Constructed wetlands for treating acid drainage at TVA Facilities: Progress report
A comprehensive overview is presented of TVA's use of constructed wetlands to naturally treat water quality problems associated with acid drainage at its fossil plants and the inactive Fabius Coal Mine and Preparation Plant in Jackson County, Alabama. TVA constructed its first wetland in May 1985. As of December 1987, a total of eight constructed wetlands, one enhanced natural wetland receiving acid drainage, and one former chemical treatment pond were being monitored as treatment wetlands. Some measure of success is being achieved at all the wetland systems. However, to achieve compliance quality effluent (total Fe <3.0 mg/L, total Mn <2.0 mg/L, pH 6.0--9.0 s.u., and total suspended solids <32.0 mg/L) interim chemical treatment is being used at COF to treat manganese, and at WCF to treat low pH. At KIF, water is being pumped from the final cell of the wetland to the active ashpond as an interim measure until it is shown to consistently yield compliance quality effluent. Chemical treatment is also being used to augment wetlands treatment at the Fabius Impoundment 2 and Impoundment 4 wetlands. Where chemical treatment is required, reduced chemical costs result from some level of wetlands treatment. Successful wetlands treatment has been demonstrated at three sites, where no chemical treatment is required. In the remaining two newly constructed wetlands, insufficient data exist to assess their treatment capability. Overall average construction cost based on nine wetlands was $1.13/ft/sup 2/ ($49,223/ac). Before converting one chemical treatment pond (Fabius Impoundment 3) to a wetland, TVA was annually spending $12,000 to $15,000 for chemicals and $10,000 for pond maintenance that failed to maintain complying discharges. Complying discharges and an annual wetland maintenance cost of about $1000 make the wetland an attractive and cost-beneficial treatment method. 2 refs., 15 figs., 10 tabs.
- Research Organization:
- Tennessee Valley Authority, Knoxville (USA). Office of Natural Resources and Economic Development
- OSTI ID:
- 7134873
- Report Number(s):
- TVA/ONRED/WRF-88/2; ON: DE88016102
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: Portions of this document are illegible in microfiche products
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
ACID MINE DRAINAGE
WASTE PROCESSING
COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS
ECONOMICS
REAGENTS
TEST FACILITIES
COAL MINES
COMPLIANCE
FOSSIL-FUEL POWER PLANTS
MANGANESE
PH VALUE
PONDS
PROGRESS REPORT
TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY
WASTE DISPOSAL
WETLANDS
AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS
DOCUMENT TYPES
ECOSYSTEMS
ELEMENTS
MANAGEMENT
METALS
MINES
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
POWER PLANTS
PROCESSING
SURFACE WATERS
THERMAL POWER PLANTS
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
UNDERGROUND FACILITIES
US ORGANIZATIONS
WASTE MANAGEMENT
010900* - Coal
Lignite
& Peat- Environmental Aspects