On day 3 of our summer week, the River Fellows had the eye-opening experience of touring one of the more uncelebrated facilities in Chattanooga. Crucial to the very existence of Chattanooga as a city, the Moccasin Bend Wastewater Treatment Plant is responsible for keeping the river healthy and clean, taking care of our sewage and rain runoff, and producing biosolids that are useful to non-food crops. Without the hard-working staff at Moccasin Bend, none of us would be able to live in such close proximity and Chattanooga as we know it would not exist.
While advanced technology may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of wastewater, the way the plant treats their water employs fascinating mechanical, biological and chemical processes. As we arrived, we were welcomed by our tour guides: engineering coordinator Chris Mills and sewer project coordinators Leah Sergeant and Sean Kidd.
The River Fellows, looking into a tank held open by Mr. Mills
We then proceeded along the journey untreated wastewater takes as it passes through the plant, and learned of the mechanical rakes that remove rocks and other debris, the bacteria that attack harmful viruses, and the strong bleach used to treat the wastewater before it is neutralized and sent into the river.
The Tucker River Fellows at the detritors (mechanical rakes and screens that filter wastewater)
Mr. Mills explains the large holding pool behind him to the River Fellows.
Finally, we stopped to take a photo above the point where the treated effluent is released carefully back into the river. At this point, it is slightly cleaner than the river water!
The Fellows standing above the release point.
Throughout the tour, we learned of the different ways Moccasin Bend takes action to help protect the river and the environment: monitoring the water to ensure the river is healthy; drawing approximately 12% of their power from their ten acres of solar panels; and even being a top contender for Chattanooga’s #1 recycler - only the garbage found is put into landfills, while all organic material is turned into biosolids, saving 70,000 tons a year!
After the tour, our group headed back to GPS for lunch and a Gyotaku art session with local artist Mark Monahan. Gyotaku dates back to ancient Japan, when fishermen would use ink and paper to record their catches quickly and accurately. We used water-based paints and fabric for our own prints. To make each print, we prepared a real, once-alive fish by washing it carefully, and readied a palette of paint.
River fellows wash fish in preparation for their prints.
Mr. Monahan shows a river fellow how to prepare a palette.
Then, we carefully painted over its scales and fins with special foam tools. Blank fabric was laid down over the fish, and slowly pressed down on each part of the body. Finally, it was lifted for the reveal!
A fish next to a finished print.
Among the fascinating fish used were a drum, bluegill, bass and a trickily three-dimensional catfish!
River Fellows hard at work!
Each of us departed with t-shirts from Mr. Monahan’s online shop, The Mighty Bluegill; a new understanding and appreciation of fish; and several unique gyotaku prints to share with our families.
The fantastic finished Gyotaku fish prints!
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