Ocean Arks International, a non-profit research organization led by ecodesigner John Todd, has developed an experimental treatment facility that uses snails, fish, flowers and young trees as part of a chemical-free, natural treatment process to clean septic tank waste. The resulting water has been tested for 14 cancer-causing compounds: 13 were 100% removed, and the last (toluene) was 99.9% removed.
Ocean Arks has also built a sewage treatment facility using snails, shrimp, bacteria and plants to remove sludge and transform raw sewage into pure water, and they are designing a similar system for industrial waste in Providence, RI.
To learn more about their pioneering work, or to receive their excellent publication Annals of Earth ($10 donation), write to One Locust St., Falmouth, MA 02540.
