INDIANA: Helping a Children’s Charity

Members of the Indiana Onsite Wastewater Professional Association helped New Song Mission, a Christian nonprofit organization, build homes in Brown County for abused and neglected children. L.A. Brown of L.A. Brown Inc. worked to involve many other professional organizations. Dick Blazer, president of IOWPA, donated more than $10,000 in equipment and labor to install a drip field.

Soil scientists Gary Hudson and Randy Staley installed the manifolds and drip tubing. Scott Rexroth of Clear Water Environmental Systems oversaw the project, created the drainfield layout, and helped install the tubing. Brown employees installed 1,000 feet of perimeter drain. Jay Ingram provided a backhoe and Dave Wagler helped with labor. Vermeer of Indiana donated 8,500 feet of drip tubing and loaned a vibratory plow. Buchner Distributing of Kokomo and Francisville Tile Co. provided 1,300 feet of tile with sock for the perimeter drain.

Built in three phases, nine traditional family homes will nestle in a neighborhood setting with a future horse barn, school, and two-acre pond. Each home will have house parents, a teacher/mentor, and six to eight children.

 

ALABAMA: Tire Chips as Drainfield Media

An onsite installation near Collins Chapel was the first in the state to use tire aggregate for drainfield media. The project was eligible for a $2,500 reimbursement under a state Department of Environmental Management initiative to encourage use of the material in such applications. Only contractors licensed through the Alabama Onsite Wastewater Board may install the systems. Applications for the program are available at www.adem.alabama.gov or from the Scrap Tire Marketing Program, 334/271-7700.

 

MICHIGAN: Public Service Announcements Return

For the third consecutive year, the Michigan Septic Tank Association purchased television airtime to blanket the state with three public service announcements, provided free from the National Environmental Services Center.

Humorous videos delivered the message that homeowners are responsible for safeguarding drinking water through proper onsite system operation and maintenance. The announcements, modified to include the association’s logo and Web address, were so successful at reminding customers to have their septic tanks pumped that the membership pushed the board to begin the campaign again in May. The Michigan PSAs are at www.msta.biz. The originals are at www.nesc.wvu.edu/subpages/psa.cfmBody.

 

GEORGIA: Restrictive Onsite Legislation Stopped

Pressure from the Georgia Onsite Wastewater Association stopped the House Natural Resources Environmental Quality Subcommittee from considering a bill that would restrict issuance of onsite permits in the metro Atlanta area.

The proposed Water Conservation Act maintained that septic systems robbed rivers of flow in critical times. Wastewater association members said studies demonstrate that streams surrounded by septic systems continue to flow long after those surrounded by sewers dry up. The Department of Community Health Division of Environmental Health called the bill unworkable because more than 25 percent of homes in the area have onsite systems and the state has no funds to sewer them.

 

CALIFORNIA: Monitoring Greenhouse Gases

According to a report in Environmental Science Technology, empirical measurements of septic tank emissions are about half as high as estimated by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

The panel estimated that an average tank emitted 0.23 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year. Environmental engineer Chris Cappa of the University of California-Davis and colleagues collected samples from eight septic tanks. Gas chromatography showed an average 11 grams of methane compared to the IPCC estimate of 25.5 grams.

Cappa found that carbon dioxide emissions averaged 33.3 grams per day, and nitrogen dioxide emissions were negligible. Overall, the team reported that septic tanks produce between 0.1 and 0.12 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year. Temperatures inside the tanks did not seem to influence methane emissions, Cappa says

 

NEBRASKA: Standardizing Onsite System Design

The Nebraska On-Site Waste Water Association is working with the state’s On-Site Waste Water Advisory Committee board to ensure that everyone follows the same standards for onsite systems as described in Title 124.

According to NOWWA president Matt Weider, the problem is the number of installers who violate the code because they are unwilling to change. Then there are those who put in mound systems illegally. The state Department of Environmental Quality has yet to provide preliminary plans endorsing common mound systems for three- to five-bedroom homes with high groundwater issues.

The plans, when approved, would allow only certified installers to follow a basic design that would not require an engineering firm, reducing the cost for homeowners. The association also is working through OWAC to keep the septic code current and to clear up gray areas. Revisions often include increasing the difficulty of certification exams to encourage service providers to stay informed about code changes, installation methods, new products and industry issues.

 

Training & Education

NAWT

The National Association of Wastewater Transporters has these training sessions:

• July 21-22 – Inspector Training and Certification, Sonora, Calif.

• Sept. 22-23 – Operation and Maintenance, Part 1, Citrus Heights, Calif.

Call Kit Rosefield at 530/513-6658 or visit www.cowa.org.

 

Alabama

Licensing classes are the joint effort of the Alabama Onsite Wastewater Association and University of West Alabama. Courses are at UWA Livingston campus unless stated otherwise:

• July 7-8 – Pumpers

• July 20-22 – Advanced Installer I

• Aug. 11-12 – Continuing Education, Guntersville

• Aug. 24-26 – Advanced Installer II

The first day of continuing education classes is for installers and the second day is for pumpers and portable restroom operators. Call the training center at 205/652-3803 or visit http://aowatc.uwa.edu.

 

Arizona

The Arizona Onsite Wastewater Recycling Association, in sponsorship with the University of Arizona Onsite Wastewater Education Program, has a Soil and Site Evaluation for Onsite Systems class on Aug. 17-18 in Coconino County. Call Kitt Farrell-Poe at 520/621-7221 or email kittfp@ag.arizona.edu or visit http://ag.arizona.edu/waterquality/onsite.

 

California

The California Onsite Wastewater Association is offering these NAWT classes:

• July 21-22 – NAWT Onsite Inspector Training and Certification, Sonora

• Aug. 12 – System Controls, Citrus Heights

Call Kit Rosefield at 530/513- 6658 or visit www.cowa.org.

 

Florida

Courses are at the Florida Onsite Wastewater Association Training Center in Polk City unless stated otherwise.

• July 6 – DOH Onsite Treatment and Disposal Systems Forms,

Wauchula

• July 7 – DOH Onsite Treatment and Disposal Systems Forms

• July 13 – DOH Onsite Treatment and Disposal Systems Forms,

Ft. Lauderdale

• July 14 – DOH Onsite Treatment and Disposal Systems Forms,

Ft. Meyers

• July 19 – DOH Onsite Treatment and Disposal Systems Forms,

Jacksonville

• July 20 – Advanced Treatment Systems I, Tallahassee

Contact FOWA at 321/363-1590 or visit www.fowaonsite.com.

 

Michigan

The Michigan Onsite Wastewater Training and Education Center at MSU Tollgate Center in Novi has an Onsite Systems Evaluator course on Aug. 10-11. Call Barb DeLong at 517/355-4720 or visit www.egr.msu.edu/age/outreach.html.

 

Minnesota

The University of Minnesota Extension has these classes:

• Aug. 3 – Sampling Onsite Systems, Waterville

• Aug. 23-26 – Service Provider, Brainerd

Call Nick Haig at 800/322-8642 or visit http://septic.umn.edu.

 

Missouri

The Missouri Smallflows Organization is offering these CEU courses:

• July 19-20 – Operations and Maintenance, Liberty

• Aug. 30 – Media Filters, Cape Girardeau

• Aug. 31 – Aerated Treatment Units, Cape Girardeau

Call Tammy Yelden at 417/739-4100 or visit www.mosmallflows.org.

 

New England

The New England Onsite Wastewater Training Center at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston has these courses:

• July 13 – Microbiology for Wastewater Professionals

• July 14 – Surveying Techniques for the Wastewater Professional

• July 20-21 – Advanced Soil Morphology

• Aug. 11 – Surveying Basics for the Onsite Wastewater Contractor

Call 401/874-5950 or visit www.uri.edu/ce/wq. For soil courses, call Mark Stolt at 401/874-2915 or email mstolt@uri.edu.

 

North Carolina

The North Carolina Soils and On-Site Wastewater Training Academy has these courses:

• July 14 – Global Positioning and Geographic Information, Webinar

• Aug. 4 – Soil Survey in the 21st Century, Webinar

• Aug. 9 – Subsurface Wastewater System Operator, Mills River

Call Joni Tanner at 919/513-1678 or visit www.soil.ncsu.edu/training.

The North Carolina Pumper Group and Portable Toilet Group are holding the four-hour septage management training and three-hour land application seminar on Sept. 24 in Asheville. Call Joe McClees at 252/249-1097 or visit www.ncpumpergroup.org or www.ncportabletoiletgroup.org.

The North Carolina Septic Tank Association has these classes:

• Oct. 20-21 – Installer/Inspector, Hickory

• Oct. 26-28 – Installer, Inspector, Pumper, Land Application,

Greensboro

Visit www.ncsta.net or email ncsta@earthlink.net.

 

Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania Septage Management Association is offering these Onsite Wastewater Treatment System Inspection courses:

• July 13-14 – Advanced Level, Downington

• July 20-21 – Basic Level, Chesterfield, N.J.

Call 717/763-7762 or visit www.psma.net.

 

Calendar

June 9-10

Arizona Onsite Wastewater Recycling Association Onsite Wastewater Educational Conference, Radisson Suites, Tucson. Email Suzanne Ehrlich at suzanne.ehrlich@co.yavapai.az.us.

 

June 15-17

North Carolina Septic Tank Association Symposium, Sea Trails Resort, Sunset Beach. Visit www.ncsta.net or email ncsta@earthlink.net.

 

June 16

Utah On-Site Wastewater Association mini-conference on pressure distribution system design, operation and use, Salt Lake City. Call 435/797-3155 or visit http://uwrl.usu.edu/partnerships/training/uowa.html.

 

June 17-20

Utah On-Site Wastewater Association mini-conference on pressure distribution system design, operation and use. Division of Natural Resources Building, Salt Lake City. Call 435/797-3155 or visit http://uwrl.usu.edu/partnerships/training/uowa.html.