GOLD HILL SEPTIC MEETING NOTES – from Peter Swift <PHswi@nullaol.com>

Meeting attendees, August 15, 2013;

Peter Swift, PE, Chair, Gold Hill Town Meeting
Amy Hardy, IMA
Jack Laughlin, PE (Ret.)
MaxYeager, Licensed Septic System Installer
Iris Sherman-Boemker, County Environmental Health specialist Mark Williams, County Water Quality Program Coordinator

Joe Malinowski, Environmental Health Director (jmalinowski@boulder county.org)

List of Properties with Unpermitted Systems

Referring to the 2011 list of unpermitted systems in GH:

Max Yeager identified several properties on the list which are likely to have permitted systems. BCPH will review the available information on these properties, note the systems that have been permitted since 2011 and publish an updated list. Apparently, the County has no updated list of approved systems, so input from Max will be very valuable in resolving this issue. BCPH will coordinate with GH on addresses for the listed property owners. Also, the present list is specific to the Gold Hill town site only. Should the list be expanded to consider other properties near the town site such as Gold Run, Lickskillet, etc.?

Regulatory Assumptions

BCPH noted that the State was making a number of changes to the design criteria for onsite wastewater systems which would be issued in 2014. These may include flow reductions for equipment such as toilets, showerheads, etc. and the use of grey water for irrigation.

For the time being, the present assumption of 75 gpd per person per day will hold except that the County will consider limited water supply as a factor in sizing the sewage disposal system. This would apply to limited well capacity and the use of cisterns with hauled water. The design implications will be site-specific, including how the actual water supply characteristics can be determined. They suggested that meters are used, but potable water delivery records for cisterns are also acceptable. This is supported by State law.

Well setback requirements may not be variable.

There was some discussion about population adjustments being available. In other words, if you have a 2 bedroom dwelling, but only one person lives there, then the water use can be adjusted. This will require further discussion concerning validation, and so on. In that event, however, the system could be designed to be expanded if more people live in the house subsequently.

The County may eliminate the peaking factor of 1.6 which is currently used to set the design wastewater flow for sizing the disposal system.

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The County is considering using the LTAR (Long-Term Acceptance Rates) design criteria as a standard for sizing absorption beds instead of using measured percolation rates. This will tend to make beds larger, however this will be offset by elimination of the 1.6 peaking factor. The LTAR method requires an RPE.

The County will consider the use of vaults in combination with grey water disposal systems in cases where the threat to groundwater supplies is lessened by removing the black water impact. The stringent existing criteria for vaults may be relaxed and the use of composting toilets and incinerating toilets are already acceptable. Outhouses may be acceptable for those with limited lot size and the 4’ of suitable soil under the site.

The County recognizes the conflicting State goals of water conservation vs. septic system sizing, but the only current State actions are relatively minor adjustments to wastewater flow assumptions.

The County is bound by the EPA/State numerical criteria for septic system design, but has flexibility in policy areas. Specific points of flexibility were not fully defined, but the philosophy of working cooperatively with the community, the property owner, engineer and installer was clearly stated.

The issue of BCPH assistance in vacating County land to aid in the placement of septic systems was briefly discussed. The County will provide such assistance in cases where there is insufficient land area on the existing property for a septic system installation. A point of policy flexibility would be a case where vacating a small portion of public land would have a significant economic benefit to the property owner compared with installing an expensive system within the property boundaries as limited by slope, geology, etc.

Regulatory Compliance Date

The overall Boulder County septic system compliance date is December 31, 2023. The earlier compliance date of December 31, 2016 was chosen for mountain communities which were evaluated as “high risk” based on the number of unpermitted systems and the results of well water testing data accumulated by the County in recent years. These data include water samples linked to property addresses which have been submitted to the Boulder lab for analysis. The actual sources and validity of sampling is uncertain, however the results present a general picture of well water quality which shows a widespread pattern of bacterial contamination.

The December 31, 2016 compliance deadline refers to full installation and approval of the system. BCPH has the legal authority to evict the property owners if this date isn’t met. This power is equivalent to property condemnation for reasons such as building safety, etc. This would be a drastic and controversial step possibly resulting in lawsuits or hearings before the County Commissioners. At this point, BCPH hasn’t thought through all of these implications or how they fit into the overall County goal of compliance by 2023. For the present, communications with unpermitted property owners should assume that the 2016 date is firm, with serious and expensive ramifications if not met.

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Timetable

The timetable for taking action is affected by:

• Updating the list of unpermitted properties
• The forthcoming 2014 adjustments to design criteria
• Coordinating with other communities on their ideas
• The time required for initial property owner contact
• Scoping the septic system design and cost
• Financing as required
• The timeline for detailed design/permitting/installation and approval
• The backlog of work by BCPH and the involved parties
• The increased cost of waiting too long

  BCPH estimates that the design/permitting/installation/approval process should start in spring of 2015. Gold Hill should look at the elements of the timetable and develop their own program plan.

  Financing

  The SepticSmart website notes specific types of financial assistance for property owners who can’t afford required septic system upgrades. We should follow up with USDA grant options. BCPH will work with these individuals to determine the best form of financial assistance that can be made available. We did not identify cases in mountain communities where this type of assistance has been applied. This is an area needing more research for future planning.

  Gold Hill Community Outreach Group

  It was generally agreed that it would be best for Gold Hill to form its own community outreach group to interface with property owners and with the other involved mountain communities. This group would make the initial contacts with the listed property owners and offer assistance in sorting out the septic system issues associated with their cases. The group would coordinate with BCPH regarding community meetings, interpretations of site-specific issues and other issues to facilitate property owner actions…..etc.

  In forming such a community group, Gold Hill needs to look at what kind of people capabilities are needed, what issues need to be addressed and how to assign personalized contacts with the more challenging cases.

  The County agreed to put together a pamphlet of Frequently Asked Questions in a simplified form so that residents of the mountain communities can quickly grasp the issues and potential solutions.

  BCPH has agreed to present at an upcoming Inter Mountain Alliance meeting (September 4, 2013?). Amy will work to include other mountain communities. Pamphlets and other information should be spread throughout the mountain community. Mountain residents should know that BCPH is willing to work with residents. Amy will distribute this information to all mountain towns and community members.

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