
model and improved water chemistry.”
Another non-chemical method of water sanitation is
flocculation: a process that electronically agitates water,
encouraging minute particles of suspended matter—grass,
insect remains, and sand, as well as effluvia—to condense
into bundles of matter that can then be vacuumed or filtered
out of the water. Flocculation, explains Forman, offers “a
means to additionally clean the water even more than what
was previously achievable through just pumping water in
and out,” yielding the clearer water that attraction visitors
expect to enjoy.
Filtration media and methods have also improved,
Martin says, noting that while “regenerative media filters
have higher upfront capital costs,” using them can make
the difference between a pool remaining open or being
down for several days. From an operator’s perspective,
that downtime can ruin the chances of guests returning for
another stay next year. Some of the latest filters “now filter
particles down to one micron. They’re capable of capturing
[the intestinal parasite] Cryptosporidium,” adding—at an
expense—another layer of health and safety protection for
guests and staff.
Surf parks and basins, with their ranges of 2.5 to 7
million of gallons of water depending on size, are the largest
aquatic attractions by volume. The difference, Martin says,
“is bather load and how people use and interact with that
water.” One of the largest surf parks in the world is Kelly
Slater’s Surf Lagoon, but there are usually just “20 to 30
people in the water at any one time over acres.” Martin’s
in-progress endless surf lagoon in Melbourne, Florida, will
accommodate a maximum of 60 people at any one time. By
comparison, the basins at Carnival Cruise Lines’ Celebration
Key island hold “4,000 people per three acres—a massively
different amount of bather load, organics, and sunscreen.”
Despite the substantial disparities in bather load, Martin
says, the sanitation approach is the same, “because
ultimately, you still have the same risk of bacteria and
amoebae growing in those bodies of water if they’re not
treated correctly.”
Looking ahead to future innovations in this sector of
the industry, Martin notes that many of the
cutting-edge technologies are likely to be
deployed outside of the United States due
to the amount of time and costs are required
to navigate regulations, plus the process
of securing a National Science Foundation
listing. Consequently, projects in regions
like the Middle East and Europe benefit
from “using different chemical generators
and different dispersion methods,” Martin
explains, adding this is because these regions
have regulations allowing their use.
The global economy is an ever more confounding variable, as well. As of this reporting in June 2026, the Strait of Hormuz in the
Middle East remains closed, and even if it
reopens soon, most economists anticipate that
it will take six to eight months for the flow of
goods to return to normal. Aquatic attractions
are best served to plan ahead for continued
disruption in the supply chain and potential
added costs to maintain their safe operating
standards.
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