For several decades Salvation Army Camp Wonderland in Sharon, MA, has offered needy youngsters a chance to attend summer camp. Located on 110 acres along the shore of Lake Massapoag, the camp maintains 16 camper and staff cabins and various other activities buildings. Each cabin houses 12-18 campers.
After decades of use, the cabins got a facelift and were redesigned with new walls, floor plans, and bathrooms, several being ADA compliant. Because the camp is in such close proximity to the lake, engineers from Norfolk RAM and Norwood Engineering insisted that the new waste treatment systems eliminate harmful “nutrient loading” from the nitrogen and phosphorous found in human waste. With the camp discharging over 10,000 gallons per day, the Salvation Army contacted Clivus New England, Inc., for a creative way to solve their problem of complying with a Groundwater Discharge Permit from DEP.
Dispersed throughout the 16 cabins are 17 Clivus composting waste treatment systems that utilize Nepon 3-ounce Foam-Flush Toilets. The toilets are ADA compliant and provide a 97% reduction in the fresh water use associated with conventional toilets (3 ounces compared to 204). The resulting pre-treated, high-quality compost effluent is sent to a storage tank, thus eliminating nitrogen and phosphorous from the waste stream. The outcome is greywater only from showers and sinks being discharged to a reduced size leach field. Solid waste remains in the composters for a minimum of 2 years, garnering a 95% reduction in the solid mass and the elimination of pathogens. The soil-like humus can be re-used in ornamental planter beds around the camp, or it can otherwise be returned to the earth.
Clivus helped Camp Wonderland achieve a nitrogen loading rate of <5mg/liter, half the DEP maximum allowance!! And, the camp received its Groundwater Discharge Permit. printable case study
- Architectural services for the Camp Wonderland project were provided by Nancy Allison of Newbridge Architecture, Sharon, MA.
- General contracting services by Bowdoin Construction, Needham Heights, MA.
- Engineering by Norfolk RAM, Plymouth, MA, and Norwood Engineering, Norwood, MA.