Wetland Project Summary

Constructed wetlands are a more sustainable and cost-effective alternative to wastewater treatment in comparison to conventional municipal treatment plants. Through the microbial activity, wetlands naturally treat contaminants and pollutants, providing a more biologically efficient method of wastewater treatment. Wetland treatment has worked successfully on a large-scale such as the systems in Clayton County, GA, and Orange County, CA. However, wetlands have not been used for wastewater treatment on a small-rural scale.

In 2016, Dr. McGrath, Professor of Biology at Sewanee, lobbied for the construction of three wetland basins at the Sewanee Utility District (SUD) in order to research the efficacy of wetlands for wastewater treatment for a small community setting. For the past few years, water quality measurements have been taken at the SUD's wetlands to better determine the outcomes of wetland treatment in rural communities like Sewanee. Our team's goal was to set up visualizations that allow our community partner, Dr. McGrath, to understand the water quality trends of the wetlands over time in order to push for sustainable development in the community.

Our dashboard is set up to show the trends of water quality parameters for two treatment sites: the conventional lagoon treatment and the experimental wetland treatment. We’ve used EPA standards on surface water quality to determine whether the wetlands meet the criteria for each parameter. Additionally, the water quality trends are shown throughout years, months, days, and hours, so that Dr. McGrath can have a better insight on when wetland treatment performs best. Furthermore, we show trends in weather data, such as air temperature and precipitation in order to assess the impacts that climate change has had on the wetlands.

Our most essential tab on the dashboard is the aerator tab. The aerator was added to wetland treatment at the beginning of 2022 as a way to increase dissolved oxygen levels in the wetlands. In our data from 2020-2021, dissolved oxygen has been much lower than we would want because of invasive species taking over the small wetland basin. However, Dr. McGrath predicts that the implementation of the aerator will increase oxygen levels in the water; therefore, improving the overall quality of water in the wetlands. From our time at DataLab, all of the data we worked with was pre-aeration; however, we’ve set up our dashboard in a way that allows Dr. McGrath to continue inputting data, so that she can see the impacts that the aerator has on the quality of wetland treatment.

Lauren Hutchison C '22

Lauren Hutchison is from Aldie, VA and is an Environment & Sustainability major at Sewanee: The University of the South. She is a member of the Order of the Gown and played for the women's soccer team.

Harrison Lowery C '24

Harrison Lowery is from Homewood, AL and is an English major at Sewanee: The University of the South. Harrison is a member of the Sewanee-Monteagle Rotary Club and a member of Phi Gamma Delta.

Tessa Shackelford C '24

Tessa Shackelford is from Sewanee, TN and is an Environment & Sustainability major at Sewanee: The University of the South. She is a member of the Order of the Gown, a site leader for the Bonner/Canale program at the university farm, a member of Theta Kappa Phi, and plays for the women's tennis team.