Underground rainwater storage, electric, gas, geothermal wells, thermal water storage insulated to R-80, domestic water well, just like the veins and arteries and nervous system for the entire campus to function in a holistic energy system. Each part of the system is designed to do more than just one thing. Typically the well guy does his thing and the rainwater capture guy does their thing and the geothermal guy does their thing and the aerobic on site waste water system does their thing but in a Holistic Energy System design, the geothermal is integrated to use the domestic water being pupmed out the ground and the heat exchanger opens up the 20,000 gallons of underground water storage and the aerobic waste water treatment ties into the geothermal system as it pumps and treats water from tank to tank before returning it to the earth. And the highly insulated thermal storage tank allows us to shift heating and cooling capacity from off peak times to support and enhance onpweak energy usage time of day.
More on Holistic Energy Systems but they can be applied to communities and cities to use resources they are already have spent capital and energy on to reduce their load and carbon foot print.
Our site had many issues to deal with and soil type was a major one. While heavy clay content can be great for conductivity for a geothermal system and good compressive strength for wind turbine foundations, it is terrible for onsite waste water treatment. City sewer is many years off so off to the engineering specialists for a solution. In fact, at the town planning commission one resident questioned how we coujld even do a septic and a farmer asked where are we going to get the water for all the hot tubs. Town meetings bring up questons you just can’t make up on your own.
A typical WI mound system is an anaerobic system that treats the effluent in a septic tank to partially break down the waste and then the water with some suspended solids go out to the mound for final treatment and returning the water to the aquifer. An aerobic system treats the effluent in an oxygen enriched chamber with much more aggressive bacteria that when the fluid is ready to go out to be filtered in the mound system, it is basically already clean water. With some additions we could have go to a toilet to tap system. Aerobic systems cost more to build and more to operate but they are much better for the environment. In fact, aerobic treatment can be used to save a failing anaerobic septic field.
With water becoming an important resource all over the world, managing storm water and waste water is a very important planning issue. We will be doing rainwater capture and reuse for landscape watering and for toilets. When you think about it, it doesn’t make sense to pump clean treated water only to flush it down the toilet. The rainwater still has some treatment but it saves water and energy (3% of all energy used in the US is for pumping water and waste watrer treatment. Dual flush toilets, living roof on the conference meeting center and rain gardens.
Apparently the Delavan waste water treatment plant is having huge problems in handling the treatment because 50% plus is clean storm water that shouldn’t be in the mix with the sewage. We have had so much rain this year that this has been a big problem.
It is interesting meeting the various groups and politics that have an impact on getting a zoning change and a use permit. Gail (administrator for Delavan Lake Sanitary District) said a major issue for her is the Delavan Lake watershed and sewer lines have been put in over the years to make sure all the homes around the lake have sewer to minimze the impact on the watershed.
Gail showed us on the maps where our property was. We are in the Delavan Lake watershed, which means that water from our land ends up entering the lake. With all the building and retail expansion, storm water carrying oil, gasoline, and fertilizer is a huge issue in trying to keep the lake clean.
The Green Leaf Inn property does not have great soils for helping the filtration process and we also have the draining of the 84 acre farm all coming through our property headed to Delevan Lake (when it rains a lot, it’s like the farm flushed its toilet and all the rain landing heads to our property). As part of our engineering process in preparing for the zoning change, we had to prepare a design on how we would handle storm water so we don’t add to the problem.
We have an 84 acre farm behind our property. Water runoff from the farmland enters our property in the north and traverses to the south and ultimately all the way down to a creek that feeds into Delavan Lake.
When we did the engineering for our storm water treatment pond, we originally only looked at the immediate treatment of our own stormwater. But in reality we will be treating all the farm fertilizer runoff to keep it from going into the lake and causing algae growth.
I should have paid more attention in geology class back in college. The stuff we have had to learn about the impact of soil type, water etc is amazing.
Underground rainwater storage, electric, gas, geothermal wells, thermal water storage insulated to R-80, domestic water well, just like the veins and arteries and nervous system for the entire campus to function in a holistic energy system. Each part of the system is designed to do more than just one thing. Typically the well guy does his thing and the rainwater capture guy does their thing and the geothermal guy does their thing and the aerobic on site waste water system does their thing but in a Holistic Energy System design, the geothermal is integrated to use the domestic water being pupmed out the ground and the heat exchanger opens up the 20,000 gallons of underground water storage and the aerobic waste water treatment ties into the geothermal system as it pumps and treats water from tank to tank before returning it to the earth. And the highly insulated thermal storage tank allows us to shift heating and cooling capacity from off peak times to support and enhance onpweak energy usage time of day.