Posts tagged Centrifugaltoilet
Thinking about alternative mitigation approaches
Biosphere team and volunteers

Biosphere team and volunteers

Our planet is in urgent need to develop sustainable methodologies and emission-reduction programs for food production, energy production, wastewater treatment... you name it! Often emission-reduction programs lack the ability to boost economic growth, which is the first priority for most of the developing countries. However, societies and communities are increasingly moving from conventional methods to produce and discharge goods to more into resource recovery -based models and waste-to-energy type of systems to avoid and reduce negative impacts of the changing climates. Cape Winelands Biosphere Reserve as an environmental organisation tackles both, climate change adaptation, and mitigation measures.

In my studies I mainly focus on water management and treatment, so once I heard about Cape Town’s water crisis I knew I would have to go see how the situation is and what I could do for helping the locals. One student from my University had done his research internship at Cape Winelands Biosphere Reserve the previous year, so I quickly emailed the organisation and got a positive response. Soon we skyped about the topic of my research and thought that I could work with a Swedish wastewater treatment technology, called Aquatron, and test it in South African conditions. The CEO had done some background research on the technology for years and this created a perfect opportunity to start to examine the system.

Soon after moving to South Africa I found out, that problems with the existing South Africa’s wastewater treatment system are diverse. The wastewater treatment plants are lacking capacity due to the growing population, as well as lack of financial support and maintenance. Another serious problem in South Africa is the vast amount of untreated wastewater that is discharged into the environment, especially wastewater effluent from townships and informal settlements. Many of the areas are not connected to the sewage system, which causes pollution and eutrophication in the majority of the rivers and other water reservoirs. Thus, the goal of the research was mainly to build an alternative sanitation system to the current water crisis in Western Cape to reduce pollution and overall water quality risks.

In addition to this, we also decided to expand the system with a greenhouse, aquaponics, and a vertical garden. First, the wastewater from a toilet, kitchen, and shower flows into the greenhouse, where Aquatron is placed. From there it continues first to aquaponics, and finally to the vertical garden. Furthermore, a constant flow vertical garden was built to offer a solution for local food production, especially in high density areas. Aquaponics in different sizes can be used for food production, but also as storage tanks for treated wastewater. With solar water pumps, the constant water flow system prevents eutrophication and other unwanted nutrient accumulation and bacterial growth.

The first order for 100 Aquatrons was made this year and a video of a panel discussion with various experts will be published soon! Aquatron program offers a solution to the current water crisis, and it will make a huge contribution to the CWBR and other community projects and generate regular income. Instead of relying on emission-reduction efforts, this alternative proposes a technology that locally treats wastewater and can increase economic and social development.

I want to thank CWBR for making it possible for me to visit South Africa, learn about the beautiful nature and cultures there and most importantly conduct a research that has a great potential to help to mitigate the drought. Here is a short video of my stay and the Aquatron project:

Aquatron briefly

Aquatron separates liquids from solids without any moving parts or chemicals. This is accepted worldwide as the most sustainable water toilet principle.

The toilet is connected to Aquatron, which separates the excrement and treats liquids with UV light. The water further continues to aquaponics where the water is organically post-treated, and plants use the nutrients as fertilizers to grow food and feed local citizens. The water is then pumped up to a vertical garden to maximise food production. After this the water flows back to the aquaponics. Once the circular system is fully functional, the system will be removed from the municipal grid, and the system works as closed, constant flow system.

To prove the system functionality, water quality analysis were made at Stellenbosch University WA lab, where Heterotrophic P/C per 1ml at 35°C, Total coliforms per 100ml, Faecal coliforms per 100ml, and E.coli per 100ml, as the general water quality indicators, were examined.

Once the separator and the UV unit were perfectly levelled, and the pipes’ inclinations were checked properly, this resulted in drinkable water quality. The wastewater treatment system was proved to work in South African conditions if properly installed and is a recommendable solution for the current toilet systems in informal settlements, mid- to high-income households, and companies.

Does water come from a tap?

The Biosphere Reserve, invited by Frandevco, got involved with the educational component of the river clean-up program in Franschhoek today. Three-hundred youth listened to a lively interactive talk aimed to create awareness of where water comes from and what they can do to keep the river in their neighborhood clean. Why it gets dirty.

First to further spread the seed…

To grow the seed - it needs sun and water to grow, and birds to further spread new seed. Equals Love.  

Where does water come from?

How does it become dirty?

How do we keep it clean?

Lets get more kids excited about water and where it comes from!

Is Theewaterskloof Dam as powerful as the Sahara Desert
Theewaterskloof Dam

Theewaterskloof Dam

Driving past Theewaterskloof Dam, sand and dust swirl in the air at huge heights. The dam is continually adapted to keep water flowing and there is now visible evidence that areas of the dam are unable to recover from the ongoing drought. The swirling dust indicates a significant change in the ecosystem that, while on a smaller scale, mirrors a natural phenomenon elsewhere: sand storms.

Sand storms date back 70 million years, however it is only in the last few decades that they have sparked curiosity and triggered deeper study.

The Sahara Desert, stretching across the northern third of Africa, is the world’s most important origin of sand storms. Every year, between November and March, the Harmattan wind carries around 182 million tons of sand and dust on a transcontinental journey over the Atlantic and Mediterranean Oceans to Europe and South America. Throughout its journey, the dust fertilizes both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems and it is a vital supply of nutrients to the Amazon Rain Forest.

The sand comes from two main regions in the Sahara Desert: the Tibesti Mountain Region and the Bodele Depression in Chad, once a majestic lake named Mega Chad but now a barren lake bed. The sand from the Sahara and dust particles from rock erosion contain rich minerals composed of dead microorganisms filled with phosphorus. This nutrient is essential for plant proteins and the growth in forests, such as The Amazon, where it replaces nutrients flushed away by rainfall.

The sand also settles in the ocean, contributing to the health of marine life and the ocean floor.

Does the importance of the Saharan sand storms also apply to the dust clouds kicked up from Theewaterskloof Dam? What impact do the sand storms have on the surrounding area? What implication does it have for nearby residents, agriculture, and animal and plant life?

The sand storms of the Theewaterskloof Dam are obviously far smaller than those of The Sahara Desert, but the same principles apply. How is the ecosystem in Theewaterskloof adapting to the changes and what will the long-term effects be?

Where Do You Think Water Fits Into Your Life? When did you last bath?

With the continued lack of rainfall in the middle of a drought season, the dams in the Western Cape are critically low and water restrictions are becoming severe.

To ease the pressure on the water supply, a repeat of last year, Day Zero has been introduced and has steadily been moved forward as the situation is being regulated through water restrictions by the municipality.

The estimated date of Day Zero is based on the consumption of the six big dams that feed Cape Town and the Western Cape Area. It is calculated by the daily estimated water consumption from the previous week. Currently Day Zero falls on the 9th of July 2018.  

An overall of 44 main dams feed to whole Western Province.

Cape Town, which is continually expanding and the population steadily increasing, has been the most severely hit and talked about concerning the implementation of Water Restrictions and long-term solutions to prevent future scarcity of water.

In the Franschhoek Area, the Berg River Dam has a reported storage level of 52.3 %, dropping 0.01% since last week. However, just on the other side of Franschhoek Pass, Theewaterskloof Dam, has a current storage level of 11%, having dropped from 11.7% last week.

The following information on Water Level Restrictions comes from the Western Cape Government Website. These are the current levels of water restrictions reported:

Current water restrictions for Western Cape Municipalities  

·       Beaufort West Municipality - level 4B

·       Bergrivier Municipality - level 2

·       Bitou Municipality - level 1

·       Breede Valley Municipality - level 3B

·       Cederberg Municipality - level 2

·       Cape Agulhas Municipality -  level 1

·       City of Cape Town -  level 6B 

·       Drakenstein Municipality - level 6 

·       George Municipality - level 2B

·       Hessequa Municipality - level 1

·       Kannaland Municipality - level 3

·       Knysna Municipality - level 3

·       Laingsburg Municipality - level 1

·       Langeberg Municipality - level 2

·       Matzikama Municipality - level 2

·       Mossel Bay Municipality - no restrictions

·       Overstrand Municipality - level 1

·       Oudtshoorn Municipality - no restrictions

·       Prince Albert Municipality - level 1

·       Saldanha Municipality - level 5 

·       Stellenbosch Municipality - level 5 

·       Swartland Municipality - level 5 

·       Swellendam Municipality - no restrictions

·       Theeswaterskloof Municipality - level 3

·       Witzenberg Municipality - level 4

https://www.westerncape.gov.za/general-publication/latest-western-cape-dam-levels

Go to the above website for more information and to check out the update on dam levels in the Western Cape by selecting a dam on the displayed map on their website supplied by the national Department of Water and Sanitation.

This drought has been an amazing awareness campaign for the future on how ecosystems services play such an important role not just in our domestic homes but in industry as well. Ecosystem services look after us, we must learn to look after them.