Hornsby Bend

Just when you thought that the life of a landscape architecture graduate student could not get any more interesting: This week my class took a field trip to the City of Austin's main wastewater treatment plant (!!!) called Hornsby Bend. 

The grounds were actually quite idyllic, with these large Live Oak motts all over. 
The entrance. Not very interesting- just setting the scene.
So Hornsby Bend is where the water in your toilet goes to get treated after it is flushed (in case you were wondering exactly what a wastewater treatment facility is). But what is really interesting about this place is what they do with all the inflow. Basically, they turn it into compost, and then sell it, under the tradename Dillo Dirt. It is a zero-waste process. They do not put anything back into landfills. The water gets put into ponds, where it eventually evaporates. And the Dillo Dirt gets used for fertilizer. And on top of that they actually produce energy through some gaseous process.
This was our tour guide. He LOVES dillo dirt. (Notice Sarah in the middle covering her nose. The smell wasn't so bad the day we went, but it is rumored that it gets deadly there in the summer).
We watched some trucks turning over the compost. The whole process takes the better part of a year.
Our guide also stated repeatedly that Hornsby Bend is not only a wastewater treatment facility by also "The BEST bird watching site in Central Texas!" Apparently the treatment ponds are one of the only marsh-like habitats left in the region and the migrating birds flock there, literally.
No birds to be seen here. But supposedly it is quite a hot spot. And I apologize for the lack of snakes this week. I'll see what I can do next time.