How to Reuse 80% of Your Water and Reduce Pollution in Bocas del Toro

On an island that experiences droughts and unreliable public water service, August Wastewater Treatment Plants are a game-changer.

The future is now; a Bocas del Toro with a more conscious use of its precious resources and practices that safeguard its natural beauty for future generations. Maybe that is not always reflected with every project on the islands; however it is the vision of Bocas Homes.

Bocas Homes is currently developing two neighborhoods for luxury homes with minimal environmental impact and are fitting the homes with features that are not only for the maximum everyday benefit of the property owner, but with long-term resource saving strategies in mind. This is a project designed by a team that loves Bocas and is comprised of seasoned homeowners and business leaders from the area. With this deep admiration of Bocas and combined decades of experience, they have created a jungle luxury home concept that just makes too much sense for the unique conditions of life in our archipelago.

In this article we will focus on one feature in particular: the August Wastewater Treatment Plants. These will be installed in each and every unit Bocas Homes is building, and are also available to anyone in the community, with residential and commercial applications. With this revolutionary product, you are able to reuse 80% of your water while eliminating any contamination with the environment.

The advanced eco-friendly and resource-conserving technology was developed by the Lithuanian company August and has been implemented all over Europe since 1998. Today these Wastewater Treatment Plants are available in Panama, via August’s Latin American branch, Eco Vision Group (EVG). The same Wastewater Treatment Plants have already been successfully implemented in homes, hotels and other commercial establishments around Panama.

How It Works

Water from your toilets, showers, sinks, washing machine, etc. leaves your home or business and is sent to the August Wastewater Treatment Plant, which is typically installed outside and partially underground. The water passes through six interconnected compartments and is cleaned through a biological process involving zero chemicals. The system uses activated sludge and the six compartments to separate the bacteria from the water, filtering out soaps, food debris, excrement and all that is flushed and drained from your home or business, restoring the water to a 98% purification level.

Though it is not for drinking, the newly filtered water is perfectly suitable to be reused for the toilet, shower, sink, washing machine, garden hose, etc. and the result is the conservation of  80% of the water that was sent through the system. That is to say that for every ten gallons of water that is used and treated, eight gallons can be reused! The water can also be discharged safely in nature, onto the ground or into a pond, chemical and pollutant free. The only byproduct is fertilizer which can be used in your garden or also safely discarded in nature.

If you would like to take a deeper dive into the technical information regarding the treatment process, click here to view a PDF presentation about the product.

August Wastewater Treatment Plants Address Two Primary Problems in Bocas del Toro:

(1) Water Pollution

Everybody in Bocas talks about the algal blooms and deposits that wash ashore on Playa Istmito. Some establishments even get singled out as the cause, but the phenomenon is more complex than the actions of any single home or business. It is likely that the compound effect of many places with improper sewage is  contributing to this phenomenon.

Unfortunately some structures are built over-the-water and connected to no septic at all, while other traditional septic systems are not managed properly. The result in both cases is pollution and the increase of nitrogen and phosphorus in the ocean, which are contributing factors to algal blooms. Even if your property is not directly over the water, septic that is not treated properly tends to make its way to the ocean when it rains. Poorly managed septic can also contaminate soil in the form of polluted groundwater.

August Wastewater Treatment Plants address the issue of water pollution by filtering out the contaminants.

There is an interesting article recently published in The Washington Post about “septic tank ticking time bombs” that are beginning to pollute coastal communities in the US, with rising sea levels and groundwater tables that cause pollution and raw sewage to surface.

(2) Water Scarcity

Bocas del Toro experiences seasonal droughts, which have had notably severe impacts on public water supply in recent years. Though more wells are being included in the public supply, the distribution is not always reliable for Bocas’ growing population and its visitors. More and more Bocas del Toro residents and businesses are incorporating water catchment and their own wells where possible. Conserving water -whether publicly or privately sourced- has never been more important. When water can be conserved, overall usage decreases and the public supply of our most precious resource is made more abundant for the people of Bocas del Toro and its visitors.

With August Wastewater Treatment Plants, 80% of water can be reused, addressing the issue of water scarcity in Bocas del Toro.

While those are the two main benefits specific to the unique conditions of our island community, other benefits of the August Wastewater Treatment Plants include: it doesn’t emit unpleasant odors, there is no danger of overflowing and it comes with a 10 year guarantee. A complete list of benefits can be found in the PDF presentation.

Models Suitable for Bocas del Toro Residences, Hotels and Businesses

The Bocas Breeze would like to congratulate Bocas Homes and Eco Vision Group on this partnership that is sure to improve the lives of many in the community, with a more abundant supply of that vital liquid, and contribute toward the vision of a healthier, cleaner and greener Bocas del Toro.

You can learn more about this revolutionary product by visiting Casa Candelaria, the showroom of Bocas Homes, and a store that sells August Wastewater Treatment Plants, along with a whole catalog of other luxury home products that improve life on the islands; items you will not find anywhere else in Bocas. Casa Candelaria is open Monday through Friday, 10:30am to 4:30pm, located on Isla Colon, the corner of Avenida G and Calle 6a, in the BDT Business Center, next to the Hawaii Supermarket (On Google Maps).

If you have questions regarding August Wastewater Treatment Plants, don’t hesitate to contact local distributor and representative of Bocas Homes, Mr. Juan David Isaac info@bocashomes.com or call/WhatsApp +507 6222-6686 (click here to chat on WhatsApp).