McMurdo Wastewater Treatment Plant

 At over 1,000 people at summer peak, McMurdo is by far the largest of any Antarctic station. With all those people, the question has to be asked– what happens to all the human waste?

The answer is the Wastewater Treatment Plant. Built at the bottom of a hill, gravity does most of the work transporting raw sewage down to the plant via insulated pipes. From there, a network of macerators, strainers, and compressors helps break up and process the waste. 

Micro-organisms, or “bugs,” also help by eating some of the waste. Plant operators even regularly test bug health to ensure they can keep doing their work.

At the end of the treatment process, two products come out: water, which is disinfected with UV light before going back to the ocean, and a dry dirt-like substance called “cake,” which is boxed and shipped back to the U.S. Sometimes, the seeds naturally present in food can survive the treatment process and even start growing in the cake! Little tomato plants are known to sprout up.

Tours here are more popular than you may think. Aside from the fascinating world of treating Antarctic wastewater, the building is a rare humid oasis on the painfully dry continent!