Eco-villages and The Living Machine

     Findhorn Ecovillage, a sustainable village in Moray, Scotland, is a constantly evolving experiment on sustainable living that has been in effect since 1995. The village features numerous ecological techniques including establishing a sustainable building code, growing organic food on site, powering the village through a wind farm, and taking advantage of a Living Machine. 

    The Living Machine, specifically, uses vats of macro and microorganism environments to filter and treat sewage water. The vats or tanks are filled with bacteria, fish, snails, trees, and other plants. Sewage and wastewater are pumped through the system and filtered and treated naturally. Findhorn Ecovillage's Living Machine services 350+ people and is very effective. It has been found that living machines are 99.9% effective in treating the bacteria and germs in wastewater. The machines also don't allow for toxic chemicals from the wastewater to enter the atmosphere which is not a common practice with the standard wastewater treatment plant. 

    Living Machines are both safer for the environment and are more efficient than the standard wastewater treatment plant. This could offer endless possibilities for the future of wastewater treatment design in the United States. Communities and neighborhoods could integrate the concept of the Living Machine into the wastewater treatment and do wonders for the environment. 

        This simple and highly efficient practice could totally shift how we think about the waste we produce on a daily basis. Instead of flushing it away, why not incorporate it into our own ecosystem producing an overall healthier environment and utilizing nutrients to potentially produce food for said community? The solution seems too easy of a practice hence being too polarizing for application in the U.S. 

    Too often are we too quick to flush and turn the tap back on. The consequences of everyone doing that all day long are massive. The Living Machine would make us less dependent on chemical and treatment plants to handle our sewage. This would, in turn, save money and create a safer water supply that took no chemicals to treat. 

    In terms of landscape architecture, I can see the Living Machine being incorporated into a design that celebrates the qualities of what a natural ecology can provide for us. That should be what the industry is all about. It should be about creating special places that celebrate the planet we have to build on without disrupting just that. 

Sources:

Laylin, Tafline. "The Living Machine: An Ecological Approach to Poo." The Ecologist, 8 June. 2010. theecologist.org/2010/jumn/08/living-machine-ecological-approach-poo. Accessed 20 Sep. 2023

Todd, John H. "Planetary Healing and Ecological Design." Lecture Video Recording

"Findhorn Ecovillage, New Frontiers of Sustainability." EcovillageFindhorn, www.ecovillagefindhorn.com/. Accessed 20 Sept. 2023

"Living Machine." Urban Green-Blue Grids, www.urbangreenbluegrids.com/measures/living-machine/. Accessed 20 Sept. 2023.