A University of Idaho team, led by Professor Amin Mirkouei and supported by two recently graduated doctorate students, Rance Bare and Ethan Struhs, collaborated with the USDA Agricultural Research Service (Ken Overturf), U of I Aquaculture Research Institute (Brian Small) and the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory (Martha Chacón-Patiño, Amy Mckenna and Huan Chen) to design and custom-build an economical and sustainable water treatment system. This system was specifically developed to remove micronutrients, primarily phosphorus and nitrogen, from the wastewater of fish farms in southern Idaho (Magic Valley region). Through a series of laboratory and field studies, the team tested several unmodified and modified biochar-based water treatment systems. Their findings demonstrated that magnesium (Mg)-modified biochar, made from pinewood, effectively sequestered higher amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus over time. For more information, please check out the latest published articles at www.mdpi.com/2227-9717/11/10/2883 and www.mdpi.com/2227-9717/11/4/1029.
Similar Posts
OUR GEM: k’wne’ ‘ulchiyark’wmtsut – Fisheries Restoration Connecting Two Restored Reaches
By Bruce Kinkead, Fisheries Biologist, Coeur d’Alene Tribe The Hangman Creek Fisheries Restoration Project began in 2002 and is funded by Bonneville Power Administration under the Fish Substitution Policy to compensate for lost salmon harvesting. Early research found the limiting factors to be lack of connection between channel and floodplain, lack of large woody debris (LWD), excess fine sediments, and high stream temperatures associated with a lack of tree canopy. Initial work on Hangman Creek below the Sanders townsite began…
BSU Student Analyses Wildfire impacts on Snowpack
Master’s student Mason Bull recently won the Boise State University three-minute thesis competition and placed third at the state competition. Mason was partially funded by a research initiation grant from the Idaho Space Grant Consortium (Idaho NASA EPSCoR). His research is using the Landsat record to classify landscape composition and quantify landcover and vegetation change in one watershed in the Kenai Mountains of south-central Alaska and the Sawtooth Mountains of southwest Idaho. He is finding that places in Idaho that…
2025 recipients of the Joseph Jordan IWRRI Student Research Fellowship
The Idaho Water Resources Research Institute is proud to announce the 2025 recipients of the Joseph Jordan IWRRI Student Research Fellowship, Dinesh Gulati and Turker Anlaroglu. Established by the family of Joseph Jordan, the fellowship provides financial assistance and hands-on experience to University of Idaho students pursuing careers in water resources management. Fellows work directly with agencies, Tribes, nonprofits, and industry partners to address real-world water challenges. This year, both students contributed to a WaterSMART-funded project in collaboration with the…
BSU Team Develop New Approaches to Estimating Contributions to Streamflow
Boise State University faculty Anna Bergstrom and her team investigated rain and snowmelt contributions to streamflow in the Mores Creek Watershed spanning the rain-snow transition zone in southwestern Idaho. Researchers commonly use naturally occurring water isotopes to track water sources allowing for the quantification of if streams are sourced from rain or snow. By developing new approaches to define rain and snow isotopic signatures, Bergstrom and team found that streamflow contribution estimates can vary by up to 20%, depending on…
OUR GEM Ashes in the Current: The Hidden Hydrologic Legacy of the 1910 Fire
By Mark Getscher, hydrogeologist for the Coeur d’Alene Tribe More than a century after “The Big Burn” of 1910 scorched over three million acres across northern Idaho and western Montana, its legacy continues to flow through the streams and rivers of the Coeur d’Alene Basin. While most remember the fire for its devastation and heroism, far fewer realize its silent and lingering impact on water quality. High-intensity wildfires combust vegetation and organic soil layers, converting them into ash. This ash is…
OUR GEM: Taking Public Comments Regarding Wetland Protection Rule Changes
by Sharon Bosley, Executive Director for the Basin Environmental Improvement Project Commission The Clean Water Act (CWA) was created to protect our water resources by regulating discharge of pollutants into the waters of the United States. Its goal is to help ensure all waters are swimmable, fishable and drinkable. The purpose of defining the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) is to determine which waterways are protected under the CWA. The definition determines which waters require permits for activities that…