Increased land costs associated with property inside the city limits and the negative impacts growth would place on outdated infrastructure, warranted the Barber Development Group to look for creative solutions to develop housing within the rural portion of the community. Understanding the potential environmental issues and the dynamics of how to navigate them, Barber Development turned to Aqua Tech Systems to determine the best approach to address their wastewater needs at the Sloan Estates Development. By understanding the opposition to new development with respect to preservation of the environment, Aqua Tech Systems design, management and community outreach teams assisted the developer in overcoming the public’s skepticism of how development could potentially impair their environment.

Far superior for the environment than the alternative septic wastewater treatment that discharges pollutants into ground water supply, this Aqua Tech System serves an entire community reducing the harm that failing onsite systems cause. It involves a four-step treatment process and the environment's natural ability to enhance the treatment of wastewater. Meeting standards as defined by the AR Department of Environmental Quality, the result is highly treated wastewater which is beneficial for irrigating a portion of the open space in the community.

 

As with conventional municipal sewer systems the Aqua Tech system includes collecting, treating and reusing wastewater. Primary collection is achieved by the use of an Aqua Tech STEP System at the home. A small high-pressure pump within the STEP tank pumps the liquid waste through a small pressure line into the sewer lines leading to the Aqua Tech Wastewater System. Wastewater is pumped to a series of buried trickling filter treatment units, which due to the biological nature of treatment process, it is noted for its reliability, lack of odor and limited maintenance requirements. Treated to secondary standards the wastewater then enters into a final settling tank process for additional removal of microscopic organisms. Only after a thorough analysis by a certified state soil scientist and design by a licensed engineer, can the treated effluent then be dispersed at a precisely designed rate below ground for additional treatment, also know as ground water recharging, a proven technology that has been used for more than 40 years.