Water purification process and apparatus

Apparatus for purifying a flow of polluted water containing diffuse pollutants resulting from abalation prior to said flow reaching a living body of water, said apparatus comprising

• settling means for removing rubble drift from said flow;
• a first aquatic plant area adjacent a living body of water and having at least one natural and contiguous border therewith and directly communicating with said living body of water through said border, said first aquatic plant area having at least one distinct plant zone wherein aquatic plants biologically fix, immobilize or extract at least a part of the diffuse substances from the flow;
• means for guiding the flow from said settling means and along at least one flow path to said first aquatic plant area;
• and
• means in the path of said flow for increasing the surface area of the flowing polluted water in said first aquatic plant area so that substantially the entire width of the first aquatic plant area is covered by the flowing polluted water, said means in said flow path for increasing the surface area of the flowing water in said first aquatic plant area being a distribution channel disposed in the flow path and having an entry port intermediate the ends of the channel and through which the flow enters the channel, and having a plurality of exit ports through which the flow exits from the channel, and a deflecting element disposed in the entry port and at least partially across the flow path to substantially evenly distribute the flowing water to the exit ports.