Researchers at Stony Brook University say they have developed a low-cost way to retrofit hundreds of thousands of aging septic systems across Long Island to drastically improve drinking water.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The team at the university\u2019s Center for Clean Water Technology says it has come up with a solution to the region\u2019s crisis of septic tanks leaking toxic nitrogen into groundwater used for drinking \u2014 not to mention the water in Long Island\u2019s streams, rivers, and bays, lead researcher Thomas Varley told The Post.<\/p>\n
He said the scientists created a prototype that can be installed into existing tanks and features a never-before-seen chamber full of wood chips that aggressively strip nitrogen from the wastewater before it even has a chance to seep out.<\/p>\n
Thomas Varley, Stony Brook University\u2019s lead researcher at its Center for Clean Water Technology, says his group\u2019s septic tank invention will drastically reduce the amount of toxic nitrogen in local drinking water. Stony Brook University<\/p>\n
\u201cWhatever comes out of our septic tanks is going directly into the ground, which eventually gets into our drinking water and gets into our surface water bodies,\u201d Varley said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re seeing the effects of that now with excess nitrogen \u2014 excessive algae growth, lower dissolved oxygen levels that can lead to fish kills, shellfish poisoning, and those blue-green algaes that form toxins.\u201d<\/p>\n
The breakthrough invention not only outperforms every currently available septic system on the market but also removes almost 10 milligrams of nitrogen more than the most advanced available tanks out there, according to Varley.<\/p>\n
A conventional septic system can leak around 80 milligrams of nitrogen per liter, sometimes more, Varley said.<\/p>\n
Stony Brook\u2019s prototype takes the existing tank and converts it into multiple chambers to lower nitrogen pollution. Stony Brook University<\/p>\n
Suffolk County\u2019s current standard for the more modern, low-nitrogen systems is at 19 milligrams per liter.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Stony Brook\u2019s prototype solution has consistently tested at less than 10 milligrams per liter, according to the team.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople don\u2019t realize how much of an impact just one home can have \u2014 this could drastically reduce the nitrogen pollution leaking into the groundwater,\u201d Varley said. <\/p>\n
Conventional septic tanks are essentially underground holding tanks where solid waste settles, grease floats, and liquid waste flows out into a leaching structure, Varley said.<\/p>\n
Low-nitrogen septic systems rely on a two-stage treatment process that requires removing the existing tank and installing new equipment underground.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The team\u2019s prototype applies the same biology but retrofits what is already in the ground rather than forcing homeowners to excavate their properties to solve the issue, since the proposed system can be installed through a manhole cover.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Stony Brook\u2019s prototype takes the existing tank and converts it into multiple chambers \u2014 the first being a treatment chamber, while wastewater is then routed into the second, which is filled with wood chips.<\/p>\n
There, bacteria grow and remove a majority of the nitrogen during the second stage of treatment and kill it at the source, sharply reducing the pollution entering groundwater and nearby streams, rivers, and bays.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Suffolk County alone has about 360,000 homes that rely on septic tanks \u2014 roughly 75% of the county \u2014 opposed to about 35,000 in Nassau County, where 90%\u00a0of homes are connected to sewers, according to Varley.<\/p>\n
If the technology were to be widely adopted across Long Island, Varley believes the amount of nitrogen seeping into the water supply would decrease tremendously. <\/p>\n
Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine said he would be open to discussions around the tech and possibly signing off on grants for the technology to be implemented in the region. James Messerschmidt<\/p>\n
Before the prototype can qualify for local and state septic grants to speed along the process, it needs Suffolk County, which oversees the program that helps homeowners cover the cost of installing low-nitrogen systems \u2014 to sign off on the technology for grant eligibility. The cost of the newly invented system was not immediately clear.<\/p>\n