Earthworms Star In Latest Wastewater Filtration Tech

A new filtration system relies on some of nature’s smallest biological solutions.

BioFiltro’s BIDA System is a closed-loop biological wastewater treatment system that is worm- and bacteria-powered. The process can remove up to 99 percent of Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) and Total Suspended Solids (TSS), according to BioFiltro’s regional manager Mai Ann Healy.

Currently BioFiltro has 129 facilities installed in six countries. It processes wastewater from the Chilean Air Force Base on Antarctica as well as the Atacama Desert.

The company teamed up with Fetzer Vineyards to become the first winery the U.S. to use the system to process 100 percent of its wastewater. The Mendocino, California-based winery will use “billions” of earthworms to process its wastewater during this year’s harvest season. In doing so, Fetzer claims it will accumulate energy savings of up to 85 percent over current wastewater treatment technologies.

“Worms in and of themselves are not great at filtering wastewater,” Healy told EcoWatch. “Rather, worms target the solids and break this waste down in their stomachs. Their excrement are rich in microbial activity.”

The bacteria are aerobic, needing air to function, Healy said. The burrowing of earthworms creates air channels throughout, thereby bringing in air and creating an ideal living environment. This “symbiotic relationship” between worms and bacteria is what powers BioFiltro’s systems, as the bacteria target the BOD of wastewater.

“Ultimately, our BIDA System converts wastewater into a reusable asset and contaminants into nutritious fertilizer onsite,” Healy said.

In a new partnership with Biofiltro, Fresno State water technology and animal science specialists are eyeing earthworms as a means to enhance their water efficiency at the university’s dairy unit.

Earthworms will serve to filter unwanted nutrients out of the dairy’s wastewater, Sanjar Taromi, chief marketing officer for Biofiltro USA, told Fresno State News. The recycled water can then be used in a greater variety of irrigation applications.

“Our company has developed and patented a sustainable and environmentally friendly technology for the treatment of domestic and industrial wastewater at low cost,” Taromi said.

“In the case of a dairy’s wastewater, prior to recycling, it was only available for flood irrigation. Recycling through our system allows the option of more efficient water use technologies, such as sprinkler or drip systems.”

Wastewater is sprinkled at intervals over the worm beds. The worms thrive in the moist environment, consuming the solids in the liquid waste according to Fresno State News. The bacterial micro flora in the worm castings consume and metabolize nitrates, phosphorus, oils, fats, and other compounds.

Treatment is completed in four hours.

“It is not potable (safe to drink), but having been cleaned of solids and other unwanted organic compounds, it is available for a broader range of agricultural uses,” Taromi said. “In this sense, it does save water, because before all you could do was flood a land area and sometimes not grow anything. Now the recycled water is available for more applications.”

For more information visit Water Online’s Wastewater Filtration Solutions Center.