The Impact of Household Sewage Treatment Systems

(HSTS)on

Storm Water PollutionSoutheast Community MeetingThursday, September 29, 2011

Welcome and Introductions

Joe Durham, Attorney at LawEastman & Smith, LTD.

Overview of theNational Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)

Storm Water Permitfor Franklin County and the

Townships

Jennifer Fish, DirectorFranklin Soil and Water Conservation District

Storm Water DefinedWater Quantity

Storm Water DefinedWater Quality

Purpose of Franklin County and Township Storm Water Program• Compliance with Ohio Environmental

Protection Agency NPDES municipal storm water permit.

• Share resources and expertise by co-permitting.

• Water quality and stream corridor protection.

Franklin County and Township Storm Water Program

Participants• Franklin County Townships• Franklin County Drainage Engineer• Franklin County Economic Development and Planning• Franklin County Sanitary Engineer• Franklin County Public Health• Franklin Soil and Water Conservation District• Residents and businesses in unincorporated Franklin

County• Developers , contractors and consultants working in

unincorporated Franklin County

Franklin County and Township Storm Water Community

Benefits• Public health• Drinking water• Recreation• Wildlife• Reduced infrastructure costs• Quality of life

• Public education

• Public involvement

• Construction site runoff

• Post construction site management

• Good housekeeping/pollution prevention

• Illicit discharge detection and elimination

Storm Water Permit Requirements

Storm Water Program Highlights

• Storm water education efforts.• Mapping of storm sewers to be added to existing

drainage and stream resource maps. • Enhanced county regulations for construction

site and post-construction management.• Participation of county and townships in

pollution prevention programs.• Continued resolution of illicit discharges

including failing HSTS.

Report Pollution!

• Failing Household Sewage Treatment SystemsFranklin County Public Health

(614) 525-HSTS (4787) or failingHSTS@franklincountyohio.gov

• Report Emergency Spills Ohio EPA 24-Hour Emergency Hotline

1 (800) 282-9378

• Report any other water pollution related complaint or concern to:

Franklin Soil and Water Conservation District (614) 486-9613

General Overview of the

Storm Water Permit Terminology

Jennifer Fish, DirectorFranklin Soil and Water Conservation District

Current Townships and ‘Urbanized

Areas’

Definitions

• National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)

• Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4)

• Household Sewage Treatment Systems (HSTS)

• Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination (IDDE)

Storm Water and Sanitary Sewers

Questions?

Overview of Illicit Discharge and

Elimination (IDDE)

Paul Rosile, Director of Environmental Health & Assistant Health Commissioner

Franklin County Public Health

IDDE Topics Include

• Explanation of public health risks

• Requirements of homeowners with HSTS

• Identify and eliminate failing HSTS

• Where are the public health risks

• When to expect these requirements

What are the Public Health Risks?

• Untreated or improperly treated sewage can contaminate:– drinking water supply– drainage ditches– streams, rivers and lakes

• When household sewage treatment systems fail, untreated sewage is discharged into the environment.

What are the Public Health Risks?

• Contact with human waste can pose health risks because it can carry disease-causing organisms.

• Health risks are directly tied to exposure and ingestion of untreated sewage.

• The young, the old and those with chronic conditions are at higher risk.

Avoid Exposure

• Do not allow kids and pets to play in water that looks and smells like sewage.

• Do not swallow or get water from ditches or streams in your mouth or nose.

• If you are in those types of areas, wash hands thoroughly with soap and water.

The aeration system was invented in the 1970’s as a treatment option for

households not connected to the sanitary sewer

Human Fecal Pollution

Failed aeration system

Discharge pipe

Untreated sewage

Discharge pipe with untreated human waste

Untreated sewage in catch basin storm sewer

Untreated sewage

Storm sewer

Questions?

Requirements of Homeowners with Household Sewage Treatment Systems

Paul Rosile, Director of Environmental Health & Assistant Health Commissioner

Franklin County Public Health

Old Aeration System

Aeration chamber

Maintaining Aeration Systems

• Annual inspection by Franklin County Public Health (FCPH) or a maintenance contract.

• Properly operating motor.• Properly operating air intake.• Tank pumped based on manufacturers

recommendations.

Septic Tank and Leach Field Systems

Maintaining Septic and Leach Field Systems

• Tank pumped based on manufacturers recommendations.

• Functional baffles.• Check for sewage or ponding in your

yard.• Ensure leach field is not connected into a

farm tile, ditch or storm sewer.

Why HSTS Fail

• Aeration, septic and leach systems fail because: – Unsuitable soil conditions– Improper design and installation– Inadequate maintenance– Age of the system– Amount of water use

Septic and Leach Field System Failures

Identify and Eliminate Failing HSTS

Paul Rosile, Director of Environmental Health & Assistant Health Commissioner

Franklin County Public Health

Priority 1

• If sanitary sewer is available and accessible, homeowners will be ordered to abandon their HSTS and connect.

– Whether the system is operating correctly or not, the homeowner will be required to connect.

– Required by FCPH regulations and state law.

Priority 2

• Identify discharging HSTS not issued permits by FCPH.

• Removal of those systems will be required. This may include:– Replacing with a soil absorption system.– If that is not feasible, replace with a new

system covered under an Ohio EPA general NPDES permit.

Norweco Best Available Technology (BAT) meets OEPA

NPDES permit for discharge standards

Jet BAT meets OEPA NPDES permit for discharge standards

Priority 3 and 4

• Identify HSTS discharges causing “obvious” or “suspicious” pollution.– Verified evidence that sewage pollution is

causing a public health nuisance.– Identified conditions that could have been

caused by contamination.

• FCPH will determine if a failed HSTS is causing a nuisance.

Definition of a Public Health Nuisance

1) HSTS cause a public health nuisance when any of the following situations occur:

a) Not operating properly due to a missing component.

b) Incorrect settings.c) Mechanical or electrical failure (motor not

running).

AND, timely repairs of these situations are not made after notice to the property owner by the Board of Health.

Definition of a Public Health Nuisance

2) There is a blockage in a known sewage treatment system component or pipe that causes a backup of sewage or effluent affecting the treatment process or inhibiting proper plumbing drainage.

Definition of a Public Health Nuisance

3) There is ponding or bleeding of liquid onto the surface of the ground or into surface water. The liquid has a distinct sewage odor, a black or grey coloration, or the presence of organic matter and any of the following:

a) a dye test identifying effluent from an HSTSb) samples show fecal coliform at a level that is equal or greater

than five thousand colonies per one hundred milliliters of liquid

c) samples show more than one thousand thirty e.coli counts per one hundred milliliters of liquid

Current Annual Inspection Program

• We inspect individual aeration system for a nuisance:

- if the system is not operating properly due to a missing component, incorrect settings, or a mechanical or electrical failure.

- if there is a blockage in a known sewage treatment system pipe that causes a backup of sewage or inhibits drainage.

New Stormwater Pollution Investigations

• FCPH will inspect storm sewer outfalls for the presence of sewage during our dry weather screening.

– If there are "obvious" or “suspicious” signs of sewage pollution, FCPH will investigate the aeration or septic systems connected to the storm sewer for nuisance conditions, and will abate the nuisance if found.

Priority 3 and 4, continued

• If the system is causing a nuisance, homeowners will be required to abate the nuisance. This may include:– Replacing with a soil absorption system.– Repairing existing system.– If that is not feasible, replace with a new system

covered under an Ohio EPA general NPDES permit.

• If there is no nuisance, no further action is needed.

Where are the Public Health Risks?

• Every township in Franklin County.

• In urban areas.

• In rural areas.

• Along roadways.

• Along streams.

How Do We Know the Risks Exist?

• Nuisance and pollution complaints.

• Maintenance reports by HSTS owners.

• Annual inspections performed by FCPH.

• Observation during roadway

construction.

• Dry Weather Screening for NPDES

permit.

What is Dry Weather Screening?•In-field evaluation of MS4 components.

Man-Made FeaturesNatural Features

Channels: Flowing & Non-Flowing Pipes: No Flow

Pipes: FlowingPoint Generics – Features of Interest

Dry Weather ScreeningFeatures Evaluated:

Flowing pipes

Non-flowing pipes

Flowing channels

Non-flowing channels

Catch basins

Manholes

Point generics

What is Dry Weather Screening?•G.P.S. used for location and data

collectionQualitative Observations:

Feature typeFlow conditionMaterialSizeOdorsColorsTurbidityFloatablesPool quality

How We Summarized Health Risks?

• Use of existing records.

• Use of existing data sets.

• Development of new data sets.

• Extensive use of G.I.S.

GIS: (Geographic Information System)

GIS is a computer-based technology developed around geo-spatial information

(having a location on the earth's surface). GIS allows for data development,

management, and analysis as well as the presentation of the data in a variety of

visual formats including maps, database tables and charts.

How We Summarized Health Risks?Franklin County Public Health and Franklin

Soil and Water Conservation District have created a ranked list of “Identified Areas of Concern.”

The following metrics were used within a GIS to identify and rank these Areas of Concern.- Dry Weather Screening

Results

- Locations of HSTS

- Population/Building

Density

Dry Weather Screening Density

Variable

Dry Weather Screening Density

Variable

- ENLARGEMENT -

Population / Building Density

Variable

HSTS Density Variable

Summarizing Variables

DWS Density

HSTS Density

Population / Housing Density

0

4

6

5

3

2

1

Numerical values assigned to density layers. Typical for each layer produced

Highest Ranking Areas Extracted /

Highlighted

3 Variables Summarized

Areas of Concern (AOC)

• delineated by parcel boundaries

How Long Will It Take For FCPH To Identify and Eliminate Failing HSTS Causing Public Health Nuisances?

Paul Rosile, Director of Environmental Health & Assistant Health Commissioner

Franklin County Public Health

How Long Will It Take?

• It will take years.

• FCPH will begin investigations in the first quarter of 2012.

– Start with the highest ranked identified areas of concern.

– Work through to the lowest ranked area.– Use the prioritized approach in each area.

What Will It Cost?

• Repair - $2,000 – $8,000.

• Replace - $15,000 - $20,000, depending on the type of system.

• Tap into sanitary sewer - $5,000 - $10,000, depending on the distance from the home to the tap and other constriction costs.

Financial  Resources Available to Qualified Residents

• HUD Community Development Block Grant

– Grant provided by the Franklin County Board of Commissioners.

– $100,000 total, deferred lien.– For repairing or replacing HSTS or connecting to

sanitary sewer.– Contact the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning

Commission (MORPC) at (614) 233-4171.

Financial  Resources Available to Qualified Residents

• Ohio EPA Grant

– Grant provided through the Franklin County Board of Commissioners.

– $160,000 total grant.– For repairing or replacing HSTS.– Contact Franklin County Public Health at (614)

525-4261.

Financial  Resources Available to Qualified Residents

• Ohio EPA

– Potential grant through the Franklin County Board of Commissioners.

– Application in process:  requested $1.5 million linked deposit low interest loan. 

– For connecting to sanitary sewer.– Contact Franklin County Public Health at

(614)525-4261.

Comments on IDDE Plan

• Complete plan is available for review at www.myfcph.org.

• Plan is open for a public comment period that will end at the close of business on October 28, 2011.

• Comments will be accepted in writing, and by phone or by email to:– FCPH, Attention: Paul Rosile

280 East Broad Street, Columbus, OH 43215– Phone: (614) 525-4787– Email: failingHSTS@franklincountyohio.gov

Additional Information

• Interactive maps of the Identified Areas of Concern are available at www.myfcph.org.

• Follow-up questions?– Phone: (614) 525-4787– Email:

failingHSTS@franklincountyohio.gov

Questionsand

Wrap-Up?