Anew two-day National Association of Wastewater Technicians course covering the principles of onsite system design was conducted at Indiana’s Camp Camby before the start of the Pumper & Cleaner Environmental Expo International in February.

The unique site, located 15 miles from the Expo host city of Indianapolis, provides first-class classroom space and the ability to view at a variety of onsite systems serving the camp dining and athletic facilities, as well as cluster and individual systems serving cabins owned by the camp and private individuals. In addition, the camp has excellent dining facilities, not to mention the food is good too!

The course was taken by 16 people. Dave Gustafson of the University of Minnesota, and Bob Wright from Church Onsite Wastewater Consultants in Golden, Colo., were the primary instructors. Denise Wright, chief training officer for the Indiana Department of Health, and Julie Haan from the Hendricks County Health Department assisted with the arrangements and provided technical assistance. Dennis Metcalf, from the Camp Camby staff, located sites for the hands-on parts of the course.

The course included a field and hands-on soil evaluation component. It was not regulation-driven; the goal was to provide principles that can be used in the context of the state or local regulations and it is the designer’s responsibility to know and apply design principles in accordance with their state rule. The principles remain the same regardless of how the regulations change or do not change. The course provides a philosophy of how to approach design. Designing for the long term is important because this means the opportunity for system management is built-in and corners are not cut.

The first part of the course reviewed the importance of the relationship between designer, installer and client as being a key to a “good” system that will last for years. Necessary preliminary information and the introduction to a site evaluation were discussed. Land survey methods and the necessary documentation were also discussed.

The following additional topics rounded out the first day of the course:

• Matching the system to the site: Identifying key soil and site conditions, which dictate the type of system selected. Setbacks and soils; the most common mistakes are soils-related; how to avoid the mistakes. Installation principles and the need to keep the systems shallow and the soil dry and natural.

• The system user: Hydraulic and organic loading in the context of the impact the user has on system choices and design parameters.

• Soil treatment systems: The class was provided an explanation of soil sizing factors. Examples of system sizing and layout; conventional trench layouts and the different gravity distribution mechanisms were provided. Mound design and layout, how much needed area, slope issues, and how to distribute the effluent were discussed.

• Using pumps: Pumps should be viewed as conventional technologies and one of the first decisions is whether a pump is needed somewhere in the system. Pump sizing; system considerations; elevation differences; friction loss issues; how to make the right pump choice.

• Pressure distribution: Laying out pressure distribution; level or unlevel; what the designer needs to know.

On the second day, classroom discussion was followed by field activities, including:

• Applying technology to systems: A review of what system works best to solve the problem. There was discussion of single-pass and re-circulating media filters, ATUs, and impacts different users can have on performance.

• System loading: Waste characteristics for different users. Camp Camby systems were used as examples. The exercise included estimating flows and use patterns, and exploring the implications they have for pre-treatment technology selections.

• Field work: Site evaluation. Take a look at the soils and the landscape characteristics of the site. Go through the site evaluation process, soil borings, perc tests, and elevation differences. Soil samples were provided and the class practiced determining soil texture.

A set of initial exercises that included determining distance and elevation differences was conducted. Surveying and locating important aspects of the site were conducted in the field and a system was laid out on the land in the field. Soil borings were conducted and evaluated at the site.

The day finished with a final classroom design exercise. This initial pilot provided much-needed information on conducting a design course. Attendees all thought this was a necessary course although, as expected, there were suggestions for improvement. The NAWT Education Committee continues to work on the subject matter for the course. If you have an interest in conducting the course in your state, contact me through the NAWT website or by phone.