Lucas Greenhouses is working on the installation of ozone water treatment systems. The goal of the company is to operate a complete water containment system that generates zero runoff. The greenhouses are set up to collect the runoff. The water will eventually go through a biological filter and then be sent to a retention pond. Air diffusers are installed in the retention pond. The diffusers blend the water in the pond from top to bottom and help to balance the activity in the pond. The recycled treated water will be used to irrigate finished plant material. The recycled water will be treated twice using a biological filter system and ozone.
One ozone system has been set up to treat the runoff from a 315,000-square-foot greenhouse. Another system will be installed this winter to treat the water from another 300,000-square-foot range. They have been collecting data on the effects of ozone on the treated water including the impact on micro nutrients and chemical residues and the kill rates on bacteria, fungi and viruses.