REDWOOD GLEN CAMP AND CONFERENCE CENTER - TWO STAGE TRICKLING FILTER SYSTEM
2002
CLIENT: THE SALVATION ARMY, SCOTTS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA

Redwood Glen is a year round camp and conference center owned by the Salvation Army, located on a 200-acresin the Santa Cruz Mountains, Scotts Valley, California. The site supports approximately 400 guests and permanent residents. FCE designed and supervised construction of the advanced biological treatment system designed to reduce carbon and nitrogen levels to tertiary levels. The treatment system uses a custom designed two-stage biological trickling filter system that reduces carbon and suspended solids to less than 10 mg/L and total nitrogen by seventy (70) percent. Treated effluent is filtered and reused on the camp property to irrigate an athletic field and ornamental landscape. The system is designed to treat flows from 15,000 to 30,000 gallons per day. The system utilizes small fractional pumps and engineered spray nozzles to process wastewater over attached growth media, resulting in a low-cost, energy efficient system, which is simple to operate and maintain.

JEAN-MICHEL COUSTEAU FIJI ISLANDS RESORT- TWO STAGE TRICKLING FILTER/ CONSTRUCTED WETLAND AND REUSE PROJECT
2003-2004
CLIENT: PASSPORT RESORTS, LLC., SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA

The award-winning, five-star, Jean-Michel Cousteau Fiji Islands Resort is one of the most renowned vacation destinations in the South Pacific. Located on the island of Vanua Levu on 17 acres of coconut plantation, the accommodations overlook the peaceful waters of Savusavu Bay. The resort is situated in a sensitive environmental setting adjacent to pristine coral reefs. To protect the reefs, Passport Resorts has undertaken a wastewater improvement project for the property. FCE has been retained to design and supervise the construction of a new wastewater treatment and reuse system for the resort. The treatment system will utilize a two-stage trickling filter system and constructed wetland to provide tertiary level treatment of the wastewater, reducing carbon, nitrogen and suspended solids to less than 10 mg/L. Treated wastewater will be used for landscape irrigation on the property. The treatment system is designed to treat 10,000 gallons per day.

POST RANCH INN - FAST TREATMENT SYSTEM
2000
CLIENT: POST RANCH INN, BIG SUR, CALIFORNIA

Nestled on the cliffs of Big Sur, California, the Post Ranch Inn is a luxury resort committed to eco-tourism and sustainable development. The owners are committed to preserve and protect the site and unique environment of the Big Sur's coastline.

FCE designed and supervised the construction of an enhanced biological treatment system designed to treat the wastewater to advanced secondary levels, reducing the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and total suspended solids concentrations by greater than ninety (90) percent. The system uses a BioMicrobic's Fixed Activated Sludge Treatment (FAST) system to achieve a highly treated effluent. The system is designed to treat 9,000 gallons per day.

TASSAJARA ZEN MOUNTAIN CENTER - GREYWATER WETLAND TREATMENT SYSTEM
2000 to Present
CLIENT: SAN FRANCISCO ZEN CENTER, SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA

Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, also known as Zenshin-ji (Zen Mind Temple), is a Soto Zen Buddhist monastery established in 1966. Set in the rugged Ventana Wilderness, approximately 27 miles inland from Big Sur, Tassajara Creek and its mineral-rich hot springs have been in use for hundreds of years, first as traditional ceremonial grounds of the Esselen Indians before the road and original resort were built in the 1860s.

FCE has provided ongoing consulting to Tassajara since 2000 on a variety of water and wastewater engineering projects. Most notably, in 2001, FCE designed and supervised the construction of a constructed wetland to treat greywater from the community bathhouse at the center. Approximately 2,500 to 4,000 gallons of greywater is captured and treated in a two-stage wetland that utilizes native aquatic plants and organisms collected from Tassajara Creek to remove soluble and suspended pollutants in the bathwater. The system provides passive, natural treatment of the wastewater without the addition of any mechanical or electrical energy, and within 12 months of construction has become an integral landscape feature on the property, while requiring minimal maintenance.

WILLOWBROOK RESIDENTIAL CARE FACILITY - RECIRCULATING SAND FILTER & FAST TREATMENT SYSTEMS
1999 - 2001
CLIENT: FRONT STREET LLC., SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA

Willowbrook Residential Care (WRC) is a multi-residential facility designed to care for mentally disabled patients in Santa Cruz County. The site is located in the San Lorenzo Valley and is situated in an area of very high groundwater and very poor soil conditions. Historically, the site had ongoing septic system failures.

FCE was retained by the Client to conduct an extensive site evaluation and design two alternative enhanced wastewater treatment systems to reduce carbon and suspended solids by ninety (90) percent and total nitrogen by at least fifty (50%) percent. In 2000-01, FCE installed a network of shallow groundwater monitoring wells and conducted a year long study to assess groundwater conditions and identify appropriate sites for disposal. FCE designed two systems, a recirculating sand filter system and a FAST treatment system to treat wastewater, and an at-grade dispersal system to reuse the treated effluent for irrigation of lawns on the property and for disposal during the winter months. The resulting sand filter system is designed to treat between 5,000 to 7,000 gallons per day and the FAST treatment system is designed to treat between 1,200 to 2,000 gallons per day.

MOUNT MADONNA CENTER HIGH SCHOOL - OSI ADVANTEX FILTER AND GEOFLOW SUBSURFACE IRRIGATION SYSTEM
2003
CLIENT: MOUNT MADONNA CENTER, WATSONVILLE, CALIFORNIA

Mount Madonna Center is a conference and retreat center located on 355 acres of mountain-top redwood forest and grassland overlooking the entire Monterey Bay. The Center has just completed the construction of a new high school campus. FCE designed the water and wastewater systems for the new campus. The wastewater system includes an enhanced wastewater treatment system using Orenco Systems, Inc. Advantex packed bed biological treatment system to treat wastewater to tertiary levels. Treated wastewater is discharged to a subsurface dispersal system to reuse treated wastewater for landscape irrigation around the campus.

BEAR CREEK ESTATE - TWO STAGE TRICKLING FILTER
2003-2004
CLIENT: SAN LORENZO VALLEY WATER DISTRICT, BOULDER CREEK, CALIFORNIA

Bear Creek Estate is a 120 residential subdivision located in Boulder Creek, California. To comply with the California Regional Water Quality Control Board's requirements to reduce nitrogen by 50 percent, FCE was retained by the Water District to design an advanced wastewater treatment system for the community. FCE designed a new advanced wastewater treatment system to treat up to 35,000 gallons per day.

EAST-SIDE WINERY - TREATMENT POND/IRRIGATION SYSTEM
2002-2003
CLIENT: BROOKDALE WINERY, LODI, CALIFORNIA

The East-Side Winery is one of the oldest remaining bulk winery facilities located in the town of Lodi in the Central Valley, California. The wine production generates approximately 250,000 gallons of process wastewater each day during peak processing periods. FCE designed an advanced two-stage pond treatment system and spray irrigation system for the reuse and disposal of treated winery process wastewater for row crop production. The system is designed to reduce organic material and sugars in the wastewater to protect shallow groundwater in the vicinity and allow treated wastewater to be reused for irrigation of alfalfa and other row crops.

VILLAS DEL PARAISO - WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT
2003-2004
CLIENT: MID PENINSULA HOUSING COALITION, RED WOOD CITY, CALIFORNIA

Villas del Paraiso is an affordable housing project designed to accommodate 55 low-income families in Watsonville, California. FCE has designed an onsite wastewater treatment system to provide tertiary level treatment of domestic wastewater from the development. The treatment system is designed to accommodate flows between 20,000 to 30,000 gallons per day and will utilize a custom designed two-stage trickling filter system to reduce the biochemical oxygen demand and suspended solids to less than 10 mg/L and total nitrogen by 70 percent. Treated wastewater will be reused to irrigate athletic fields and landscaped areas on the property.

SAN LORENZO VALLEY SCHOOL COMPLEX - CONSTRUCTED WETLAND TREATMENT
2003-2004
CLIENT: SAN LORENZO VALLEY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT, FELTON, CALIFORNIA

The San Lorenzo Valley Unified School District (District) owns and operates the San Lorenzo Valley School Complex in Felton, California. The campus includes a pre-school, elementary school, junior and high school facilities. The property also includes a central pool center. The total population of the entire campus is approximately 2,500 students and 140 faculty and support staff. The District currently operates a centralized onsite wastewater system to collect, treat, and dispose of wastewater on the property. The wastewater system is regulated by the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, which requires the system to remove nitrogen by 50 percent to protect water quality in the San Lorenzo River, the main source of water supply for the City of Santa Cruz.

FCE has designed an advanced wastewater treatment system designed to reduce nitrogen in the wastewater using a custom designed trickling filter and a two-stage constructed wetland system. Due to the particularly high level of ammonia and low level of carbon in the wastewater, a constructed wetland was selected based on the natural source of carbon that is available from decaying plants, which is critical to the biological reduction of nitrogen in the wastewater. The system will provide a high level of treatment allowing the campus to reuse wastewater for irrigation of athletic fields. The system will be relatively inexpensive to construct compared to conventional treatment systems, simple to maintain, and provide ancillary benefits to the school science and environmental education programs, which already include a water quality based curriculum. FCE worked with campus science teachers during the design of the system to incorporate monitoring stations in the system to allow the students to use the facility as a living laboratory. The treatment system will treat between 12,000 to 15,000 gallons per day.