Constructed wetlands are increasingly being used to treat wastewater. By harnessing the inherent natural productivity of wetland ecosystems, constructed wetlands can successfully treat a wide range of pollutants while reducing long-term operational and maintenance costs.
Burgess & Niple’s (B&N) team of environmental scientists and engineers have successfully designed and implemented constructed wetland treatment systems to treat acid mine drainage, domestic wastewater, stormwater, and landfill leachate.
At the Honda Research and Development of America (HRA) facility on the Honda of America Manufacturing Campus in Marysville, Ohio, B&N designed a stormwater treatment wetland to receive and treat overflow from an existing stormwater pond on the site. The new constructed wetland, designed in a serpentine shape, provides additional detention time, settling, and flow storage volume before discharging to the nearby Flat Branch, a tributary to Big Darby Creek.
Based on the success of this wetland system, Honda asked B&N to design a second constructed wetland system to capture and treat stormwater runoff coming onto the HRA property from neighboring agricultural fields. This constructed wetland system consists of two cells – a forebay to intercept flows from the twin 72-inch storm culverts conveying the runoff followed by a large wetland cell to provide additional detention time, settling, and treatment prior to discharging to Flat Branch.
Construction of the two wetland systems has significantly reduced total suspended solids (TSS) loadings to the Flat Branch from the HRA facility.
B&N provided:
- Hydraulic analysis
- Site investigations
- Wetland sizing for optimal pollutant removal
- Design drawings
- Wetland planting specifications
- Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPPs)
- Construction assistance