TWs in cold climate - JAPAN case!

My dear friend Kunihiko Kato working at  National Agricultural Research Center for Hokkaido Region, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization(NARO http://www.naro.affrc.go.jp/en/about/organization.html)   is also a TWs  designer. Its specialization is project and building of TWs for cold climates zone for high strenght wastewaters like dairy milking parlour and pig wastewaters and potato starch processing wastewaters. These are thypical activities in Hokkaido-Japan. 


In November 2005 was constructed the first  real-scale hybrid wetland system to purify milking parlor wastewater. The main character of the system was the combination of aerobic and anaerobic beds (vertical +  horizontal), a self-priming siphon for intermittent flow into the vertical beds, first volcanic gravel bed to decrease SS and a larch wood chip layer to prevent from icing in the cold climate. 


The first year of functioning was summarized in a useful paper published in the WETPOL conference proceedings held in the beautiful city of Gent (Belgium) in 2007: "First year’s performance of real-scale hybrid wetland system for the treatment of dairy wastewater in cold climate in Japan  K. Kato, T. Koba, H. Ietsugu, T. Saigusa, S. Yanagiya, T. Inoue, K. Kitagawa and S. Kobayashi ."
From this article I copy here the conclusion:


"We could use hybrid wetland system all year round to purify milking parlour wastewater in cold climate in Japan from the first year if the loading rate was appropriate."
In my opinion this is a great target after just one working season!


Many other publications were made from 2005 and a lot of information rise from Kato research activities! Well done Kunihiko I hope to visit your plant in the next future!


here some photos!

general overview of a TWs just planted

from left to right: INLET - OUTLET (potato starch wastewater)

strong men at work!!!! there is a tWs cell below the snow!!! and it works greatly!

vertical bed with the distribution pipes network