Greenville’s ReWa Innovation Campus Vision Plan is restoring wastewater into a clean, renewable resource while creating an ecologically responsive campus and a destination for wellness and learning.

Renewable Water Resources (ReWa), a wastewater treatment plant located in Greenville, South Carolina, has been serving Greenville County and portions of Anderson, Laurens, Pickens, and Spartanburg Counties since 1925. In keeping with ReWa’s mission statement “Enhancing our community’s quality of life by transforming wastewater into renewable resources through responsible and innovative solutions”, the recently modernized Mauldin Road Campus was envisioned as a destination for wellness and learning, serving both the ReWa and greater Greenville communities. MKSK, working closely with ReWa and the community, developed an aspirational Master Plan for the Mauldin Road Campus that aligns and synergizes the operations of ReWa, contributes to community vibrancy, builds ecological value, and provides education opportunity.

A network of multi-use paths will link the site’s historic treatment buildings (some of which date back to the 1920s) with its contemporary facilities, including a state-of-the-art LEED Silver laboratory. New spaces will knit into the fabric of the campus, providing venues for education and celebration. Native plant communities will be reintroduced within this active industrial site and reference the regional watershed’s diversity, from its upland forests to its floodplains. Ultimately, the vision plan sets forth a bold and achievable framework for the wastewater recovery facility of the future.

Preservation and integration of historical structures on the campus are greatly valued as part of the industrial heritage of the site.

Innovation

Water purification traditionally is not an activity that is open for public viewing. We see the finished product, but none of the process that got us there. The introduction of “floating treatment wetlands” (FTWs), underwater viewing ports, and a catwalk overlooking the treatment process will provide unique opportunities for the public to learn more about where their clean water comes from. The campus itself is also completely interconnected, as the water recovered and treated from the FTWs will flow through an irrigation system into the Demonstration Farm. The result of these techniques will be a fully-integrated learning experience that includes the natural processes of water purification, reconnecting the visitor to what makes the most abundant resource in the world – water – clean and safe.

The Decommissioned Clarifier acts as an innovative and interactive research lab.

Health and Wellness

ReWa’s vision creates a balance between industry, community, and nature and is the first step toward treatment facilities becoming centers of health and wellness. ReWa’s restored wetlands will collect runoff while also offering recreational use. Native grasses and flowers will populate the winding paths, and wildlife will nest and roam freely, all while our water undergoes purification. The Campus Master Plan features an amphitheater that can be reserved for events, utilized for shared outdoor activities, or simply act as a place for people to celebrate nature.

The multiple-purpose amphitheater connects people to each other as well as to nature.

Experiential Learning

ReWa’s Campus Master Plan offers multi-layered learning opportunities, educating visitors through interpretive signage along the paths about the demonstration wetlands, restored ecology, purification process, and the unique bio-solid recycling program. The rolling hillside garden’s Demonstration Farm combines multiple elements. In addition to the native grasses and wildflowers that will root it into the slope, the garden will be fertilized from organic by-products following the wastewater treatment process. ReWa offers hands-on learning and shows the connection between resources – like water, land, and soil – and how we can mutually benefit by implementing them at various stages of the purification cycle.