Grantee Research Project Results
Tertiary Wastewater Treatment through Aquaponics
EPA Grant Number: SU840154Title: Tertiary Wastewater Treatment through Aquaponics
Investigators: Murray, Kelsey , Mitchell, Bryan , Loverich, James , Eisenbraun, Kaden , Anderson, Todd
Institution: Western Dakota Technical Institute
EPA Project Officer: Page, Angela
Phase: I
Project Period: December 1, 2020 through November 30, 2021 (Extended to November 30, 2023)
Project Amount: $24,995
RFA: P3 Awards: A National Student Design Competition Focusing on People, Prosperity and the Planet (2020) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: P3 Awards , P3 Challenge Area - Safe and Sustainable Water Resources
Description:
In order to meet the challenges of sustainable waste management systems, sanitation technologies are innovatively being linked to agricultural systems. Issues related to water scarcity, nutrient-depletion in soils, and waste disposal are becoming increasingly common, largely due to an expanding global human population and climate change. Thus, there is a need for sustainable waste management systems that both protect the environment and benefit society. This can be accomplished through aquaponic systems, using reclaimed wastewater effluent as the water and nutrient source. Additionally, through aquaponics technology, total bacterial load in wastewater effluent may be lowered, thereby preventing contamination with fecal coliforms and potentially pathogenic bacteria.
Objective:
The objective of the proposed P3 design project is to develop an aquaponics system for use in tertiary wastewater treatment. The use of soilless agriculture platforms in integrated closed-loop wastewater systems has been shown to capture nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus that are essential for plant growth, thereby preventing surface water contamination with nutrients. Given there is often a shortage of nearby arable land for crop production, hydroponic or aquaponic approaches using wastewater irrigation are a mutually beneficial relationship, in that it eliminates the need for agricultural land. The resulting systems would allow for year-round production using reclaimed wastewater in virtually any location across the globe. The design will ultimately link agricultural and sanitation technologies to simultaneously address 21st century challenges of food insecurity, nutrient-depletion in soils, pollution, and water reclamation.
Expected Results:
The dual nature of this project, through the combination of agriculture and sanitation, has the potential to address many emerging issues of the 21st century including:
• Food security: using a soilless growing system that does not require arable land would allow for agriculture in both urban and rural areas, thereby increasing access to local, fresh foods.
• Constrained water resources: Proposed P3 designs would focus on water reclamation for purposes of agriculture
• Surface water pollution: Proposed P3 designs could prevent surface water contamination by both nutrients and bacteria
During this study, our team will perform measurements of nutrients in wastewater effluent and in aquaponics effluent to determine efficacy of the system. Additionally, we propose to measure coliform bacteria, and their reduction as a result of tertiary treatment through aquaponics.
This proposed P3 project would ultimately prevent nutriment contamination of surface water, thereby potentially preventing eutrophication and associate harmful algal blooms. Additionally, it is postulated that aquaponics as a tertiary wastewater treatment method would reduce total coliform bacteria in wastewater effluent, thereby preventing biological pollution of surface waters.
Supplemental Keywords:
Water, water treatment, tertiary water treatment, nutrient reduction, coliform reduction, water filtration, water reclamation, pathogen detection and removal, agricultureProgress and Final Reports:
The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.