October 2014

Type I systems majority of 9,120 SSTS installed in 2013: Site conditions drive system selection decisions

In 2013, there were 9,120 SSTS installed in Minnesota, as reported by local governmental units in their annual reporting to the MPCA. The breakdown of the  types of systems installed are shown in the chart below. Nearly 80 percent of the systems installed (7,196 out of 9,120) were reported to be Type I residential systems.

Type I systems include in-ground trenches and beds and above-ground at-grades and mounds. Mound systems represented roughly 43 percent of all installations in 2013. MPCA SSTS Manager Jim Zieger says it's important for residents and others to understand that the type of SSTS system that is chosen by a designer for a particular site is based on the type of soil present and the depth to the seasonal high groundwater. "The designer is going to choose the most economical system for a location that will adequately protect human health and groundwater," Zieger says.

"That decision is always based on a careful evaluation of the depth and type of soil present and the distance to where the soil shows indications of periodic saturation. In other words, the highest level that groundwater reaches on a seasonal or periodic basis."

You can read the full 2013 Annual Report on the web.

Below are two examples of Type I systems being installed: a chamber system, left, and trench system. A detailed cross-section of a trench system is shown at right.

SSTS Advisory Committee looking to fill 10 spots

Members of the SSTS Advisory Committee pose with Gretchen Sabel (front, center) prior to her retirement this summer from the MPCA.

The SSTS Advisory Committee is looking for men and women to fill 10 specific roles on the committee. The committee has 21 voting members and several non-voting members. The committee meets four times per year – either in person or remotely via WebEx. Lunch is provided when we meet in person. 

The committee advises the MPCA on a wide variety of SSTS issues. The meeting time is generally from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

If you are interested in filling one of these positions, please contact Aaron Jensen for an application.

           Advisory Committee Vacancies:

• 2 citizens at large
• 1 elected official
• 1 Professional from NE Minnesota
• 1 Professional from NW Minnesota
• 1 Professional from SW Minnesota
• 1 Water well contractor
• 1 Association of Home Inspector representative (non-voting)
• 1 Minnesota Environmental Health Association representative (non-voting)
• 1 Small Business Administration representative (non-voting)
  

Many SSTS professional certifications expiring this year; sign up now for the courses you need

Did you know that more than one third of all SSTS professionals in Minnesota have an expiration date of December 31 for licensing purposes? Currently, 165 individuals have still not received continuing education credit for their upcoming deadline of Dec. 31, 2014. This is a quick reminder to sign up for continuing education if you haven’t met your requirements in the past three years.

New SSTS supervisor's first experience with MPCA hit close to home

Nicole Blasing has been named the new  MPCA SSTS supervisor for staff in the north central region as well as those involved with municipal wastewater compliance and enforcement. She replaces Ron Swenson who retired this summer. She is stationed in the Brainerd regional office. Blasing was a student worker with the MPCA from 2003 to 2006. She worked with Superfund project sites, including groundwater contamination in Little Fork. "I grew up in Little Fork and after I got the  job I went back and spoke with business owners and others, including my uncle who was once the city administrator, to develop a chronology and history of the community." Her grandparents' house had a well that was impacted by the contamination, she said. She then went to work for the South St. Louis County Soil and Water Conservation District where she worked with community education outreach efforts and construction stormwater inspections. She joined the MPCA  again in 2007 as a municipal wastewater permit writer and compliance and enforcement inspector. The past two years she specialized in dealing with municipal wastewater permits that have potential impacts on impaired waters where there are TMDL or other watershed restoration/protection efforts underway.

Governor proclaims SepticSmart Week: Fall good time to promote septic tips

Responding to a request submitted by the MPCA's Aaron Jensen, Governor Mark Dayton proclaimed Sept. 22-26 SepticSmart Week in Minnesota. At the same time, the MPCA sent out a press release reminding residents that fall is a good time of year to think about septic system maintenance and getting their SSTS ready for the cold winter months. The MPCA also has these tips featured on the website. Local SSTS programs are welcome to use the MPCA press release and website tips and images as the basis for their own press releases they may wish to share with local media outlets.

Man dies making SSTS repairs; system design may have been factor

A man performing routine maintenance on a septic system in Louisville, KY, was recently found dead with most of his body inside an 18-inch pipe. 

According to a deputy coroner, the man was performing a scheduled repair to the homeowner's septic system. The worker was trying to replace a fitting when he got stuck in the pipe. The cause of death was ruled postural asphyxia due to entrapment.

While she is not privy to all the details in this case, the MPCA's Barb McCarthy suspects the man may have been trying to work on a fitting that should have been installed so that it could be reached without personal risk. In the series of photos below, the left photo shows an installation where the fitting that connects the pump and float array to the outflow pipe would make removing the pump for repair or replacement difficult and potentially dangerous.

The middle and photo at right are installations that raise the connecting fittings to a level where they can safely be reached without leaning too far into the chamber. The middle fitting is a quick-connect type and the one at right is a twist-on coupler (union). Both types are far superior to the rubber connection in the first photo McCarthy says. The clamps on the rubber fitting are hard to get to and rubber is not a good material to use in a pressurized system. "I have seen cases where fittings like this have not been installed with safe accessibility in mind," she cautions.

Meet the Waterloo, registered for typical residential strength sewage

The Waterloo Biofilter System, Model 440, has been registered for use in Minnesota. The system is registered to treat typical residential strength sewage. You can read the product registration letter on the MPCA’s website.

MPCA wants feedback on how products are performing before renewing registrations

There are several proprietary treatment products up for product renewal in 2014. If you want to give us feedback on the performance on any of the products listed below, contact Barb McCarthy, MPCA Duluth. She will be sending an email to local units of governments with SSTS programs for feedback on these products before the end of this month. 

Concrete tank corrosion reports trickling in: Have you seen this?

Concrete is subject to corrosion. We can see this on our sidewalks and roadways. Corrosion can also take place in concrete sewage tanks. This is especially true when the source water (i.e.: well water) contains high sulfur levels. The interior walls of concrete tanks are subject to corrosion (see picture) when sulfuric acid forms in the air space above the waterline. This is a microbial process that causes the concrete to soften or corrode – which can ultimately lead to the collapse of concrete (and steel) tanks. If you want to report an incident of tank corrosion to the MPCA, contact Corey Hower, MPCA Rochester. You should also inform the local permitting authority of the location of the tank so they are also aware of the situation.

Sewage tank fee reminder letters going out in mid-November

Fall is also a good time of year for installers to get caught up on submitting their tank installation fees. Tank installation fees for 2014 are due no later than January 30, 2015. Remember to use the MPCA Tank Fee Submission Form for the correct installation year, so you are properly credited for fees paid. Note that there are two forms (one for 2013 and and one for 2014). Choose the form for the year in which you completed the tank installation. Be sure to include your check for payment.  If you have any questions about the tank fee submission form, please contact Wendy Pritchard at 651-757-2090. Installers will be receiving reminder letters, along with a tank fee submission form and fact sheet, from the MPCA in mid-November. The letters will be sent to installers by email, if we have an email, or paper copies will be sent. The letters are being sent to encourage installers to check with local units of government where they worked in 2014 to ensure their tank installation records agree. That way, any discrepancies can be resolved quickly. The process of reconciling records can get backed up if it does not begin before winter.

Upcoming meetings

Oct. 16 - MPCA Technical Advisory Panel Committee, MPCA St. Paul office, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Oct. 24 - SSTS Service Provider Exam Piloting Session, MPCA St. Paul office, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. (Contact Nick Haig to participate)

MPCA staff - who to call

Detailed contact information for MPCA SSTS staff is available on the MPCA website. All MPCA staff can be reached at 651-296-6300 or toll-free at 1-800-657-3864. Past editions of the SSTS Bulletin are available on the MPCA website.