The way this week started on Monday morning is pretty remarkable. In fact, I needed some time before writing about it.
Like every Monday, class starts a 9:30am: it’s my Physical Geography Lab. Usually, we study the earth through hands-on exercises and experiments, and sometime we also go on field trips to experience first-hand what we study in class. For example, we went on a hike to study rocks, we went to the beach to study waves and currents, and last Monday, don't ask me why, we went to the Santa Barbara Water Treatment Plant— aka the place where all the poop and waste of Santa Barbara ends up, in order to be treated and sent out to the ocean.
I am (not) sorry I didn't take many pictures, but I promise you are not missing out. It was a horrible, VERY SMELLY spectacle.
Anyway, a few fun facts include that 140 years ago, when the Santa Barbra population was only about 5 or 10 thousand, people would poop straight in the creek, and there was no problem with that. Around the 1900s, as the population increased, people started getting sick, so they built a channel to separate waste from the cleaner water in the creek. Well, imagine an open channel full of waste going down State Street… Not optimal! Following stricter regulations from the government, the Water Treatment Plant was built to solve the issue.
As technology improves exponentially, and as the drought problem becomes more and more severe, a look into the future opens the doors to a process called reverse osmosis— an initiative vulgarly known as “Toilet-To-Tap.” As the name suggests, impressive technological advancement will soon allow us to filter the water from our waste and remove 100% of impurities, bacteria, and minerals, and obtain a very pure H2O. That is cleaner water than the water bottled at a spring source 6,000 feet above sea level. Although the idea of drinking water that once was full of poop is appalling and disgusting, it seems like this may be the way to go in order to face the shortage of water resulting from the California drought.
At the Water Treatment Plant, the physical process starts with screening to remove larger objects. For example, a human torso was once found in the waste… sick! Then, the flow is slowed down in a grit chamber, and all the grit is gathered and separated from the rest. Grit refers to corn, seeds, egg shells, sands, clays, and all the inorganic materials that cannot be “digested” by the bacteria in our guts or the ones in the treatment plant. In the sedimentation tank, solids settle out and are pumped away, while oils float to the top and are skimmed off. Next comes a biological treatment in which microorganisms convert non-settled solids to settleable solids. These organisms break down organic material with aeration and agitation, allowing the solids to settle out. Bacteria-containing waste is recirculated back to the aeration basin to increase the rate of organic decomposition, as the bacteria break down the material in the wastewater. Lastly, nitrogen, phosphorus and carbon are removed, and the wastewater is treated with chlorine and other disinfecting chemicals. This allows the water to be clean enough to be safely sent into the ocean.
Listening and taking notes was tough. Most of us where mostly worrying about the possibility of classmates throwing up on each other! The smell was pervasive and disgusting! So, here’s the takeaway and my tip for you: ERTH 141/GEO 101 (it goes by both names) and the corresponding LAB is a very interesting class, that teaches you about realities about our world that you may not think about on a daily basis. You will learn about how and why we have continents, earthquakes, mountains and beaches, winds, waves, and so on. So I would recommend taking this class. The lab is also very interesting, especially because the field trips are usually very enjoyable— featuring beautiful views and great snapchat stories builders! However, when it comes the day to go on a field trip to the Santa Barbara Water Treatment Plant, do yourself a favor and DON’T GO! You can find most of the information online, and you will breath clean air for 3 more hours than if you did go!
Don’t say I didn't warn you!
A presto,
- Fede
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