MICHIGAN:Plan Emerges to Support Michigan Septage Plant
The Grand Traverse County septage treatment plant in Traverse City, Mich., could cost rural county residents $40 per year for their septic tank plus a special tax assessment levied on property outside of sewer districts. The county board’s proposal would finance the struggling $8 million facility.
Designers built the plant based on a two-year survey of area haulers that projected 10 million gallons from 23,000 tanks. Instead of pumping the anticipated 10,000 to 12,000 tanks per year, however, requests for service declined and haulers delivered 4.5 million gallons last year. At the plant’s present 12 cents per gallon rate, it would need 19 million gallons annually to remain solvent.
Officials say the plant will need at least an extra $600,000 per year for operations and emergencies. The facility had a tank collapse in 2005, releasing 150,000 gallons of partially treated waste. An independent investigation found thousands of pieces of structural steel missing from three of the four main buildings, design deficiencies, and shoddy workmanship.
Michigan Pumper Fined for Illegal Dumping
A Michigan Superior Court judge found Daniel Laliberte, owner of Dan’s Septic Inspection in Candia, guilty of illegally dumping septage and trash across two acres of a Deerfield alfalfa field. He was fined $30,000, with half of the fine suspended.
Hunters reported the waste in November 2007. A Deerfield police officer, staking out the field two days later, witnessed a gray line of liquid coming from Laliberte’s 4,200-gallon vacuum truck. Department of Environmental Services inspectors found debris consistent with septage waste in the field. Last year, a judge prohibited farm owner Stephen Sanborn from harvesting alfalfa or allowing people in the field for three years.
State regulations allow septage dumping on farmland when permitted with public notice and treatment for pathogens. Laliberte’s hauler’s license was due for renewal at the time of the trial. The DES intends to renew it. However, a further violation within three years could reinstate the suspended $15,000 fine.
CALIFORNIA:Delayed Septic System Regulations Shelved Again
A long-delayed state law instituting more stringent onsite system requirements and mandating septic system inspections every five years hit another snag Jan. 30 when public comment hearings were postponed because of complaints from homeowners and businesses.
The State Water Resources Control Board Division of Water Quality suspended several months of planned workshops to explain Assembly Bill 885. Critics complained the new regulations, crafted first in 2000, could be costly to more than a million households that have septic systems.
As the review period began, members of the California Onsite Wastewater Association hosted community workshops to inform residents about the state’s new septic system code. If the rules pass as planned for 2010, septic tanks would need to be inspected for solids accumulation every five years. Qualified professionals would determine if onsite systems within 600 feet of the Pacific Ocean, Malibu Creek, or Malibu Lagoon were contributing to their impairment.
The proposed regulations would require site assessments for new systems including determination of seasonal high groundwater. They would need to be built by licensed contractors or property owners, and those within 600 feet of impaired water would need supplemental treatment.
Affordability and feasibility were COWA’s main concerns. Members said some regulations were too strict and the standards were difficult to obtain by any system. The association will continue working with regulators to revise the requirements.
HAWAII:Decentralized Plants Gain Acceptance
The Hawaii Wastewater Reclamation Division of the Department of Environmental Management granted zoning for developing Honua’ula in South Maui, provided a private decentralized treatment plant that could produce R1 effluent (approved for most uses except drinking) would be built.
The effluent would be used for irrigation. WSI International LLC in Honolulu would probably provide the plant. The company sells package plants for large and small (as few as 20 homes) developments and is introducing single-family units to replace septic systems. They require no drainfields.
OHIO:State Association Looks to Expand Training
The Ohio Onsite Wastewater Association joined with the National Association of Wastewater Transporters Inc. to offer a train-the-trainer course to certify participants to teach onsite installer courses. NAWT instructors teach the material and a trainee teaches it the next time the course is offered with NAWT instructors monitoring and assisting.
The two-day course can be broken into shorter ones for more flexibility. The state association is looking for at least two trainers from each region to minimize travel requirements. Contact Susan at 866/843-4429 or oowa@ohioonsite.org.
Tim Frank of Tim Frank Septic Tank Cleaning Co. in Huntsburg received the association’s 2009 Distinguished Service Award.
ONTARIO: OASIS Presents Awards
The Ontario Association of Sewage Industry Services honored Robert Murrell of Pepi Sewage in Port Severn with its 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award. Jamie Delaney, waste management manager for the District of Muskoka, received the Robert Noble Award for contributing to the success of the OASIS Rural Wastewater Expo for two years. The Appreciation Award went to Jeff Chesher of Buckhorn Sand & Gravel for helping a fellow association member.
TEXAS: Changing Provider Code
Maintenance providers with Installer II or Wastewater C licenses will not be required to take an advanced aerobic course and pass the maintenance provider examination to retain state certification. On the recommendation of the Texas Onsite Wastewater Association, the regulatory commission amended restrictions, provided individuals were registered maintenance providers when the rules became effective last September.
Training & Education
National Association of Wastewater Transporters Inc.
NAWT has scheduled sessions in the following locations:
• June 12 – Vacuum Truck Technician, Monterey, Calif.
• June 16 – Inspector Recertification Training, Flagstaff, Ariz.
• Aug. 25-26 – Inspector Training, Flagstaff, Ariz.
• Sept. 16-17 – Waste Treatment Symposium, Orlando, Fla.
• Sept. 29-30 – Inspector Training, Arizona.
• Oct. 9-10 – Waste Treatment Symposium, Orlando, Fla.
• Oct. 15-16 – Onsite Inspector Training and Certification, San Luis Obispo, Calif.
Call NAWT at 800/236-6298 or visit www.nawt.org. For Arizona classes, contact Kitt Farrell-Poe at 928/782-3836 or e-mail kittfp@ag.arizona.edu.
Alabama
Licensing classes are the joint effort of the Alabama Onsite Wastewater Association and University of West Alabama. Courses are at the UWA Livingston campus:
• May 6-8 – Basic Installer
• May 13-15 – Advanced Level II Installers
• June 3-5 – Basic Installer
• June 25-26 – Continuing Education, Dothan
• July 9-10 – Pumper
• July 29-31 – Basic Installer
Call 334/396-3434 or visit www.aowa.org.
California
The training schedule for the California Onsite Wastewater Association is:
• May 8 – Science of Soils and Onsite Wastewater Disposal, (location to be determined)
• June 12 – NAWT Vacuum Truck Technician, Monterey
• July 24 – Science of Soils and Onsite Wastewater Disposal, San Luis Obispo
Call MaryAnne Bobrow at 916/727-2692 or e-mail maryanne@cowa.org.
Minnesota
The University of Minnesota Extension has these classes:
• May 4-5 – Pumping/Maintenance, Mankato
• May 4-5 – Service Provider, Mankato
• May 20-21 – Soils, Owatonna
• May 27-28 – Inspecting Onsite Systems, Waseca
• June 2-5 – Advanced Design and Inspection of Onsite Systems, St. Cloud
• June 9-11 – Basic Design of Onsite Systems, Brainerd
• June 12 – Soils Continuing Education, Cloquet
• June 16-17 – Inspecting Onsite Systems, Waseca
• June 18-19 – Soils, St. Cloud
• June 25 – Soils Continuing Education, Pipestone
Call Nick Haig at 800/322-8642 (612/625-9797) or visit http://septic.umn.edu.
Missouri
The Missouri Smallflows Organization is offering these CEU courses:
• May 6 – Onsite Pumps, Panels and Electrical, Chillicothe
• May 19-20 – Operation and Maintenance, Liberty
Call 417/739-4100 or visit www.mosmallflows.org.
New England
The New England Onsite Wastewater Training Program at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston has these workshops:
• May 5-6 – Inspecting Onsite Systems
• May 14 – Innovative and Alternative Technology Overview
• May 28 – Innovative and Alternative Technology (Fieldwork at Peckham Farm)
• June 2-3 – National Operation and Maintenance Service Provider Program
• June 11 – INSP200 Examination
• June 25 – Bottomless Sand Filter Design and Installation
• June 25 – Soil Basics
Call 401/874-5950 or visit www.uri.edu/ce/wq. Contact Mark Stolt at 401/874-2915 or mstolt@uri.edu.
New York
The New York Onsite Wastewater Treatment Training Network Inc. is offering Alternative Onsite Wastewater Treatment Technology courses May 27-28 in Skaneateles. Call SUNY Delhi at 800/963-3544 or visit www.delhi.edu/bcs/otn_wastewater.
Virginia
The following courses by the Virginia Onsite Wastewater Recycling Association (VOWRA) and Virginia Center for Onsite Wastewater Training (VCOWT) are at Blackstone unless stated otherwise.
• May 11-15 – Soils Exploration (VCOWT)
• May 13 – Proprietary System Training (VOWRA)
• May 13-14 – Wastewater 101 (VCOWT)
• June 1-5 – Onsite Design Camp II (VCOWT)
• June 3 – A to Z of Onsite Wastewater, Charlottesville (VOWRA)
• June 3-4 – Effluent Dispersal Systems (VCOWT)
• June 17 – Proprietary System Training (VOWRA)
For VCOWT classes, contact Debbie Campbell at 434/736-2011 or visit www.southside.edu/programs/wastetreat. For VOWRA courses, contact Jeff Barr at 703/771-5250 or visit www.vowra.org.
Washington State
The Washington On-Site Sewage Association and Washington State Department of Health in cooperation with Washington State University are offering these certification courses at the training center in Puyallup unless stated otherwise:
• April 8 – Maintenance Basics
• April 15 – Pumper 101
• April 22 – Designers: Subsurface Drip Systems
• May 6 – Electrical Basics
• May 7 – Control Panel Wiring
• May 13 – Basics of Installing, Part 3
• May 20 – Maintenance Basics, Bremerton
Call WOSSA at 253/770-6594 or visit www.wossa.org.
Pumper invites your state association to post notices and news items in this column. Send contributions to editor@pumper.com.
Calendar
April 3-4
Alabama Onsite Wastewater Association Annual Trade Show, Pelham Civic Complex, Pelham. Call 334/396-3434 or visit www.aowa.org.
April 6-9
National Onsite Wastewater Recycling Association Technical Exhibition and Conference, Midwest Airlines Convention Center, Milwaukee. Call 800/966-2942 or visit www.nowra.org.
Aug. 5-8
Florida Onsite Wastewater Association Conference, Ocean Center, Daytona Beach. Call 407/830-4381 or www.fowaonsite.com.
Aug. 28-29
Georgia Onsite Wastewater Association Conference, Marietta Conference Center, Marietta. Call 678/646-0379 or visit www.onsitewastewater.org.
Oct. 20-21
Delaware Onsite Wastewater Recycling Association Technical Conference, Dover Downs Hotel and Casino, Dover. Call Ben Miller at 302/226-2844 or visit www.dowra.org.
Oct. 22-23
Ontario Association of Sewage Industry Services Rural Wastewater Treatment Expo, Hamilton. Call 877/202-0082 or visit www.oasisontario.on.ca.
