Page 17 - Port of Baltimore Magazine - July/August 2013
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July/August 2013
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The Port of Baltimore
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15
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Warm Service.
Delivered Cold.
For 85 years, you’ve
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Terminal Corporation.
To better accommodate an
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Introducing MTC Logistics.
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Baltimore | Jessup | Wilmington
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at the Port of
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KATHY BERGREN SMITH
The Dundalk Marine Terminal is utilizing
a bio-mimicry system that helps remove
harmful nutrients causing algae blooms
in the Chesapeake Bay. A controlled algae
bloom attaches to a screen so that the
algae and its load of nutrients can be easily
removed. Below is Bryce Selby of the MES.
Dr. May said scientists hope to
keep the system operating for a year in
order to obtain data on nutrient removal
in all types of seasons and weather
conditions.
The scrubber is promising, but
this pilot is small — literally a drop in
the bucket, filtering perhaps 100,000
gallons a day from a harbor filled
with an immense volume of water by
comparison. A full scale-up of several
acres will be powerful, processing
millions of gallons per day. Although
it does require some electricity for the
pump, the beauty of the system is its
simplicity in using the natural energies
of photosynthesis and gravity flow to
produce the algae.
“It’s a very effective use of
ecological engineering,” May said,
adding that eventually the scrubbers
could become an established part of
best management practices. “It’s a
simple method; it’s using the power of
natural systems. Even the low-end range
is really very good as far as nutrient
removal is concerned — this is one of
the most effective ways of doing it.”
