News and Events
Water Filtration Workshop
March 23, 2009
As an introduction to the 2009 George Goes Green campaign for campus sustainability, Radical Sustainability co-author Scott Kellogg led a workshop on building artificial wetlands for bioremediation of graywater systems.
Click to enlarge photos by Aundra Weissert '08.
Displaying the different tools and materials needed for the filtration system, Scott Kellogg explains the building process.
Sam Bulkilvish '09 stops to greet an unexpected canine visitor.
Step one completed: all three barrels for the filtration system, with PVC pipe and fittings attached.
Step three: fill the barrels with gravel—Thomas Luttrell '11 and Nicole Robinson '10 shovel gravel into a container.
Pointing out the rhizome of a wetland plant, Sam Bulkilvish '09 gets ready for step four: planting the woolgrass and bulrush.
Working together, Alyse Bensel '10 and Ricky Davis '10 transplant the wetland plants in the barrels.
Alyse Bensel '10 and Sam Bulkilvish '09 look for empty spaces in the barrels. A total of fourteen plants were placed in each of the three barrels.
A close-up of the planting process.
Step four completed! All of the native wetland plants have been added to the barrels.
Nicole Robinson '10 and CES Associate Tara Holste '07 inoculate the barrels with river water and soil. This will help expedite the growth process for the wetland plants.
The final product. Ultimately, rain water runoff will be filtered through this system.
Scott Kellogg and Center for the Environment & Society Associate Tara Holste '07 measure the barrels to find the right spot to drill holes on both sides of the barrels.
Using a power drill with a hole saw, Nicole Robinson '10 drills holes in the half-barrels with assistance from Alyse Bensel '10.
Armed with cookies and other treats for the workshop crew, Archaeology Lab Director Liz Seidel stops by to say hello.
Admissions Counselor Aundra Weissert '08 attaches the final PVC pipe connector to the barrels, completing step two.
All three barrels in a row, filled with gravel. The first barrel has an extra PVC pipe, to allow a pathway for a garden or rain barrel hose.
After the barrels are filled with water, Christina Bell '07 examines the different wetland plants donated from Environmental Concern, Inc. in St. Michael's, MD.
Nicole Robinson '10 helps with planting.
More planting!
The group places the final plants in the barrels.
The crew heads to a bank on the Chester River to fill cups with river water and soil, which will be added to the barrels.
A close-up of the final product—complete with a faucet, which will be used to fill watering cans for the Custom House garden.
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