PROJECT OVERVIEW

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 boasts 16 camper and staff cabins and various other activities buildings.  Each cabin houses 12-18 campers.

After decades of use all the cabins recently 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 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 obtaining 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.  The pre-treated,  high quality compost effluent is sent to a storage tank, thus eliminating nitrogen and phosphorous from the waste stream.  The result is greywater only from showers and sinks being discharged to a reduced sized leach field.  Solid waste remains in the composters for a minimum of 2 years which results in 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 can otherwise be returned to the earth.

Clivus helped the camp achieve a nitrogen loading rate of < 5mg/liter, half the DEP maximum allowance! And, Camp Wonderland received its Groundwater Discharge Permit.

• 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.