Effluent discharging into Bear Creek from the above-grade sand filter at Chatham Central High School in Bear Creek, N.C., was noncompliant, averaging 8 mg/l BOD and 7 mg/l ammonia. Fines from the state Division of Water Quality (DWQ) cost the school $120,000 per year.After two firms failed to solve the problem, the Chatham County Board of Commissioners called C. Halford House, Ph.D., president of Integrated Water Strategies in Apex, N.C., known statewide as an innovator in wastewater treatment.House consulted with Darrell Cole, the board’s licensed operator, who maintained the system and sampled effluent twice monthly. House and engineer Vic D’Amato
