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EnPhytoBox® (Wetland-in-a-Box™) is a mobile, local nature-based water treatment solution that sustainably transforms polluted water into a reusable resource.
About
EnPhytoBox® (Wetlands-in-a-Box™) is a green technology that uses the power of nature to sustainably treat polluted water at source. It is an innovative, smart, mobile and scalable solution for resilience, nature repair and water independence. It integrates physical infrastructure with digital controls to improve data transparency, reduce risk and improve water governance. It uses locally available plants, media, biosorbents and microbes to breakdown and remove pollutants and is adaptable and customisable for different wastewater types and locations. The digital IoT capability enables remote operation and monitoring, even in the most isolated of areas. It is low energy, net zero emissions, zero waste has low life cycle costs and can be moved and repurposed at end-of-need.
With offices in Australia, New Zealand and Europe, Syrinx is a solutions practice that works with nature to enable the transition to a sustainable future and a circular economy. For 25 years, the multidisciplinary experts at Syrinx have offered planning, designing and delivery services and nature-based solutions such as the EnPhytoBox® to solve complex environmental problems. As climate change intensifies, bringing more frequent droughts, flooding, and water stress, industries and communities urgently need resilient, sustainable water treatment solutions. EnPhytoBox® combines nature-based innovation with smart technology to turn polluted water into a reusable resource. It is a decentralised, mobile, and scalable treatment system designed for flexibility. It serves a wide range of users, including regional communities, agriculture, industry and municipalities.
Key Benefits
By harnessing the natural filtration power of plants and biosorbents—without hazardous chemicals or waste generation—the EnPhytoBox® provides an environmentally safe alternative to conventional treatment technologies. The system has low operational costs, is low-maintenance, and is equipped with IoT capabilities for remote monitoring and control. It adapts to variable flows, pollutants, and evolving regulatory requirements—making it future-ready and customisable to Clients particular needs. EnPhytoBox® is built to meet today’s water challenges while delivering long-term, nature-positive impact for the future.
The EnPhytoBox® offers the following benefits and potential improvements:
- Climate-resilient water assurance: Reduces the reliance on unpredictable and costly potable water sources, by treating polluted water for safe reuse or compliant environmental discharge - critical in times of drought, flooding, or tightening regulation.
- Flexible, decentralised operation: Each EnPhytoBox® treats up to 100kL/day and can work as a standalone system or alongside existing wastewater treatment infrastructure, offering flexibility and site-specific solutions.
- Scalable and modular: Multiple units can be deployed to increase treatment capacity as operations grow or fluctuate with production cycles.
- Versatile treatment capability: Effectively treats a wide range of wastewater types and pollutants, including from food processing, washdown, agricultural runoff, and more for reuse or responsible discharge.
- Adaptable to change: System components can be easily reconfigured to respond to shifts in water chemistry, processing needs, or discharge requirements.
- Redeployable: Units can be relocated between sites or adjusted to meet seasonal or regional demands—ideal for suppliers with distributed or variable operations.
- Smart, remote operation: Integrated IoT platform enables real-time monitoring, control, and reporting via LoRaWAN or satellite connectivity—reducing on-site operational burden and ensuring water quality compliance.
- Cost-effective and low carbon: Offers ~40% lower operational costs (OPEX) compared to conventional water treatment systems. EnPhytoBox® uses low energy consumption, no hazardous chemicals, and reduced emissions, which collectively contribute toward net-zero goals.
- Circular by design: Built on circular economy principles—zero waste, low maintenance, and all components can be reused, repurposed, or recycled at end-of-use.
Applications
Target markets include:
· Agriculture - treatment of nutrient-enriched run-off from farms, and reuse for irrigation. Each box can supplement irrigation of up to 10ha of vines, crops, micro-food vegetable farms. This can be scaled i.e. 10 EnPhytoBoxes can irrigate up to 100 ha.
· Food and beverage – can be used to treat washdown water from fruit and vegetable or beverage processing, to meet environmental compliance requirements.
· Aquaculture - treatment and recycling of wastewater for improved efficiency and resource management.
· Urban/regional communities - stormwater, groundwater, municipal wastewater treatment for reuse, safe environmental discharge and/or water catchment replenishment projects
· Climate Emergency Agencies - can quickly be deployed in climate emergencies such as floods or droughts - to treat stormwater safely, or clean contaminated water to protect community health from waterborne disease.
We are:
- deploying a commercial unit in a fruit and vegetable processing facility in Serbia for the treatment of washdown water (high in COD, BOD, TSS, nutrients) for environmentally compliant discharge.
- developing a water replenishment project involving stormwater treatment and reuse/recharge in a highly urbanised catchment in Australia.
- commencing fabrication of a unit for deployment for sewage treatment at an industrial site in Serbia.
- commencing a research pilot project for treating mine tailings in Europe and Australia with a Tier 1 mining company.