CONTACT | DONATE | EVENTS

Barnstable Clean Water Coalition
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • Board of Directors
    • Staff
    • Contact Us
  • EVENTS
  • WHAT WE DO
    • Educate
    • Monitor
    • Mitigate
    • Advocate
  • NEWS
  • GET INVOLVED
  • RESOURCES
    • BCWC Video Library
    • A Guide to Clean Water Living on Cape Cod
    • Native New England Garden
    • Cape Cod Water Quality Management Plan (208 Plan)
    • Affiliated Organizations
    • APCC’s Cyanobacteria Monitoring
    • MassDEP
    • Water Quality Information
    • Town of Barnstable Resources
    • Town of Barnstable’s Water Resources Brochure
  • DONATE
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • Board of Directors
    • Staff
    • Contact Us
  • EVENTS
  • WHAT WE DO
    • Educate
    • Monitor
    • Mitigate
    • Advocate
  • NEWS
  • GET INVOLVED
  • RESOURCES
    • BCWC Video Library
    • A Guide to Clean Water Living on Cape Cod
    • Native New England Garden
    • Cape Cod Water Quality Management Plan (208 Plan)
    • Affiliated Organizations
    • APCC’s Cyanobacteria Monitoring
    • MassDEP
    • Water Quality Information
    • Town of Barnstable Resources
    • Town of Barnstable’s Water Resources Brochure
  • DONATE
Homepage > News > Pilot project uses bioreactor to filter nitrogen from Barnstable waters (9/4/20)

Pilot project uses bioreactor to filter nitrogen from Barnstable waters (9/4/20)

September 4, 2020 In News
An aerial view shows the Barnstable Clean Water Coalition's setup in a cranberry bog drainage ditch that uses a bioreactor to remove nutrients from water headed toward the Marstons Mills River, seen at top. Steve Heaslip/Cape Cod Times
An aerial view shows the Barnstable Clean Water Coalition's setup in a cranberry bog drainage ditch that uses a bioreactor to remove nutrients from water headed toward the Marstons Mills River, seen at top. Steve Heaslip/Cape Cod Times

Pilot project uses bioreactor to filter nitrogen from Barnstable waters

Cape Cod Times
Geoff Spillane
gspillane@capecodonline.com
An aerial view shows the Barnstable Clean Water Coalition's setup in a cranberry bog drainage ditch that uses a bioreactor to remove nutrients from water headed toward the Marstons Mills River, seen at top.
An aerial view shows the Barnstable Clean Water Coalition’s setup in a cranberry bog drainage ditch that uses a bioreactor to remove nutrients from water headed toward the Marstons Mills River, seen at top. Steve Heaslip/Cape Cod Times

MARSTONS MILLS — On a quiet cranberry bog off Whistleberry Drive, an experiment is underway that eventually could have a profound effect on cleaning the Cape’s nitrogen-choked waterways.

In late July, a woodchip-based Bioreactor Nitrogen Reduction Pilot Project — the first of its kind in the world — was initiated at the head of the Marstons Mills River.

The project is being managed by the Barnstable Clean Water Coalition, which has partnered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Nature Conservancy and Mount Holyoke College.

The bog acts as a collection system for nitrogen-contributing septic systems that surround the upper reaches of the Three Bays watershed.

The bioreactor contains natural elements such as wood chips, biochar and alum that work to filter nutrients from the water.

“We want to intercept those nutrients before they reach the river,” said Casey Dannhauser, special projects manager for the Clean Water Coalition.

There also are several water testing wells and sampling ports to check for nitrogen and other chemicals to help determine the effectiveness of the project.

The goal of the yearlong project is to determine if the bioreactor can indeed assist in removal of nutrients, including nitrogen, before surface water flows from the bog and into the river and eventually the bay. Nitrogen overload is a major contributor to the region’s water quality issues and is responsible for toxic cyanobacteria blooms.

Dannhauser measures the water levels at the bioreactor three times a week and collects water samples weekly. The samples are sent every two weeks to an EPA laboratory in Oklahoma for testing.

“We are starting to learn things every single day,” Dannhauser said. “But we won’t have the big picture results for a while.”

Ideally, the project will yield a low-cost supplement to Barnstable’s municipal water treatment plan that can be used to help preserve water quality until sewers are built.

Barnstable is embarking upon a $1.06 billion sewer project that is expected to continue for the next three decades.

“If it really works, maybe we can save the town some money,” Dannhauser said. “We can put (bioreactors) in all the ditches of this cranberry bog and in cranberry bogs across Cape Cod.”

Follow Geoff Spillane on Twitter: @GSpillaneCCT.

Casey Dannhauser, special projects manager for the Barnstable Clean Water Coalition, measures the depth of water traveling through a bed of woodchips used to clean runoff from a nearby development.
Casey Dannhauser, special projects manager for the Barnstable Clean Water Coalition, measures the depth of water traveling through a bed of woodchips used to clean runoff from a nearby development. Steve Heaslip/Cape Cod Times

Cape Cod Times – Pilot project uses bioreactor to filter nitrogen from Barnstable waters

Cape Cod Times News
Previous StoryExploring Solutions to Excess Nutrients: Restoring Cape Cod’s Waters
Next StoryNeighbors Take Action to Save Their Ponds

Barnstable Clean Water Coalition

  • Email
    info@BCleanWater.org
  • Phone
    508-420-0780
  • Address
    PO Box 215
    864 Main Street
    Osterville, MA 02655

Recent Posts

  • Want to know more about PFAS? Drop in for a community forum in Barnstable on Saturday (3/23/23) Friday, 24, Mar
  • For the first time, EPA moves to limit ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water (3/14/23) Tuesday, 14, Mar
  • Proposed septic tax credit would save Cape and Islands residents thousands. Here’s how. (3/7/23) Tuesday, 7, Mar
  • Barnstable Clean Water Coalition needs help counting fish. Why, and what you can do. (3/7/23) Tuesday, 7, Mar
  • Ban bill aims to slow spread of PFAS damage (3/4/23) Saturday, 4, Mar

Popular Posts

  • PFAS are everywhere. Removing them from the Cape’s water supply will not be easy. (3/2/23) posted 3 weeks ago
  • Proposed septic tax credit would save Cape and Islands residents thousands. Here’s how. (3/7/23) posted 3 weeks ago
  • Ban bill aims to slow spread of PFAS damage (3/4/23) posted 3 weeks ago
  • Barnstable Clean Water Coalition needs help counting fish. Why, and what you can do. (3/7/23) posted 3 weeks ago
  • For the first time, EPA moves to limit ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water (3/14/23) posted 2 weeks ago

Tags

Algae APCC At The Water's Edge BCWC Projects Books CAI Cape & Plymouth Business Media Cape Cod Groundwater Guardians Cape Cod Online Cape Cod Times Cape Cod Today Cape Media News Cape News Clean Water Mondays Clean Water Wednesdays Coalition Quarterly Cranberry Bogs Design With Nature Discover Barnstable Podcast DNSI EPA Forever Chemicals Harmful Algal Blooms Herring Count I/A Septic System Technology

Archives

  • DONATE
  • VOLUNTEER
  • SIGN UP FOR OUR EMAILS

Three Bays Preservation, Inc. dba Barnstable Clean Water Coalition is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization. Federal Tax ID#:  04-3338308.

Copyright ©2019 Barnstable Clean Water Coalition, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Privacy | Terms | Sitemap | Site Produced by Coastal Mountain Creative