This area consist of settling basin.

The First basin is where solids from the gr

eenhouse are allowed to settle
out of water. Once the collected water reaches a certain level it allows into a
second basin, from which
it is pumped into the sub-surface wetland.
2. Once the water reaches the bog, it is slowly filtered from one end to the oth
er through a subsurface gravel
matrix. The placement of an impermeable layer beneath the pond allows for the re
tention of wastewater
for approximately two weeks. Duringh this time period, nitrogen and phosphorus a
re removed from the water
through uptake by trhe hardstem bulrushes (Scriptis acutis), and nitrate is remo
ved through denitrification by bacteria.
Metals and pesticides are also removed from the water and stored in the plats an
d soil matrix. Once the water has reached a certain
level within the bog, it is transferred through a pipe to the watrerfall in the
surface pond.
3. Surface Pond :
The main purpose of this pond is the removal of remaining ammounium(NH4+) from t
he wastewater, which is
accomplished in two stages.
(i). First, the two pipes located at the east end of the pond continuously recyc
le water to the waterfall, where aeration is used to convert
ammonium into nitrate (NO3- -N), called nitrification.
(ii). Second stage is the denitrfication process, where anaerobic bacteria on th
e floor of the pond convert nitrate into atmospheric nitrogen (N2),
which is then released back in the air.
4. BIO RETENTION POND:
The bioretention area collects stormwater runoff from the greenhouse parking lot
, as well as occasional
overflow water from the surface pond. The catails (Typha spp.) and 'manmade' gra
vel sock help to break down any leftover nutrients and pollutants in
both the untreated and pre-treated wastewater before it is returned to the groun
dwater.
5. GRASS BUFFER:
The grass filter strip is the final component of the wetland remediation project
. In the case of a lage storm even, the grass strip will slow
the velocity f the water, allowing suspended soil particles to settle out, pollu
tants to be absorbed by soil and plant to uptake soluble pollutants.
From this stage, the cleansed water enters the stormwater system and returns to
the Poudre River.
Goals of The Garden:
The CSU greenhouse releases approximately 600 gallons of wastewater each day [a
very
big bathtub roughly 2x3x6 holds less than 300 gallons). The wastewater consists
of the runoff from watering
watering the plants and washing dawn the greenhouses, which contains fertilizers
, pesticides,detergents,
and disinfectants. The purpose of the constructed wetlands is to remove pollutan
ts including phosphor
nitrogen, metals, and pesticides from the wastewater before if returns to the wa
ter cycle. While nulrier
metals are beneficial in small amounts, large quantities of them can result in a
lgal blooms and other water quality
issues that create problems for Colorado's aquatic ecosystems.