Swamp of Dreams

Joey Holleman of The State made a trip to the Augusta Wetlands and wrote an article on his visit and what he found. He thinks it makes a good place to visit. Thousands of visitors apparently agree because they go every year. We had the same impression when we went.
There are a few pictures in the earlier posts on this blog. These wetlands treat their effluent in all the ways they planned, plus a few more.
The founder and President of the Southeastern Natural Sciences Academy, mentioned in the article, has just been named to lead the environmental efforts at the Clemson University Restoration Institute. He will be professor of biological sciences there, but will retain his role at the Natural Sciences Academy. He is a special resource for this state and a great catch for Clemson.

All This and a Reduction in Greenhouse Gasses, too?

We know that wetlands are cheaper, mean lower sewer rates, do the treatment job better, provide park settings for people and natural habitat for animals, and provide research opportunities for research universities. Is it possible they reduce greenhouse gasses too?
Columbia has committed to Cool Cities, a Sierra Club program to address global warming on a city-by-city basis. Step 1 of Cool Cities “sets the goal of reducing citywide global warming carbon dioxide (CO2) pollution to 7 percent below 1990 levels by 2012.” Mayor Coble is now driving a Prius, a hybrid vehicle that uses 25% of the gasoline of an SUV or 50% of the gasoline of a normal small car.
These wetlands will be a bigger help (and, if you count the fact that they save money, they will cost less too). Studies have shown that constructed treatment wetlands, when properly designed and operated, are most effective in causing a net reduction in CO2.
We all learned in grade school that plants take up CO2. What we (or at least I) didn’t learn is that using electricity means releasing a lot of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Power plants around here, except nuclear and hydro, burn things to make electricity. And that burning releases CO2 into the atmosphere. Thus even electric cars, to the extent they plug in to the grid, cause CO2 releases. Right now, based on third party calculations and the assumption that Columbia Metro pays $0.05 per kilowatt hour for electricity, the sewer plant on the Congaree presently uses electricity enough to release 55 tons of CO2 per day into the atmosphere. That’s the equivalent of having more than 2,500 SUVs in the Columbia fleet. And there is probably little that can be done about that.
What can be affected is the amount of CO2 that will be released when tertiary treatment is required and installed. PG&E estimates that adding conventional tertiary treatment will cause a 40-50% rise in electricity usage at a sewer plant. Treatment wetlands, on the other hand, can use very little electricity. For example, the total annual budget for Orlando Wetlands, including the staff of five, is less than 30% of the current Columbia Metro electric bill. In fact, if you use the calculators provided by the EPA and a little math you see the difference in CO2 emissions between the proposed treatment wetlands and the conventional treatment is equal to about 22 tons of CO2 per day, or 1,000 SUVs.

A Link to the Journal of Environmental Quality

We posted a new link at right to an abstract in The Journal of Environmental Quality. They came to our attention writing about the successful enhancement of soil thought to be unsuitable for wetlands. Apparently the loamy soils at Cape Fear, NC presented some challenges to good nutrient uptake. These scientists were able to enrich the soil to make it possible to host good wetlands there. While the article is technical, it shows that, once again, even in the most hostile places, Mother Nature's water purifier finds a way to work.
And if you do go look at that page, click on the link on its right side "Similar Articles in This Journal" and you'll get hundreds of articles on wetlands and all the things they remove and all the climates where they have been tested. This stuff is for the scientists.

Why Does Nitorgen Need to be Removed from Wastewater?

Excess nitrogen in Lake Marion fuels the production of algae which, in turn, results in low levels of oxygen in the water. This creates an environment where fish and other aquatic animals cannot live. Additionally, high nitrogen levels cause other adverse conditions, including: blue baby syndrome, taste and odor problems in drinking water, increased risks of bladder cancer, and decreased water clarity. And Washington University researchers have found what they call a “warm gun” linking excess nitrogen and phosphorous to deformed frogs (too many or too few legs).
EPA has determined that the natural background level of nutrients in this region’s lakes is .02 mg total phosphorus per liter (TP/L) and .3 mg total nitrogen per liter (TN/L). SC DHEC has utilized these guidelines to place numeric nutrient criteria on Lake Marion which limits the levels of TP/L to .06mg and TN/L to 1.5mg.
Columbia Metro has most recently reported 24.6mg TN/L in its effluent discharged to the Congaree River. According to the EPA, this is approximately the same amount of nutrient pollution as barnyard runoff.

Don't Forget About Nitrogen

Lake Marion is an “impaired water” due to excess phosphorus and nitrogen. The inclusion of both nutrients as a source of lake pollution is significant because the Columbia Wetlands issue to date has been framed by comparing constructed wetlands to conventional treatment for the removal of phosphorus (only) from wastewater. This is not the whole picture. We provided a link in an earlier post showing that conventional removal of nitrogen and phosphorous is much more complicated and expensive than removing phosphorous alone.
Wetlands, on the other hand, treat both phosphorus and nitrogen more cost effectively than conventional treatment.
The EPA reports that over a twenty year period the cost (in present value terms) of constructed treatment wetlands is a mere 14% of the cost of conventional wastewater treatment. A WERF report also indicates conventional costs to remove nitrogen are 50% greater than the conventional costs to remove phosphorus.
It would be nice if the debate were only about phosphorous. But it’s not.

What Lives in Wetlands?

We are sometimes asked, “What lives in wetlands?” Usually this is followed by “Alligators?” The answer is yes; alligators are a small part of the diverse wildlife living in wetlands. To the extent that alligators live in Columbia, they will love the wetlands.
That doesn’t mean they are coming to your yard, though. Wild animals prefer not to share space with humans. It is when their habitat is reduced or conditions change that they find the need to explore new territory.
A special function of these wetlands is the habit they provide for wildlife. Constructed wetlands are undiminished and unaffected by drought for as long as they are needed to provide sewerage treatment. And as a primitive, moist refuge for wildlife, they will provide a home to lots of unique animals.
For instance, the Orlando wetlands are home to more than 200 species of animals.Birds especially love wetlands. Millions of blackbirds live in the Augusta wetlands and bird watchers are among the wetlands many tourists. The Orlando wetlands have over a dozen endangered species living in its wetlands park and, as I recall, they host the entire Florida population of several of these. As a result of the wildlife living in the wetlands, the Florida Audubon Society is a supporter and frequent visitor of the Orlando wetlands park.