A new life for

The Fisherman Bay Sewer District is served by a septic-tank effluent pumping wastewater collection system. Stantec Consulting Services

presented a tremendous challenge for the plant operator to ensure consistent compliance with plant effluent fecal coliform, total residual chlorine (TRC), carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand (CBOD),
Constructed wetland with shredded-tire chips produces consistently highquality lagoon effluent
William Li and Geoffrey Holmes
48

isherman Bay Sewer District (Lopez Island, Wash.) owns and operates a 129-m3/d (34,000-gal/d) aerated lagoon wastewater treatment plant. Nitrite and algae in the lagoon effluent

and total suspended solids (TSS) requirements. Therefore, the district investigated alternatives for removing algae from the lagoon effluent, ultimately finding an unconventional and cost-effective solution in a constructed wetland with tire-chip media.
2010 Water Environment & Technology All rights reserved

WE&T l SEPTEMBER 2010 l WWW.WEF.ORG/MAGAZINE

old tires
Permit challenges
The Fisherman Bay Sewer District is located about 160 km (100 mi) northwest of Seattle. Users in the district service area include a school, hotels, bed-and-breakfasts, restaurants, retail businesses, and approximately 250 residents. The entire service area is served by a septic-tank effluent pumping wastewater collection system. The lagoon plant is permitted to discharge to the San Juan Channel marine waters with a single port outfall. Monthly average effluent limits for the plant are 200 cfu/100 mL fecal coliform, 0.5 mg/L TRC, 25 mg/L CBOD, and 75 mg/L TSS. Weekly average limits are 400 cfu/100 mL fecal coliform, 0.75 mg/L TRC, 40 mg/L CBOD, and 110 mg/L TSS. Before the constructed wetland was built, the plant consisted of an anaerobic pretreatment pond, two aerated cells operated in series, a settling cell, and a calcium hypochlorite tablet system for the plant effluent disinfection. As with many other lagoon plants, the districts lagoon plant effluent contained some biomass and levels of algae that varied depending on sunlight and climate conditions. Moreover, lagoon effluent often contained varying levels of nitrite in the summer months. The plant operator had to maintain tight control of calcium hypochlorite dosage to ensure adequate disinfection to meet both the fecal coliform requirement and the chlorine residual requirement. Generally, high levels of calcium hypochlorite were provided to ensure adequate disinfection when the algae levels were high. Consequently, plant effluent fecal coliform, TRC, CBOD, and TSS levels were extremely variable, occasionally exceeding permit limits for individual samples (see figures 1, 2, and 3, p. 50). Analysis showed that the majority of the CBOD in the lagoon effluent was particulate CBOD. Soluble CBOD was generally less than 5 mg/L.

Alternatives and solutions

In 2000, after experiencing repeated CBOD and fecal coliform permit violations, the district commissioned a study to determine how plant performance could be improved. The study recommended adding an anaerobic pretreatment cell at the plant influent end to reduce available carbon for algae growth and excessive sludge buildup in the lagoon, and a constructed wetland for polishing the lagoon effluent. The pretreatment cell was built in 2003, but the wetland was not built because of limited funding. Although this upgrade helped reduce algae levels somewhat and ensured the district would comply with effluent limits on a monthly basis, relatively high levels of algae persisted, threatening permit compliance. Therefore, when new funding became available in 2005, the district considered additional plant upgrades, including dechlorination, a sand filter, a cloth media filter and membrane system, and a constructed wetland. The membrane system would require stringent pretreatment that would be too complicated for the district. With very small pore sizes, both the sand filter and cloth media filter would require frequent backwashing for treating solids-laden lagoon effluent. Also, these systems would

A constructed wetland was shown to be a viable alternative to other more costly plant upgrades. Stantec Consulting Services

2010 Water Environment & Technology All rights reserved

WWW.WEF.ORG/MAGAZINE l SEPTEMBER 2010 l WE&T

49

Figure 1. Plant effluent CBOD and TSS

80 Plant Efflu uent CBOD5 and TSS (mg/l) 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 10/28/03 Figure 1: Plant Effluent CBOD5 and TSS
Plant Effluent CBOD5 Plant Effluent TSS

3/23/04

8/17/04

1/11/05

6/6/05 Time

11/1/05

3/27/06

8/21/06

CBOD = carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand. TSS = total suspended solids.

Figure 2. Plant effluent TRC

1.25 Figure 2: Plant Effluent TRC

1.00 Plan Effluent TRC (mg/l) nt

0.75

0.50

0.25

0.00 10/28/03

3/23/04

8/17/04

1/11/05

6/6/05 Time

11/1/05

3/27/06

8/21/06

TRC = total residual chlorine.

Figure 3. Plant effluent fecal coliform

1600 1400 Fecal Coliform (cfu/100ml) 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0 10/28/03 Figure 3: Plant Effluent Fecal Coliform

be expensive to build and operate, exceeding the districts financial and manpower limitations. The dechlorination alternative would resolve the TRC problem but would not lower the CBOD and TSS levels. Therefore, none of these systems was evaluated in detail. On the other hand, the constructed wetland was a viable option. With estimated construction costs of $148,000, it would be less expensive to build than the other systems. Since wetlands are natural treatment systems, they are virtually maintenance-free: They have no moving parts and require little operator attention except for vegetation harvest every few years. Furthermore, constructed wetlands are effective for removing algae and biomass that contribute to plant effluent TSS and particulate CBOD. They also provide a new habitat for local wildlife. Initially, the wetland was designed and approved with gravel media. However, during construction, it became apparent that tire chips could be imported more cost-effectively than gravel. Moreover, reusing old tires would be environmentally beneficial. The district asked the design engineer to evaluate the feasibility of replacing the gravel media with shredded-tire chips. The engineers literature research showed that tire chips had been used successfully in leach fields to replace gravel media in many states. Tire chips also were used in experimental-scale constructed wetlands for treating septic-tank effluent from single-residence homes. No information was found regarding tire chips used to treat lagoon effluent in field-scale constructed wetlands. However, since analytical data showed no apparent hazardous chemical components in the tire chips and that tire chips were approved in many states for use in septic systems and are less expensive, have higher porosity, and are easier to install than gravel, the engineer decided to replace 70% of the gravel media with tire chips.

Constructed wetland design

The constructed wetland has a subsurface flow design; that is, the water level is maintained beneath the media layer. The wetland basin has a 1-mm synthetic liner, a 760-mm-deep (30-in.-deep) media bed, and a surface area of 1150 m2 (12,350 ft2). Approximately 70% of the media is 50-mm (2-in.) shredded-tire chips placed at the influent end of the basin, and the remaining 30% is 20-mm (0.75-in.) cleaned gravel at the effluent end of the basin. The tire chips have a porosity of 0.57, and the gravel has a porosity of 0.41. Design flow for the wetland was 157 m3/d (41,424 gal/d), with 2 days of hydraulic retention time. Vegetation in the wetland includes cattails,

3/23/04

8/17/04

1/11/05

6/6/05 Time

11/1/05

3/27/06

8/21/06

50

WE&T l SEPTEMBER 2010 l WWW.WEF.ORG/MAGAZINE

2010 Water Environment & Technology All rights reserved

TSS and CBOD5 Removal (%)

Performance
In the initial 8 months of operation, TSS in the plant effluent was higher because of debris washouts from the tire chips (they were not washed prior to being placed in the wetland basin). TSS in the plant effluent peaked in May 2007, then gradually decreased and stabilized in October 2007. The wetland almost always has removed TSS to less than 10 mg/L, generally less than 5 mg/L since then. After the initial operational period, variations in the influent TSS have no apparent influence on the effluent TSS. CBOD in the wetland effluent also was higher in the initial 8 months of operation. Test results showed that high CBOD in the initial operating months was caused primarily by ferrous irons leaching from the steel wires in the tire chips. Since October 2007, CBOD was generally less than 5 mg/L. Influent CBOD variations have no obvious impact on the effluent CBOD. Wetland influent and effluent soluble CBOD were basically no different after October 2007. This indicates that the wetland removed essentially all particulate CBOD in the lagoon effluent but no soluble CBOD. This could be because the remaining CBOD in the lagoon effluent was generally nonbiodegradable refractory compounds. Beginning in October 2007, effluent CBOD and soluble CBOD were nearly the same, consistently below 10 mg/L and generally less than 5 mg/L, offering further support for this theory. Also, this indicates that biodegradable CBOD removal in the lagoon is generally complete. In fact, the majority of the CBOD in the lagoon effluent consists of products (algae and biomass) of the lagoon system, rather than the residual of the plant influent CBOD. This is important, because it means that plant expansion which some might recommend would not have solved the consistent CBOD permit noncompliance problem. Also, it suggests that a soluble-BOD-based, first-order kinetic model would be a more appropriate approach to lagoon design than the widely used overall observed BOD-removal model. The constructed wetland removed approximately 88% of TSS and 79% of CBOD, on average, since October 2007. The removal percentages were nearly completely determined by the influent TSS and CBOD to the wetland, since effluent TSS and CBOD were relatively constant regardless of the

60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10%

TSS Removal (%) CBOD5 Removal (%) TSS (mg/l)

7 6 5 4 3 2
CBOD5 (mg/l)

0% 10/1/07

1/29/08

5/28/08

9/25/08

Time

1/23/09

5/23/09

9/20/09

1 1/18/10

TSS = total suspended solids. CBOD = carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand.

Figure 5. Plant effluent fecal coliform

1600 1400 1200
Fecal (cfu/100ml)

1000 800 600 400 200 0

10/28/03

9/7/04

7/19/05

5/29/06 Time

4/9/07

2/4/08

12/15/08

10/26/09

Figure 6. Plant effluent TRC

1.25

TRC (mg/l)

0.75

0.5

0.25

0 10/28/03

10/12/04

9/27/05

9/11/06 8/20/07 Time

7/28/08

7/13/09

TRC = total residual chlorine.

2010 Water Environment & Technology All rights reserved

WWW.WEF.ORG/MAGAZINE l SEPTEMBER 2010 l WE&T

51

TSS and CBOD5 (mg/l)

bulrushes, and reeds that were transplanted from local wetlands. Construction of the wetland was completed in November 2006, and vegetation planting was completed in spring 2007. Wetland operation began immediately after the basin construction was completed.

Figure 4. Wetland effluent TSS and CBOD and removal efficiencies Figure 4: Wetland Effluent TSS and CBOD5 and Removal Efficiencies
100% 90% 80% 70% 11 10 9 8

The wetland basin has a synthetic liner and is filled with 70% shredded-tire chips and 30% gravel.

Stantec Consulting Services

influent TSS and CBOD. A turbidity test from a grab sample from the effluent storage pond on Nov. 3, 2009, showed a value of 1.2 nephelometric turbidity units, which is comparable to tertiary effluent turbidity values from sand filters and cloth media filters operated in typical mechanical plants. High flows typically occur from November to March in the district plant due to seasonal rainfalls. Weekly performance data show that flow surges have some impacts on the effluent TSS and CBOD of the constructed wetland, but seasonal climate change had no apparent influence on the performance of the wetland (see Figure 4, p. 51). This indicates that physical separation processes, such as sedimentation, filtration, and adsorption, are the primary mechanisms of the wetland for removing lagoon effluent CBOD and that the biological removal process is secondary and insignificant. Limited test results showed that average fecal coliform removal through the constructed wetland was approximately 97%. The majority of the time, fecal coliform in the constructed wetland effluent was below the permit limits of 200 cfu/100 mL for a monthly average and 400 cfu/100 mL for a weekly average. In the last 2 years, the effluent fecal coliform has varied much less and was consistently below 200 cfu/100 mL (see Figure 5, p. 51). Since January 2008, TRC variation in the plant effluent has been reduced significantly. TRC values were consistently less than 0.75 mg/L, and the majority of the TRC values were below 0.25 mg/L (see Figure 6, p. 51).

Added benefits
In addition to the consistent performance that ensured permit compliance for the plant, the constructed wetland reduced calcium hypochlorite tablet dosage, eliminated nitritelock influence on the tablet dosage, and created a new habitat enjoyed by local wildlife, such as red-winged blackbirds, swallows, and sparrows. The consistent high quality of wetland effluent has made it much easier for the operator to maintain calcium hypochlorite dosage for providing adequate disinfection while maintaining low levels of TRC in the plant effluent. The wetland effluent quality is comparable to tertiary effluent from sophisticated sand filters and cloth media filters in many large mechanical plants. Plant effluent has met the states Class B reclaimed-water standards and has consistently met the states Class D reclaimed-water standards in the last 2 years. Because of the consistent high quality, the district is considering offering the plant effluent for appropriate reuse on the island and has built a storage pond for the potential reuse purposes. The wetland provides a new barrier for TSS, CBOD, and bacteria removal for the plant. This barrier enables the plant to operate at a high capacity in terms of flow and organic loading without any permit violations. A recent validation study showed that the plant could be rerated at 200 m3/d (53,000 gal/d) flow and 33 kg/d (73 lb/d) BOD loading. The application for rerating the plant at such capacity was

52

WE&T l SEPTEMBER 2010 l WWW.WEF.ORG/MAGAZINE

2010 Water Environment & Technology All rights reserved

approved by the state regulatory agency in May. With the new capacity, the current plant could meet the districts growth needs for many years to come.

Lessons learned
Since this project is the first field-scale constructed wetland with tire-chip media, valuable lessons have been learned that could benefit other communities that consider using tire chips as wetland media. First, the tire chips should be washed and cleaned prior to being placed in the wetland basin. This could eliminate the TSS spike in the initial operation, as experienced by the districts plant. Second, provisions must be made to address ferrousiron leaching if the tire chips contain steel wires. The districts plant was able to aerate the wetland effluent and recirculate a portion of it back to the lagoon for oxidizing the iron to reduce its CBOD contribution to the plant effluent. Third, although the tire chips are heavy enough not to float in the basin, they are bouncy. Therefore, a minimum 75-mm (3-in.) gravel layer is recommended to place on top of the tire chips. Finally, it is recommended that coarse rocks be placed at the influent end of the wetland basin to prevent clogging by algae and biomass.

communities may be experiencing similar challenges to those at the district plant: limited construction and operations and maintenance resources, algae overgrowth and nitrite lock, and permit noncompliance. Many engineers prefer mechanical plants, and some regulatory agencies recommend them for upgrading failing lagoon plants. However, constructed wetlands offer a passive, low-technology, low-cost, low-maintenance, reliable, and simple alternative to mechanical plants. The performance of the constructed wetland at the districts facility has demonstrated that the use of constructed wetlands is a viable approach for improving plant effluent quality and possibly increasing the plant capacity, and that tire chips are a cost-effective gravel replacement for communities without local supply. William Li is a senior engineer and associate in the Phoenix office of Stantec Consulting Services (Edmonton, Alberta). Geoffrey Holmes is the superintendent and manager of the Fisherman Bay Sewer District (Lopez Island, Wash.). The authors wish to thank former colleagues Michael Richard and John McGee for their contributions to the project.

A viable alternative for lagoon facilities

There are thousands of lagoon wastewater treatment facilities in operation across the United States. The vast majority are owned and operated by small communities. Many of these

Stantec Consulting Services One benefit of constructed wetlands is that they provide a new habitat for local wildlife.

2010 Water Environment & Technology All rights reserved

WWW.WEF.ORG/MAGAZINE l SEPTEMBER 2010 l WE&T

53