Algae – When Life Hands You a Lemon

Plants, Technology
You purchase a fish tank, obtain the gravel, fixtures, pump, and filter. You set it up, making sure the tank chemistry is correct. Finally, you purchase a modest number of compatible fish, adjusting tank temperature to fit their needs, adjust the light for their comfort. It's beautiful! But after a while you notice... what's this? A kind of green slime, algae! Oh, bother. Why does that stuff have to come along and ruin things? So you purchase algae eaters and wage the same war that other enthusiasts fight. It seems that life keeps giving you lemons. So make lemonade! The Good, the Bad, and the Algae A little algae here or there is a part of nature and not ordinarily a problem. But sometimes it just plain takes over. Notice…
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Novel Wastewater Treatment – Reducing Nitrogen and Phosphorus

Biology, Chemistry
[caption id="attachment_19184" align="alignright" width="480"] Wastewater Treatment Plant[/caption] The University of Kansas, in conjunction with the City of Lawrence, Kansas, has been investigating a fascinating approach to reducing nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater. It’s a process, really, that occurs in nature, with a minimum of artificial intervention. Simply put: still water containing an abundance of “nutrients” tends to produce a proliferation of green algae. A Most Interesting Approach Why not take advantage of that fact? And so, they have. In their September 2013 Issue, Treatment Plant Operator (TPO) magazine included a well-written piece by author Doug Day that greatly intrigued me. Not long ago, I was employed as a Wastewater Operator, Level III at the local Nelson County, Virginia treatment plant. I am a retired chemist. I had rejected a career…
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