Kitezh Reedbed Project 2004-2006

Kitezh Reedbed Project
2004-2006

New Wetlands project is up and running at Kitezh Children’s Community.

On 31st of March, 2005 Kitezh Community received a grant in partnership with Ecologia Trust, Scotland to build wetlands at Kitezh and Orion under the auspices of Small Environmental Projects Scheme, Russia. The Scheme is funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and managed by the British Council. The project provides an innovative and ecological approach to the problem of how to deal with troublesome waste water that typically pollutes the surrounding countryside, rivers and streams. Now Kitezh and Orion Communities will be a demonstration of a clean, natural alternative to this difficult and unpleasant problem.

This ambitious project started immediately. In May 2005 Galen Fulford, a waste water treatment specialist from the Ecovillage Institute, Scotland made a first site visit to design the reedbed wetlands for the children’s villages, Kitezh and Orion, and to train the Kitezh builders.

Assessing the situation

Training and Planning

Not only does the wetland solve the problem of waste water, but it also gives the builders an opportunity to gain new expertise that they can use to build wetlands for other villages in Russia. A young man who grew up at Kitezh, Kiril Pankratov, came from an orphanage as a young boy with very little future. Now he is a key member of the Reedbed building team.

In August the Kitezh graduates and their student friends dug the 140 square metre hole in Orion. It was a massive digging operation …

but they had fun too!

Like heroes of the Soviet Union!

In September Galen arrived to install the pipes and start to lay the gravel

There was a job for everyone…

until it was done...

Then on to Kitezh, to build another wetland……. even bigger this time, 380 square metres. The wet summer and waterlogged clay soil meant that they could only dig the hole in September. But with superhuman effort, they did it!

excavating

digging

and oops!

measuring

laying a geotextile cover

putting in the sump

Children were involved every step of the way…

A television crew from Russia Today filmed the project just as the work was completed – to be broadcast on the new English language satellite channel worldwide.

An important aspect of the project is education. The children at Kitezh were involved in the building work and they helped to plant the 5,000 water plants that will keep the water clean. They are also part of the monitoring team to test the water as it flows out of the Reedbed. As they participate in the project, they are learning practical biology, botany and eco-chemistry and now they understand how important clean water is to our world.

Lisa Shaw involved the children in painting a mural on the banya wall where everyone will see it.

It explains how water flows from the well, through the various uses in the home, then flows into the wetland, through the roots of the plants and is cleaned by bacteria.

Wastewater from the houses in Kitezh is cleaned through this wetland. The water comes from an underground well and is stored in the water tower. Water flows from the houses to the septic tank and then enters the wetland. The aerobic and anaerobic bacteria that live on the roots of the plants and on the gravel break down the nitrogen, suspended solids, and disease causing bacteria. The plants bring oxygen into the water and absorb pollutants. After this process is finished, the treated water that flows out of the wetland will not pollute the land, ground water or streams.

The average person living in Kitezh uses 150 litres of water per day. For 70 people, 10,500 litres have to be cleaned every day.

25 million people die every year from water borne illnesses. It is important to clean our waste water so that we do not pollute our water supply or that of our neighbours downstream.

Roots and gravel provide a home for helpful bacteria.

To read the Constructed Wetlands SEPS Project Manual click here.