How did the botanical air filter change between the BioHome and the FEMA trailer?
Dr. Wolverton, with the support of the management of Stennis Space Center, and backing of ALCA (Associated Landscape Contractors of America), chose to scale up the research at Stennis to demonstrate the beneficial role of plants in closed life support systems to maintain a healthy living environment. The result was the construction of the BioHome constructed of synthetic materials and engineered for maximum closure of the air exchange and energy efficiency.
Source: NASA on phytoremediation.
Results of Dr. Wolverton’s studies were published in a 1982 technical memorandum, and in magazines in 1984, and also in 1989, when construction on the BioHome was completed.
Prior to his retirement from NASA, in 1990, Dr. Wolverton received many awards from NASA, including induction into the U.S. Space Foundations Hall of Fame in 1988.
Jumping ahead to 2005-2006, by that time, Dr. Wolverton had formed a company and developed an improved version of the botanical air filter which he called the EcoPlanter, which was produced in Japan.
Following the devastating Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in August and September 2005, temporary housing was provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency ( FEMA ) to thousands of victims along the Gulf Coast. 150,000 people were primarily housed in small travel trailers that became known as “FEMA trailers.”
Almost immediately, many residents began to complain about the air quality within the trailers. Often, residents sought medical help for a variety of ailments such as respiratory problems, asthma, rashes, dizziness, etc.
After conducting air quality tests, the Sierra Club determined that formaldehyde levels were excessively high due to the extensive use of particle board in the construction process. In fact, unsafe levels of formaldehyde were found in 30 out of 32 trailers tested. The World Health Organization (WHO) currently sets a safe range indoors of formaldehyde at 0.05 parts per million (ppm) or less.
In October 2006, Wolverton Environmental Services, Inc. (WES) and the local Sierra Club headed by Becky Gillette placed an EcoPlanter (a special planter developed by Wolverton) inside a FEMA trailer located in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. The trailer was the temporary home of a young couple and their small child.
Samples taken before placement of the EcoPlanter showed a formaldehyde concentration of 0.18 ppm. All samples were collected by the residents and shipped to an independent laboratory for analyses.
Within several days, tests revealed that the EcoPlanter had reduced the formaldehyde concentration to 0.03 ppm. These preliminary findings revealed the potential for air filters to remove harmful formaldehyde within the trailers.
For a detailed look at Wolverton’s work with VOC removal from the confined spaces of the FEMA trailer and the BioHome, see BioHome and FEMA trailer work of Wolverton, which summarizes a feature of the hydroculture technology which boosts air filtering: the fan.
Click next page to see how the EPA responded to the public’s enthusiastic acceptance of the use of plants as air filters in homes and offices.
