TECHNOLOGY

C SECTION >B~@l:ml.u Y(EYV;J:~< MONDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2005 * fiataf.eom

Biotechnology goes underground Septic systems have long been seen as an imperfect waste disposal technology A Waterloo firm has taken up the challenge to improve them By Ju@ Steed

An advand-technology sep- tic system - "bacteria farming in a box," in the words of devel- oper, Craig Jowett, a former professor at the University of Waterloo - is making inroads in surprising places. There's an enclave of monster

homes near the posh Bayview and Lawrence Aves. area of North Toronto that isn't con- nected to the city's sewer sys- temand is on Waterloo Biofilter septics. On Highway 401 near London,

Ont., a Husky Oil truck stop needed a new wastewater treat- ment system to enable its ex- pansion Concerns about space limitations, nitrogen loading (from effluent) and lack of groundwater meant innovation was required. Enter Waterloo Biofilter, with its low-nitrogen emissions and capacity to clean and re-use Husky's wastewater for toilets. Toronto's award-winning

Healthy House, sponsored by

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corn. (CMHC). is an off-mid h o i e co&cted with sElar panels, water collection systems and a Waterloo Biofilter to recv- cle wastewater. In Northern Saskatchewan, a

communal Waterloo Biofilter connects up to 35 houses on one system. In Massachusetts, Waterloo

Biofilters pop up - or burrow down - at restaurants and homes close to the ocean, where nitrogen removal from waste- water is crucial to protect the sea (Nitrogen promotes algae growth and can, in the form of ammonia, kill fish) At tive ClubLinkgolfcourses in

Ontario, and at Toronto's Gran- ite Club golf course, Waterloo Biofilters "are treating sewage wastewater to the highest de-

gree and reusing the treated ef- fluent in the golf course irriga- tion system," states an article co-written by Jowett for the journal Environmental Science & Eagineerinq. (the Biofilter is instaiied at 30 golfcourses). We couldeo on. and on. but mu

get the pokt: h t e w a b r Ebn- tamination of groundwater, lakes, rivers and oceans is on the radar of North American com- munities and regulatory au- thorities - following the ad- vanced lead of most European countries - which makes for major business opportunities for Jowett and his partner (and wife), Robin Jowett, a former exploration geologist. They met at the University of

Toronto and explored for lead, zinc and copper in Germany, France and Spain in the late

1970s and early 1980s. After Craigreturnedto Uof T to do his Ph.D. in geology-geophysics, he was a NATO science fellow at University of Michigan and Cor- nell University; from 1988 to 1993, he was a research profes- sor in earth sciences at Univer- sity of Waterloo. There he connected with Wa-

terloo's world famous Institute for Groundwater Research and one of its leading lights, John Cherry, a global expert on groundwater contamination. Jowett, having studied the movement of fluids in relation to mines and oil and gas devel- opments, became interested in Cherry's septic system research group, looking at the migration of groundwater. And he remem- bered, growing up in the Cam- bridge, Ont. area, "how the

Grand River and the Speed Riv- er were basically sewage chan- nels for towns that just pumped their waste into the river. Ft-ettymuch all of Ontario was like that. Fifty years later we're still doing thesame thingwith septictanks in the mound." ~raditiod" septics with their

large disposal beds can work well in loose, sandy soils - onlyif owners do not use chemicals,disinfectants or bleach that kdl beneficalbacteria in the tank But if the system isn't working

properly, contaminants canseep into groundwater. 1; ~owek's experience, Ontar-

io is riddledwith old se~tics thatdon't work - or horn& and cot- tages that just have ancientholding tanks that leak effluent

Please see Biofilter, C5

How a Waterloo-based company is breaking y rreatment chamber: ground with its ideas for improving the Tank is filled with foam

traditional septic system. blocks which provide a surface area for About 35 per cent of new homes in Canada, and microscopic organisms many businesses such as highway rest stops, that break down waste, are being built off of municipal sewage lines. including organic

The challenge is to make effluent cleaner and I

pollutan~s, ciliform therefore more safely absorbed back into the 1 bacteria and ammonium.

1 The chamber can be above ground or buried.

Area bed: A stone platform, on top of a deposit of sand, is located under or near the

1 treatment chamber to allow Se~tic tank: filtration of effluent into the ~reatrraw sewage through ground. Because of Biofilter fermentation. Solid wastes settle treatment, effluent is cleaner to the bottom; filters remove large than with more standard particles and waste water is sent technologies, and the leaching on for further treatment. bed can be substantially smaller.

with a pump regulates the flow of effluent to the Biofilter treatment chamber. 7

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 28,2005 * TORONTO STAR * 6 5

Technology

Basic Biofilter From (11

intosup~~mlsandlakHe isappakdthatthepwvin*edws notmguh thew ofsep- tic system, and says there should be Iam - *mdy eh-farced-thatrequlpeaU~residents to have functioningseptics * t h a t are regularly

His w i p e occurred in I390 at a Univmsity of Water100 con- ~ n c t ? s t t a ~ d t h e !vimnment office in Toronto. Jowettlistenedtoalltlletallr

igmdwa& and sub-ns prapwd h r " d t l . & areas. T h e ~ l o p m e n t o f h d g i

areasoutlyhg~eapmsentsmajor planning pr~bZem. CIose to40percentofnewhomesin the Unin4d States, and about 35

El centjnC3mhmbeing twitb septic systems, not on

m t l n i c i p d w line. Which raises critical issues. How do we l~rotgCt our 4

tairmbb irlhsmm on sep- ticsthatmasgoodasmmge treatment ~lants. wch offen

~e-though6 septic bed out dthe

* y m ibt: gmmd and

pntthewholethhginabq you'll get CO-t treatment Buthcazlyoutneat&& i n a b o x m t h a t t h ewtis d e a n l q @ r e i t ~ the t3flvkonmenP A standard septic system con- sistsofapipecmybgwastewa-ter from toilets and sinks into a tank w h e ~ solids settle to the bottom Liquids flow out into a tile bed where conbmhmts fa- terthroupjhsan4@drmr-

mIZE=k the soil are sup- posedtomrkwithoxygen- which makes it an aerobic pro- cess - to further degrade con- taminants," explains Igmtius Ip, an engineer-in-training who works at Waterlm Biafilte~sheadquartera in I t a h c d , 45 kilometres east of Waterloa But theprocesscan~c-

tion - ifthe soil is heavy clay, or

bAGa:g=i there's a high groundwster - ta-

tab

adequately treatmi Thus E coli ean spread into wells. Rocky ar- eas also present problmnsj con- tzmhbed-maseep though cracks and fkms in bedrock. In the ML& fbr better septic

technology, J m t t hired a mi- mbiobgi& m y e MeMas- ter, and they found through ex-

E

n

-

biotech powers cleaner septics

~ ~

quirernents," say^ Robin JowetL w e h t o s e e k a m i n e v - ergramwe enter." The Waterloo Biofilter has

beeninstalledinhrlia"but IcanYsaywehawappmvalin mehim* she adds. "We haup? apprcii'6ai in 8ve counties in Micb-m~ It's technid market- ing YGU have to sell the system to the mgulaiom in the W Q ~ end get apprwal,

- jurls- then

y o ~ ~ ~ ~ & t o ~ asignets o f ~ e ~ t m e a tsys- tem, and imtders,'' At tbis point, the privately

owned company is "nicely prof- ibbIeP Craig J& Wa- terloo BiofWm are not cheap: the cast far a 3-bedroom home or cottage, imtdht is about $l5,000, including exmtien, &~:andBi&brtank.A#' s h i p p i n g c o n ~ c m h o l d a c o m m u n a l s y s t e m t a ~ 2 5 houses at a cost of about $3SOpoo. Tho- of Waf&r)[] Biofil-

ternhave beenhtaW,haUin residential settings, half wm- mardalor~unal-bjgsys- - ~ - q g r O ~ , golf- The* been in c o n ~ u a

will ht, Jm&t anticipates, at lesst 30 if-, the rmbescanbewa&ed+~ueed and t b a c k i p w i t h m w ~ on gbottom Fiffy yearsout, at,

theycanbedrmrrpedinLanW - dmplaced

Nawadarys, Jmdt is f o don new technology to Ireat #all the chtmicds &at are a o p m - lent (in septb], unfo-temy?

Hismissionistogettheseplic system idusby equivalent to sewage treatment plantst in termsofdcq. Weneedpmvincialregula-

tions requiring every rural homeandbusinesstobarvea functioningseptic,withrnainte- nance and servicing part of the package*

n d & -

taehtothefioamdeatthear @ie content (in wa&w&er].m Theporesinthefamxmwndthe spac~sbetweenthem,&w oxygen to move through the bwc "AU we're doing is bacteria

farming in a h p Soactivearethebacteriathat

bythe timewatercemes ouf99 per cent of pathogens - imhd-

fecalcolihrrn-aregone. ~chmeansthesmalldisposalM is just there to drain dmter.ThesywsnmnbeWed in remote lclcatiom and on cWi-cu2t sites - bednxk, high water table, clay soil or a kome that

1aGksthespaceforafull-sizetile bed It can be dug into the g r o m d o r b ~ i n a s m a lshed A W ~ p g rompany, Amhi-

tedturrrl and Commmitp Plan- ning (WWW.BM@E@~ con- I s k r k s the Water1w B M -tersy&emandtrucksittooil andgasmmpsthroughaleasing partmr in Alberta, says Lisa Sbdk,oo-oweeroftheWinni-

pegf%n,whichisindkmusi~n with aSaudi Arabism oilcampa- nytoprovidesimhunits~ * * * * * By thelate l990s, the Waterloo

BiDfilterhrtdbaengantedCa-d b n and uS patents. It had beentesbedinparious~ ti- f r o m ~ t o E d a s sc h m * and a p m by )he US, l3mmnmentrd Rotechon Agency andby theUS Na*ionat SanitatianFoundation. Yetwithwery~ce-Wa

t e r b Biofilters tzm be found across Canada d i n Missouri, RhodeIdm$hTewYor&Neur Medm;asthkstoryirwritten, Jowett is in kbai, marketing theproduct-themmpmyfac-es c.Mh@s This is a highly regdatedsectorandeveryjurk-W o n has its own rules and re-

l c-a

-

perhentation that deme ply- ureithanefoam,cutintosmall &,pdesanidealmedi- um for aerobic bacteria and fil- teringe&luent Essentially, they added a stage

to a Mtional septic qWem and cut down the size of the dis-

podbedWasteframhhause enters a tank where ferments-

place$ = d& solids breaking down and then flowingintothe WaterlooBioH- ter'?lacteriaWhteadofre- @@ en a large dispDsal bed to treat wastewater, thebtment happens In the box. ElYuent is dispersed over thousands of & centimem-square foam &, which holdwater1ik-e akitchen S P o ~ ~ ?Each foam quare beoomes a

c o l o n y o f ~ - we're opti- mizing conditions for bacteria growthA J m q b h s . The naturallyormrring*Pat-

-

'People need sewage systems that work' Ever wonder what people do on ada's largest three-day con- owners of Forest Hill Real Es- septics and other sources of a rainy weekend in November? sumer show, drawing close ta tate. pollution on his lake. Driving past the airport to the 35,000 people, At Paddle The Wagmans wanted a "We had En coli in the water at Fall Cottage Life Show, to see Shack, the hottest item was "state-of-the-art septic sys- the Salvation Army camp and the Waferlor, Biofitter booth. I snowshoes - attestingto the tern" for the new cottage the kids couldn't go in swim- got lost in the maze of parking fact that more and more cot- they've recently bought, rning. Three Mile Lake has lots crammed with cars sur- tagers view cottage life asa "We'va got nine grandchildren (toxic) blue-green algae and it rounding the International year-round experience. and one on the way," said Elea- could spread into the big lakes Centre, Among the boats and boots, nor. in Muskoka. Cottage life is big business, hot tubs and hammocks, wood- "We want to do this right: said "People need sewage systems In its first year, 1993, the Spring stoves and compostingtoilets, David. that work, and we need laws Cottage Life Show attracted the Waterloo Biofilber attract- A cottager from Skeleton Lake with teeth." 28,000 people and is now Can- ad David and Eleanor Wagman, ta lbd about dysfunctional -Steed

ea

n -

a

Leff Robin Jowetl, who runs the financial side, and husband h l g , the inventor, with fresh h m blodrs destined far a k w detades af work in Bidlter septic tank system Ihe system is designed to make tank effluent d m r a d scl mum wfely absorbed bsck into theenvironment.