fi 0 brochure 12 07en

8/6/2019 FI 0 Brochure 12 07EN

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The amount of time required to do this varies according to the volume and condition of

the water, the maturity of the islands plants, the extent of active bio-film, and other

environmental factors.

Algae ControlFloating systems will not eliminate algae directly. The synergy of plants and micro-

organisms does the job: micro-organisms/biofilm are able to sequester the nutrients out ofthe water column faster than algae; and algae starve in the wake. This procedure is more

advantageous than chemical fight against algae for it leaves no dead algae behind whatwould later become more nutriments.

Floating systems roughly work like this:

1. Micro-organisms colonize the matrix of the island, as well as the root and rhizomesystem, - creating the biofilm -, and take nutriments out of the water.

2. Phosphates and nitrates pass through the metabolism or the micro-organisms andare thus transformed into an easier digestible form.3. The transformed nutriments are deposited directly on the roots of the plants.

4. The plants take them in and build with them the biomass above the water level:

leafs and stems5. The biomass is harvested; taking the excess nutriments effectively and

permanently out of the water.

Types of Floating systems

According to site specific considerations and main purpose of the floating system, we

offer three distinct types:

1. AquaGreenFloating Rafts (FF type)

2. AquaGreenFloating Blankets (SRD type)3. AquaGreenFloating Islands (SK type)

Floating Rafts Floating Blankets


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Applications

1. To enhance ecological water conditions2. Biological, completely chemical-free water sanitization for fountains (in parks)

and eco pools

3.

Divisions in EcoPools between swimming area and regeneration area4. Create floating separations between different areas of usage

5. Establish linear connections between different floating systems

6. Purification of process-waters (cooling water or carwash water purification)7. Create oil- and sediment-traps in retention basins

8. To naturalize vertical retaining walls in rivers, urban channels, overflows, marinas

and harbors9. Facilitate entry of animals into the water body

10.Create small biotopes for a multitude of living beings like invertebrates, insects,

amphibians or birds11.Vegetation of retention basins and retention pools with high fluctuation in water

level12.Creation of reed belts along steep banks (quarry lakes, mining lakes etc)

13.Creation of horizontal banks; no need for costly solid construction and land-fill14.Design of water banks for artificial water bodies where natural vegetation is not

possible (too steep, no niches, too much exposure to wave erosion)

15.Wave diffusion and wave dampening in areas of boat traffic (recreation lakes,water ski, marinas)

16.Creation of ecological educational wetlands in urban spaces

17.Substitute for missing living spaces18.Diminishing sediment and pollutant entry

19.Creation of shade above shallow water areas to diminish/prevent overheating of

the water during hot summer months20.Shadowing for spawning areas for fish, protection of young fish

21.Raising the attractivity of constructions, walls, retaining walls, weirs etc

22.Covering of drinking water reserves to limit pollutant entries (i.e. bird waste)23.Covering of waste water tanks to diminish bad smell and accelerate nutriment

elimination


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water we could count an increase of 5000 individuals per cm. Here a list for the counts

per species of microorganisms:

Numbers are counts of individuals per cm:Vorticella campanula 3780

Epistylis entzii 859

Actina tuberosa 212Brachionus urceolaris 103

Cephalodella foficula 42

Limnias ceratophylli 35

Floating systems and Wildlife

AquaGreen systems contribute significantly to the habitat diversity of an ecosystem,

both physically and in terms of plant species. Habitat diversity naturally generates

wildlife diversity. Frogs lay egg masses at the edges of islands, turtles haul out ontostepping stones to bask and goldfinches land to drink water from a puddle. Aquatic

invertebrates live among the plant roots providing more food for fish. At the same time,they feed on algae, doing their part to keep water clear. Many aquatic invertebrates arethe nymphs of flying insects such as mayflies and damselflies.

As the floating system becomes home to an expanded variety of life - literally thousands

of species of microbe and fauna, from damselfly nymphs to leopard frogs - your pond orwaterway will become more resilient. It will have more capacity to handle disruptions. It

wont be immune to trauma, but it will be more able to adapt and sustain its basic

equilibrium.

You can influence wildlife use by the way you plant, locate and manage your island. Ifyour goal is to provide nesting habitat for ducks or other waterfowl, we offer an island

with a dry zone for nesting. Conversely, we have ways of discouraging waterfowl speciesif they arent desirable to have in your waterway.

Floating systems on a lake in Spain with trees to

attract cormorans


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Floating systems and Climatic Conditions

AquaGreen systems have also an influence on the climatic conditions of a water body:

they keep shallow water zones cool, slow down the speed of water currents (erosionprotection) and dampen wave actions.

Floating systems are a multi-functional product with a very high lifetime and almost no

maintenance.Prior to installation we fix the pre-vegetated ArmaflorRollsods onto the floating mats;

soon the plants will create a root matrix inside the supports and under. The root matrix of

Carex acutiformis has yielded root lengths of 882m per liter (10,000ft per gal); this meansa total of root length of 250km per m (7,600ft per ft).

Floating systems and Waves

The particular way of construction achieves maximum solidity without compromising

flexibility and the ability to adapt to the water surface and its movements.Depending on the type of waves, we have reached average results of 30-80% wave

dampening action. The actual wave attenuation degree depends on many factors, amongst

others the depth and kind of water body. Another factor is the length of the floating

system in relationship to the length of the waves. Floating systems can be combined toreach very large lengths; we supply special anchoring loops for this purpose.

The maximal size of a floating system will be determined by the size of the water body,

the purpose of the island, the conditions of the water and the wind and the choice ofplants.

Floating systems in the Zoo of

Gelsenkirchen, Germany


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1. The BGS - AquaGreen Floating Raft

More and more floating vegetation elements are used in landscaping, preservation of

natural areas, water course care, aquatic construction and in landscape engineering.

The employed materials should be an answer to technical as well as aesthetical demands.The AquaGreen

-Floating Raft combines these two functions being at the same time a

design and a technical element. In addition this small-scale, highly structured raft createsa new colonization area for many animal and plant species; in this sense it contributes to

the ecological value of any water body.

Description

The AquaGreen-Floating Raft is constructed of two Armaflor-Roll Sods that hold thefloating device, formed from Repotex I2, in between them. The floating element is

resistant against decaying as well as UV radiation. All the three elements are flexible, yet

tightly bound together. At the moment of installation the vegetation on the supports canalready be completely developed. Its shape is best compared to that of trimaran, where

three adjacent elements are bound together.

The diameter of the AquaGreenRoll Sods and the floating roll is typically 20cm/8;consequently the width of the complete raft will be between 60-65cm/24-25. The

standard length of the raft is 2.30-3.00m(7.5-10); a multitude of individual rafts can becombined in modules to create an unlimited variety of forms and configurations.The three raft elements are bound together by a strong PP cord, spun or wound around the

three rolls.The combination with other floating elements (docks etc) or permanent non-floating

installations is also possible. For installations on sites with variable water levels we offerspecially engineered anchoring devices.


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Our AquaGreen

Floating Rafts are typically planted with low growing reeds, sedges and

irises. The plants will form a web of rhizomes and roots under the raft that will form a

submerged biomass inside and under the raft; this biomass creates additional buoyancy:by the buoyant intercellular spaces inside the plants and by small gas bubbles created by

the micro-organisms that colonize raft and root system. The weight of the plants

counteracts and balances this buoyancy.The plants used to colonize the floating systems and rafts have to be strictly indigenous,

especially local reeds and other riparian plants. Slow growing species are preferred as

they give more stability on the small rafts and create better hydrostatic conditions.The symmetrical construction of two vegetation supports around one floating device

guaranties sufficient stability also in wavy conditions. The width of the rafts can be

enhanced by lateral additions of other rafts; this will also increase the overall stability ofthe raft system.

Floating Rafts have proven their quality in countless field applications since now 20

years.

Material

Typically any raft consists of two materials: an inert floating matrix and a slowly

degradable ( three years) planting matrix.

The main criterion that guides the choice of suitable materials for the floating matrix is itsinertia and physical stability; no chemicals should be allowed to leak into the water body

at any time. All AquaGreen

products fulfill this requirement. The floating strands in the

Repotex mats are made of foamed PE. All these materials are resistant against

microorganisms, UV radiation, aging and corrosion.

For the planting matrix we typically use natural coir fibers. This has become a standard

ecological engineering technology. The optional netting around them is made of inertplastic.

Accessories:

Underwater Aprons to protect the raft and rhizome network from too high watercurrents; it can also be used as a sediment- and oil-trap.

Anchoring. To anchor the rafts, we use a 5mm (1/4) strong PE covered stainlesssteel rope, which is placed inside the raft along the protective netting. The ropewill be attached to anchor stones or on shore.


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2. BGS-AquaGreenFloating Blankets

The basis of a floating blanket is a synthetic support for the vegetation in the form of

woven material: AquaGreen

RepotexI2. This vegetation support is constructed asmatting; in which floating devices are woven into the matting and covered by a synthetic

liner to withstand mechanical stress (like floating debris or ice heaving).

Repotex I2 floatation mattingDeveloped root system under the matting


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BGS - AquaGreen Repotex

We have created a great variety of plant support matting which will be the right answer toany special application. This matting are typically supplied pre-grown. It is core part of

all floating systems.

The Material

The basic construction of all Repotex products is a grossly woven structure. Depending

on the individual product, our matting has varying floatation capabilities: the standard

type is RepotexI2; we carry also RepotexI3 which has more buoyancy for specialapplications.

Typically all Repotex products are conceived to be entirely resistant against decay; it

can, however, be combined with degradable materials (i.e. coir matting) or fabricated

completely biodegradable.

Technical Data:

Weight: 200-500g/m (20-50g/ft)

Thickness: 20-30mm (3/4to 1-1/4)

Standard dimensions: 1.18m x 50m (4 by 150). The material can be cut instraight sections or any other geometrical shapes on demand.

The synthetic vegetation support of the RepotexI2 type will be covered (according tothe overall design) with pre-grown coir matting and/or other synthetic netting. A

plantation on site is possible if the site conditions allow for that.

The artificial buoyancy of the island will be supported further by naturally occurring

buoyancy: plants have floating cells and micro-organisms on the roots as well as insidethe support matrix will create micro gas bubbles.

Floating blanket at second vegetation period


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3. BGS - AquaGreen-Floating Islands (Type SK)

Floating islands are the variation of floating systems for situations where you expectmore stress on the floating island: higher currents and/or higher wave or ice heaving

actions. If a strong increase of plant-biomass due to the rich nutriment availability is to be

expected, stronger supports and additional buoyancy will be required. Float Islands arethe simple answer to all these demands.

We produce two standard sizes of Floating Islands:

SK A: pre-grown islands

SK B: islands with gravel surface

SK24: islands with side length of 2.40m/94, and a surface of 2.50m/27ft; made ofPP/PE/PES

SK 30: islands with a side length of 2.90m/114 with a surface of 3.60m/39ft

SK 60: islands with a side length of 6m/236 with a surface of 15.6m/168ft

Floating Islands constitute a system of freely combinable equilateral triangles. Their

construction in plastic or stainless steel guaranties a long life and high resistance againstmechanical stress and corrosion.

Floating Islands fully grown

Floating Islands before plantation


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To supply a highly qualified product, each unit is welded and has passed a waterproofing

test prior to delivery. Each triangle can support a weight of up to 200kg (structural

buoyancy only).Highly tear resistant, UV stabilized netting that serves as support for the vegetation

matrix is installed inside the triangles. The netting is installed under tension to prevent

partial sinking or sagging when the plants are introduced. This is especially important inwaste water treatment to avoid any backflow of extracted pollutants/nutriments back into

the water; thus maintaining a high purification rate.

Anchoring

Large water bodies without high riparian plants and great water depth allow for highwaves. We supply proven anchoring systems for all the different site conditions. For

example we use plough anchors in non-moving waters with a weight of 9kg and a

maximal holding force of 500kp. This system did prove sufficient for Floating Islandsinterconnected with 8mm chains and 13mm Nylon cords even during autumn and winter

storms. Another possibility are concrete anchors of 20 or 50kg.

Installation

Floating Islands are delivered complete: you just have to launch them upon reception.

The interlocking of different islands is done inside the water because there they are most

easily moved. Single islands are attached to one another by the corners with the help of

coupling rings. The insertion of a fender acts as a buffer between the individual elements.During installation you have to watch current and wind because the dragging resistance

of the Floating Islands is considerable.

In cases where the floating islands cannot be shipped fully assembled, we send them in

complete sets to be assembled on site.

Advantages on a glance:

1. Improvement of the water quality2. Immediate greening

3. Durable construction in stainless steel

4. Simple installation5. Almost maintenance free

6. 120m active bio surface per m (120ft per ft)

7. Root horizon as colonization space for microorganisms8. Nest and brooding spaces for birds

9. Spawning space for fish

10.Shadowing and cooling of shallow water11.Wave dampening


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fi 0 brochure 12 07en

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