Arcata Wastewater Treatment Plant and Wildlife Sanctuary facts for kids
Arcata Wastewater Treatment Plant and Wildlife Sanctuary is a special place in Arcata, California, where dirty water (sewage) is cleaned using nature's help. It's also a home for many animals!
This amazing system uses a series of ponds, special wetlands, and marshes to clean the city's wastewater. These marshes are not just for cleaning; they are also a wildlife home and a stop for birds flying along the Pacific Flyway. The Arcata Marsh is a very popular spot for people who love to watch birds.
This project has even won an award for being so innovative! Many of the "lakes" in the marsh are named after people who helped create this unique system, like Humboldt State University professors George Allen and Robert A. Gearheart. Even though it cleans sewage, the open-air lakes don't smell bad. They are great for birdwatching, cycling, and jogging.
Contents
How Water Gets Cleaned
The process of cleaning the dirty water happens in several important steps:
- Step 1: Primary Treatment (started in 1949): The dirty water first goes into large tanks. Here, the heavier solid bits sink to the bottom and are removed. These solids can then be used as fertilizer.
- Step 2: Secondary Treatment (started in 1957): The water, now without the big solids, is pumped into big ponds called oxidation ponds. Tiny helpers, called bacteria, get to work here. They eat and break down the waste that's still in the water.
- Step 3: Disinfection (started in 1966): After the bacteria have done their job, the water is treated with chlorine. This kills any harmful germs (pathogens) that might still be in the water. Then, the chlorine is removed so it doesn't harm nature.
- Step 4: Tertiary Treatment (started in 1986): This is where nature really steps in! The cleaned water flows into special artificial marshes. Plants like reeds and cattails, along with more bacteria, help to filter and clean the water even more.
- Step 5: Final Disinfection: Because birds live in the marshes and can add new germs, the water gets one last treatment with chlorine. This makes sure it's super clean before it's released. Again, the chlorine is removed afterward.
Cleaning and Nature Working Together
The wastewater from Arcata goes through a complex journey through ponds, wetlands, and marshes before it's released into Humboldt Bay. This system includes both treatment wetlands and enhancement marshes.
- Treatment wetlands make the water clean enough to meet strict government rules for secondary treatment.
- Enhancement marshes clean the water even more and also create a wonderful home for wetland animals.
Sometimes, wild birds in the marshes can add certain bacteria to the water. So, after the water leaves the enhancement marshes, it's disinfected one last time to make sure it's safe. People can enjoy parts of the marsh where the water has already been fully cleaned and disinfected.
Nature's Filters
Wetland plants are amazing at using sunlight to grow. They produce a lot of plant material, much more than a wheat field! When these plants break down, they create a special food source called detritus. This detritus becomes the base of a food chain for many water creatures, birds, and mammals.
The City of Arcata cleans about 2.3 million gallons of sewage every day. During rainy winters, this amount can go up to 16.5 million gallons a day because of the rain falling into the ponds and marshes. The system is designed to handle all this water and clean it very well. Scientists from Humboldt State University are always studying the marsh to make sure it's safe for the environment and the wildlife.
Wildlife in the Marsh
The Arcata Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary is a huge area, covering 307 acres, right along the Pacific Flyway. This means it's a very important stop for many birds as they migrate. Over 327 different kinds of birds have been seen here!
Besides birds, many other animals call the marsh home. You can find different types of plants, mammals, fish, insects, reptiles, and amphibians. Some of the cool animals you might spot include river otters, gray foxes, red-legged frogs, tidewater goby fish, bobcats, striped skunks, praying mantises, and red-sided garter snakes.
Arcata Marsh Interpretive Center
The Friends of the Arcata Marsh (FOAM) run the Arcata Marsh Interpretive Center. This center has cool exhibits that explain how the water treatment plant works, why the marsh is so important, and all about the amazing plants and animals that live there.
Volunteer guides offer tours of the marsh, sharing their knowledge. They also have educational programs for schools, scout groups, and summer camps, making it a great place to learn about nature and environmental science.
See Also
- Appropedia.org - Arcata Marsh Overview
