Grant: Engage Plus Grants Program

Charlottetown Pollution Control Plant (CPCP) treats approximately 7 million cubic meters of wastewater*annually producing roughly 3700 tones of bio-solids. The City of Charlottetown plans to transform its pollution*control plant into resource recovery facility for having long-term financial, environmental and social benefits.*Among various renewable options like solar, wind and tidal, turning waste streams into valuable products is*also of key interest. Effluent containing high levels of nutrients when discharged into Hillsborough River can*cause eutrophication. Eutrophication will lead to the degradation of the ecosystem through algae blooms,*excessive plant growth, oxygen depletion, and reduced sunlight penetration resulting in loss of diversity in*aquatic plants and animals. Using biochar for adsorbing these nutrients not only protect the ecosystem but also*recover valuable resources that can be used for land application as fertilizer. The adsorption properties of*biochar obtained from hydrothermal pretreatment of biosolid and from willow will be investigated.*Furthermore, the use of biochar as a media to grow anaerobic microbes for the treatment of wastewater will be*studied.