BUCKLIN POINT WASTEWATER TREATMENT DESIGN:
Gathering Controll UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE SPRING SENIOR CAPSTONE STUDIO
RACHEL FREEHLING
CONTENTS 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3 PARTNERSHIPS 5 COURSE INTRODUCTION 7 SITE VISIT 9 PRECEDENT STUDIES 11 SITE ANALYSIS 13 CONCEPT 15 DESIGN
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In the state of Rhode Island, there are 22 wastewater treatment facilities. The University of Rhode Island Landscape Architecture Senior Capstone Studio was tasked with analyzing the Bucklin and Field’s Point wastewater treatment facilities to determine their vulnerability in the event of sea level rise and storm water flooding, then to design the site to address these environmental risk factors. Positioned on the Providence River, Bucklin Point is the second largest wastewater treatment facility in the state of Rhode Island. The Bucklin Point Wastewater Treatment Facility was constructed in 1947 to receive water from the Blackstone Valley area. Bucklin Point has 26 combined sewer overflow systems in the Bucklin Point Service Area, with over 30 miles of maintenance interceptors. The objective and goals for many of the projects within the studio surround treating and managing the water intruding onto the site. Gathering Control focuses on the natural abilities of nature to treat water. By taking influence and mimicking these processes on a larger scale, the public can become educated on the healing properties that landscape has to anthropogenic contaminants. In the phased conceptual plan for Bucklins wastewater treatment site, the park’s constructed wetland, ecological flood control, reclaimed industrial structures and materials, and urban agriculture are integral components of an overall restorative design strategy to treat polluted river water and recover the degraded waterfront in an aesthetically pleasing way. The projected designs will seamlessly integrate the educational processes of the water treatment plants into the purpose of the adjacent land activities and purpose. By using native plantings and highlighting the water surrounding the site will contribute to the overall aesthetic value of the facilities. The designs will incorporate the Rhode Island regulated best management water treatment practices to the adjacent land to treat the impending water intrusion on the site. By incorporating all of the above into a cohesive design, the public will be educated on the purposes and natural experiences happening within their neighborhood and community. These sites will demonstrates a living system where ecological infrastructure can provide multiple services for society and nature and new ecological water treatment and flood control methods. The postindustrial design demonstrates a unique productive landscape evoking the future of the ecological civilization, paying homage to a new aesthetics based on low maintenance and high performance landscapes. It is the hope of this design that by creating an example of this particular facility, a network of new wastewater treatment cycles can be created to develop a new aesthetic for these sites to assist in the resilience of the environment.
PARTNERSHIPS
PARTNERS & COLLABORATORS CONTRIBUTING TO THE SUCCESS OF THE PROJECT
UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE DEPARTMENT LAR 445 SPRING SENIOR CAPSTONE STUDIO STUDIO PROFESSOR: RICHARD SHERIDAN STUDIO CRITIC: DENNIS STANTON URI OCEAN ENGINEERING URI ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMICS
CRMC
NARRAGANSETT BAY COMMISSION
DEM
SEAGRANT
SAVE THE BAY
COURSE INTRODUCTION
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• The spring 2019 senior studio focused on
creating adaptive green infrastructure for the designated wastewater treatment facilities in Rhode Island. The research studies and analysis by the URI Ocean Engineering capstone done the previous semester was a catalyst for the landscape architecture studio to piggyback their design solutions off. • Students surveyed the site and took an inventory of what was existing and any potential opportunities that could be creating by implementing new green infrastructure to the site. The studio broke into two analysis groups to look further into the culture of the community, the existing built environment, the ecology of the site, and the current and future effects of climate change and regulation of both Bucklins Point and Field’s point. Once analysis boards were completed the studio presented them to the studio and supervisors to determine the continuation of the Bucklin Point design phase. The decision was made to the amount of available land in the Bucklins site and the relationship to the community. To narrow down focus and concepts of designs, the students were able to participate in conceptual activities that were presented to the entire studio. Word mapping, conceptual diagrams, site sections, and ‘Principles + strategies + tactics’ exercises were competed by the students. Post analysis and studio meetings, the students divided up individually to tackle the master plan for the site and a mid-semester critic. Each person participated in a presentation and series of critiques from professionals and faculty to hone in and develop their final presentations and to determine what kind of story their board was telling. Several students presented the mid point in their design to a collective group, including the Ocean engineering students, environmental economic class, RISD undergraduate students and a handful of professionals.
SITE VISIT
The studio began its design process by visiting the Bucklin site on February 12, 2019. The class was met by wastewater facility technicians, who gave an informational tour of the site. The site is introducing the ability to digest methane production to produce its own gas on site. Surrounding the site, there are solar powered facilities and a wildlife rescue. The class was able to view the site as the process of how the wastewater would be treated. It was explained that the Bucklins Point facility receives the waste water from the East Providence Metropolitan residence, the Blackstone Community area, and immediate storm-water runoff. The facility receives 20 million gallons of water. Following the natural gravitational pull to conserve energy, the water is moved around the site to be treated. Once the all the incoming water has been mixed together, the water is compacted into tanks. Sediment and solids are removed from the water and moved to the clarifier. Once sifted and processed, the water is pumped into the aeration tanks, where it passed through varying chambers to be biologically treated. The treated water is once again passed through a secondary clarifier. The final effluence passes through a UV treatment and pumped into the Providence River. The class was able to walk to the water’s edge and experience the built berms that were designed to offset impending intrusion of water to the site. Understanding the space and available land helped to the students to formulate ideas and concepts for their designs.
LANDFILL GARDEN L+A LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
PRECEDENT STUDIES
BIOLOGICAL NUTRIENT REMOVAL PROJECT OPERATIONS CENTER PROVIDENCE RI USA CLIENT
NARRAGANSETT BAY COMMISSION LANDFILL GARDEN IN COLLABORATION WITH KITE ARCHITECTS SEA CONSULTANTS CH2M HILL The Landfill Garden was designed to be an evolving and educational landscape, using the local resources that could be found on site. L+A studio designed the landscape to divert about 90 tons of debris from going into the Rhode Island Central Landfill. The new landscape acts as a water retention site, with water filtration integrated into the outdoor rooms for educational groups and office staff. Integrated into the overall design is a sassafras meandering path, a roof garden, and a rainwater system. The sassafras pays homage to the resilient vegetation that was historical positioned in this area. The roof garden was approved by the Rhode Island State Building Code Standard Committee to be the first green roof passed under the 2006 IBC Building Code. The on-site rainwater system helps reduce the contaminated urban runoff from the site into the Narragansett Bay.
All images + project information: http://lplusa.net/
This project was used by the studio as an example of introducing artistic flare and resourceful design in an industrial setting. The designers pay particular attention to the integration of this design into an already productive setting. By embracing an ecological and education aspect to the site, the treatment of wastewater is able to reach a broader audience in the community. The graphic style and design aesthetic of the project was a great resource to illustrate to the class how to communicate our ideas in simple illustrations. Again, by creating graphics that could be understood by the general public allows for a greater appreciation for the integration of landscape into the site.
HUMAN INFLUENCE LIMIT OF WORK
BUCKLIN POINT SEEKONK RIVER PROVIDENCE EAST PROVIDENCE
TRANSPORTATION ACCESS
PROVIDENCE RIVER
NARRAGANSETT BAY RIPTA ROUTE WATER ACTIVITIES FACILITY ENTRANCE
6 mi
PUBLIC ROADS
DEMOGRAPHICS GATHERING SPACES SWAN POINT CEMETARY
ACROSS RIVER
SCHOOLS
INCOME
GENDER
$80K
FEMALE
1.9 MILES
1.7 MILES
MALE MYRON J. FRANCIS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
WANNAMOISETT COUNTRY CLUB
FAMILY MEMBERS
$50-60K
BROWN PLAY SCHOOL GLENLYON PLAY GROUND
RACE
1.2 MILES
NEIGHBORHOOD
FAMILIES
AGE
.7 MILES
STATE
PREDOMINANTLY CAUCASIAN
FAMILIES
AVG. AGE 47 YRS
AVG. FAMILY SIZE
2.5 PEOPLE
SWAN POINT CEMETARY
BUCKLIN POINT
WANNAMOISETT COUNTRY CLUB
GLENLYON PLAYGROUND
WASTEWATER TREATMENT PROCESS
MYRON J. FRANCIS ELEM. SCHOOL
BROWN PLAY SCHOOL
BIOLOGICAL INFLUENCE
CONTAMINANT FLOW
SEWAGE SYSTEM
HUMAN CONTAMINANTS RUNOFF CONTAMINANTS WILDLIFE CONTAMINANTS CHEMICAL CONTAMINANTS
2000 ft
N
APPROXIMATE LOCATION OF PROPOSED NBC UNDERGROUND STORAGE EAST PROVIDENCE SEWAGE AREA RECIEVED BY BUCKLINS POINT BLACKSTONE VALLEY SEWAGE AREA RECIEVED BY BUCKLINS POINT OVERFLOW AREAS INTO SEEKONK RIVER
SEA LEVEL RISE & EXISTING BERMS
IZE
ECOLOGY
SITE ANALYSIS: BUCKLIN POINT Group 1
CONCEPT DETERMINING CAUSES & CREATING EFFECTS
By using the analysis of the site and undersanding the parameters and constraints that come with working with a wastewater treatment site, clear themes and repeating cycles appeared to influence how treating water was misunderstood. By reconstructing the treatment process revealed opportunities to improve the relationships we have with water.
ANTHROPOGENIC By looking at the surrounding areas, incoming wastewater to the site, and the site conditions themselves, a conversation about the human influenced contamination to the site could be started to explain how these pollutants contribute to the overall site. To the north, there is a golf course that uses artificial fertilizers and additives to the soil that leaches into surrounding sites through runoff and groundwater. The industrial solutions from storm-water, de-icing agents, and urban runoff all can be seen in detrimental affects on site. The treatment of the wastewater itself creates odors and effluents that can be exacerbated by excessive flood events. Nitrates and phosphates have the largest impact in the contamination to the river water.
MESOCOSMS To address the anthropogenic intrusions on site, the concept of mesocosms can be put into place to treat specific pollutants and contaminants. Adjusting and changing the shoreline to create stability for plant growth can be put into place to encourage an extended shoreline and add an additional filtration layer for the water surrounding the site. Constructing managed wetlands in the available space on site can treat runoff from the facility, as well as flood water that may intrude over the berms. Varying the topography on the interior slope of the berm will slow the flow of water, as well as filter the water before it can make its way onto the facility. By introducing controlled trial tanks that mimic the treatment of the water, but through natural biological processes, can educate the public and possible introduce new forms of mass treatment of wastewater
DESIGN
The Bucklin Point wastewater treatment facility is arranged systematically in a grid-like pattern, utilizing the maximum efficiency of gravitation movement of the water. Inspired by the industrial materiality and rigid sense of the site, the concept of this design spurred from breaking down this metric system that is in place and injecting natural, biological flow patterns back onto the site. Following the “green arms� that cut through the site, swales, green roofs, trial tanks and biotic structures reclaim the site to an evolving landscape. These arms reach into the community, to seemlessly connect the neighborhood to the facility back to the river. This design is a stepping stone for the facilities in Rhode Island to develope unique systems based on their own site’s needs.
By using the available land in place and manipulating the forms to create opportunities to collect, treat, and distribute the water in natural, controlled ways, we are creating better opprotunities to treat contaminated waters. Updating infrastructure and with green processes develop linkages to the site that can encourage the wide-spread usage of “green and blue” thinking, inplace of “grey” surfaces. This particular site was a great site to implement design because it has so much viable land to use. By using different techniques, future wastewater treatment design projects can be adapted and customized to address specific on-site needs using the design concpets from Bucklin Point.
fitting
basic form into the landscape
extruding
shape to fit new function
BIOFILM COLLECTION STRUCTURE
Permeable layer In the research done to investigate natural ways in which water is treated, the biofilm concept seemed like a new way to solve the problem of eroding shorelines and loss of habitat. By building a structure to capture the sediment and debris in flooding waters, the act of flooding is turning the intrusion of water onto the site into a positive occurrence. The undulating shape and appearance of the structure creates visual interest for the public, as well as introduces the opportunity to develop new natural environments on the site. The biofilm idea is translating the complex process of treating water into a tangible idea for the public.
biofilm: a assemblage of microbial cells that is irreversibly associated with a surface and enclosed in a matrix of primarily polysaccharide material
Gradual collection
Established ecosystem
capturing debris and filtering water in new habitat
restoring an interactive experience
MESOCOSM TRIALS Trial tank pods to create new forms of energy and new habitats in a controlled condition
Isolated high marsh pods Using productive outdoor habitats
To create an outdoor experimental system that examines natural processes
For the re establishment of wetland habitat to treat water on-site
Growth Implementing native soil and marsh species as a secondary clarifier for wastewater
Re-introducing the trials into under utilized land
Algae tanks To provide a link between controlled and natural processes
Grown to produce biofuel and consume pathogens in the water; removes 88% of nitrates 99% of phosphate and ammonia
The designs proposed have the ability to make a lasting difference to the productivity on site: By weaving the biofilm structures into the landscape, the riprapped shoreline that exists now can become a living, changing edge to the wastewater site. Introducing this structure helps develop diversity and habitat reconstitution by providing a film to secure the dirt, debris, and essential natural structures to grow. The biofilm will be able to capture over 23% of incoming water and treat it on site. The initial shoreline edge has the ability to increase by 2% within the first 5 years and grow incrementally, depending on the rising water and debris intake.
emergent spillway
pond drai stable outfall
The investment in the algae tanks is an alternative opportunity to create an new way to receive energy from the environment. In a case study done in the Irondequoit Wastewater Treatment Plant in New York, the algae that is grown in wastewater produce biofuel that can be used by the facility and the community. The algae consumes pathogens in the water and the photosynthesis reaction within the tanks converts sunlight into energy. The tanks themselves remove 88% of nitrates in the water, 99% of phosphates and ammonia. Amending the existing land and berms on site, water can be profitable, rather than detrimental. Micro-pool extended detention pools have the ability to incorporate the necessary berm structures that exist on site with the needed marsh pools to treat flood water. The extended detention ponds create a systematic flow of the water to be filtered and treated at different levels of holding. In a 40 hour holding period, these pools use .2-5% of available land to be affective.
permanent pool 5-20% storage volume
low marsh
wetlands high marsh
forebay
low permeability soils
approximately six inches of normal pool elevation
10% water quality volume 80% max water quality volume 1-5 acre contributing drainage
channel protection
water quality
in
MICRO-POOL EXTENDED DETENTION POND
“The interest of this design is creating a multifunctional wastewater treatment landscape that is replicating and enhancing the wastewater treatment processes happening on site. By designing a tiered, systematic approach for Bucklin Point, advances on how all treatment facilities in Rhode Island can adapt this same dynamic system to address sea level rise, 100 year storm events and storm water flood events.�
THANK YOU FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE PROCESS AND DESIGN FROM THE URI LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE STUDIO VISIT URI.LAR ON ISTAGRAM