A gardening experiment included using four water sources (river, Biofilter water, SMART water, municipal) to compare growth
Emily Nicklin's doctoral dissertation examines the efficacy of full-scale biof-iltration systems in mitigating antiretroviral drugs (ARVDs) present in contaminated surface water runoff from an informal settlement.
A control and experimental shack/dwelling that measures temperature and humidity in each structure.
The bio-filters are the initial treatment, they act as a wetland to clean the polluted water extracted from the Stiebeuel River. Many have contributed to the development of these treatment cells.
The sequential management aquifer recharge treatment (SMART) has been add as a polishing process to ensure remaining contaminants to be removed from the bio-treated river water. This project is led by the Technical University of Munich.
The water from the smart system is released back into the river or reused for irrigation.
We are building a garden nursery to house seedlings and a compost toilet.
The maximum through put of the system is roughly 36kl/day - this is a large experiment. The treatment goal for the site is 1000kl/day - we have the space, we need collaborators.
The sequential management aquifer recharge treatment (SMART) system (read above) is set to be expanded through increasing the size of the system.
The soil has just been turned, the seeds planted, the rain has come. Next steps include scaling up, defining governance models, ensuring reasonable economics.
With the arrival of the biodigester, the need for resource transport will increase. E-bikes present one potential solution to the challenge.
