Plants pull out nitrates. The living machines can t produce EPA-approved drinking water that still requires treatment with chlorine or ultraviolet light but they do produce water of a grade that can be pumped back into rivers. Living machines that only process food waste produce water used for irrigating crops. We have one at the Intervale that converts food waste from the Magic Hat Brewery, said Marc Companion, educational outreach coordinator for Ocean Arks International, a Burlington-based company that makes living machines. Companion, who is working with GMC and five other colleges from Rhode Island to Hawaii to develop their own living machines, said there is also a living machine in South Burlington that processes the municipal sewage of 1,600 homes.
Lush vegetation drifts out of large witch s brew vats.
It s beautiful. Companion said he expects living machines to slowly begin replacing traditional wastewater treatment facilities. You can put it in the lobby of your building instead of hiding it because it looks good, he said. In a large city, instead of one massive plant you can have several scattered through neighborhoods. Companion said the living machines are cheaper than traditional wastewater treatment facilities, too.