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AbTech Industries Receives EPA Approval for Bacteria Reducing Smart Sponge(R) Plus

New Technology Fights Major Sources of Water Pollution

AbTech Holdings, Inc. (OTCBB: ABHD) (the "Company") wishes to announce that AbTech Industries Inc.'s ("AbTech") innovative Smart Sponge® Plus technology has been approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the reduction of harmful coliform bacteria in stormwater runoff, responsible for 20,000 beach closures per year.

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., the renowned environmental advocate and attorney, notes, "Hydrocarbons, bacteria, and other harmful toxins swept from our streets into our rivers, lakes, and oceans are the major source of water pollution in the U.S. AbTech now gives us hope that technology can cure this intractable problem."

"We are truly excited to provide our Smart Sponge technology to local governments and others who seek to address our nation's most critical water pollution challenges, including coliform bacteria plaguing our public beaches, oil tainting our Gulf Coast region, and stormwater pollution running off our streets into public waterways," says AbTech Industries President and CEO Glenn Rink. "AbTech is prepared to address these challenges, and we are grateful to the EPA for their timely approval of our stormwater pollution filtration technology."

Smart Sponge has long been a cost-effective technology proven to remove oil and other pollutants from stormwater runoff. Now, Smart Sponge Plus offers an antimicrobial agent that effectively reduces coliform bacteria found in stormwater, industrial wastewater, and municipal wastewater. These types of persistent pollution have been described as "death by a thousand cuts." No one event typically causes dramatic problems, but the gradual buildup of these pollutants in U.S. waterways has a huge environmental impact.

The EPA's approval of AbTech's Smart Sponge Plus technology for the reduction of coliform bacteria is an important milestone for AbTech and in the fight against pollution. To date, Smart Sponge's versatile technology is deployed in more than 15,000 locations throughout the world including, domestically, Long Beach, CA; Norwalk, CT; and Nags Head, NC and also offers the ability to help reduce pollutant loadings to places like Chesapeake Bay, Long Island Sound, the Great Lakes, and other important national waterways.

For those organizations tasked with emergency response cleanup efforts, whether in our harbors and waterways, on the roads or at our airports, Smart Sponge is also made in the form of booms, skimmers and on-water filtration systems designed to remove oil and other pollutants from water. As just one example, AbTech is currently working to deploy its products to assist with long term cleanup efforts in some of the most difficult to access and environmentally compromised areas of the Gulf of Mexico.

AbTech's products are a green infrastructure technology that may be used to increase points in a LEED certified development and offer extremely attractive and ethically responsible qualities and benefits for contractors, developers, engineers, architects, municipalities, states, and private sector planners across the country. For more information please visit: www.abtechindustries.com and www.regulations.gov/search/Regs/home.html#docketDetail?R=EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0941.

About AbTech Holdings, Inc. (OTCBB: ABHD)
Details about the pending merger transaction and about Abtech Holdings' business, finances, appointments and agreements can be found as part of the Company's continuous public disclosure as a reporting issuer under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission's ("SEC") EDGAR database.

About AbTech Industries, Inc.
AbTech Industries has been a privately held company since its founding over a decade ago as a startup R&D venture. AbTech Industries' operations have been funded by over $20 million dollars invested to-date. Its patented Smart Sponge® technology is a unique and innovative chemically selective polymer technology capable of removing hydrocarbons, sediment and other foreign elements from still (ponds, lakes and marinas) or flowing water (curbside drains, pipe outflows, rivers and oceans). The product is installed in over 15,000 locations across America and in 8 foreign countries. AbTech Industries is currently working on a variety of efforts to deploy its technology in the Gulf of Mexico and throughout the US public sector and DOD markets. For more information please visit: www.abtechindustries.com.

Notice Regarding Information in this Release
This release contains information which has been publicly disclosed by AbTech, and is being provided by the Company solely for informational purposes in light of the previously announced merger agreement between the Company and AbTech. Because complete public information regarding the history, business, management, financial condition and results of operations of AbTech will not be available unless and until the conditions to the previously announced merger transaction between the Company and AbTech have been satisfied and the merger has been completed, the information in this release should not be relied upon for purposes of any investment decision with respect to the purchase or sale of stock of the Company.

Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains "forward-looking statements" as that term is defined in Section 27A of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Statements in this press release which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Such forward-looking statements include, among other things, the development, costs and results of new business opportunities. Actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements due to numerous factors. Such factors include, among others, the inherent uncertainties associated with new projects and development stage companies. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and we assume no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Although we believe that any beliefs, plans, expectations and intentions contained in this press release are reasonable, there can be no assurance that any such beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions will prove to be accurate. Investors should consult all of the information set forth herein and should also refer to the risk factors disclosure outlined in our annual report on Form 10-K for the most recent fiscal year, our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and other periodic reports filed from time-to-time with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

AbTech Holdings, Inc.
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Mandi Luis, President