A gardening experiment included using four water sources (river, Biofilter water, SMART water, municipal) to compare growth
Emily Nicklin's doctoral dissertation examines the efficacy of full-scale biof-iltration systems in mitigating antiretroviral drugs (ARVDs) present in contaminated surface water runoff from an informal settlement.
A control and experimental shack/dwelling that measures temperature and humidity in each structure.
The river Stiebeuel River that bisects the site has been restored with indigenous vegetation.
Nature-based water treatment coupled with energy recovery (biogas from organic waste) and food production, demonstrating an integrated, circular "Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems" approach in a peri-urban setting.
The project aims to develop concepts for integrating greywater and stormwater recycling within dense, informal low-income urban communities.
The project aims to demonstrate the benefits of decentralized water management technologies and provide a decision framework to help water authorities use these systems.
The bio-filters are the initial treatment, they act as a wetland to clean the polluted water extracted from the Stiebeuel River. Many have contributed to the development of these treatment cells.
The sequential management aquifer recharge treatment (SMART) has been add as a polishing process to ensure remaining contaminants to be removed from the bio-treated river water. This project is led by the Technical University of Munich.
We are building a garden nursery to grow seedlings for the garden.
The water from the treatment train is released back into the river or reused for irrigation. The garden/farm contributes to multiple of the projects run at the Water Hub.
We are monitoring boreholes across the site in order to study the interaction between the surface water and the ground water.
The maximum through put of the system is roughly 36kl/day - this is a large experiment. The treatment goal for the site is 1000kl/day - we have the space, we need collaborators.
The sequential management aquifer recharge treatment (SMART) system (read above) is set to be expanded through increasing the size of the system.
The soil has just been turned, the seeds planted, the rain has come. Next steps include scaling up, defining governance models, ensuring reasonable economics.
With the arrival of the biodigester, the need for resource transport will increase. E-bikes present one potential solution to the challenge.
