Tahuna Wastewater Treatment Plant Tour
At the start of Term 2, a group of Logan Park students spent the morning on a tour of the Tahuna Wastewater Treatment Plant in South Dunedin.
The plant treats about 30 million litres of Dunedin’s wastewater a day, using primarily physical and biological methods – very few chemicals are used. We were taken around the plant and got to see some of the processing methods used to treat the wastewater before it is returned to the ocean. Some of the more interesting techniques we were shown were microbial filtration, which used bacteria grown on plastic discs to remove pollutants from the water, and ultraviolet disinfection, which used UV light to kill harmful bacteria. We enjoyed being able to see how Dunedin’s wastewater is treated, and learning some of the science behind the process. Wastewater treatment is more interesting than you think!