HomeMy WebLinkAboutOn-site System Flyer March 2012_Rev Feb 2016Septic
Systems :
how They
Operate &
What That
Means for
Nantucket's
Water
Resources
TOWN OF NANTUCKET
HEALTH DEPARTMENT
Tel:
New understanding of the manner
with which our on-site wastewater
systems work, such as how pollutants
and nutrients in our wastewater act
within the subsurface, is detailed in
the Massachusetts Estuaries Program
(MEP) Reports. Title 5 systems, as
well as on-site Innovative/Alternative
(I/A) Systems remove some nitro-
gen, but not enough to protect our
coastal resources. And, while these I/
A systems have been shown to be able
to reduce nitrogen before it enters the
ground better than Title 5 systems ,
they cannot solve the nitrogen prob-
lem alone, especially in areas of dense
development, such as Madaket.
Do On-site systemsremove enough
nitrogen?
NANTUCKET HEALTH
DEPARTMENT
Phone: 508.228.7200 X 7014 & 7020
Fax: 508.325.6117
E-mail:health@nantucket-ma.gov
3 East Chestnut Street (NRTA Building)
Roberto Santamaria
Health Director
NANTUCKET BOARD OF HEALTH
Malcom W. MacNab, MD, PhD
James A. Cooper
Rick Atherton
Helene M. Weld, RN
Stephen Visco
If your property lies outside of either the
Surfside or Siasconset Wastewater Treat-
ment Facilities, and you do not pay a sew-
er user fee, then you depend on an onsite
wastewater disposal system (septic sys-
tem) to dispose of all water (sinks, toilets,
drains, showers, washing machines) from
you home. These on-site wastewater
disposal systems are governed by the
Massachusetts Code of Regulations 310
CMR 15.00 (Title 5), as well as more strin-
gent local regulations under the jurisdic-
tion of the Nantucket Health Depart-
ment.
The Massachusetts Estuaries Project de-
termined that these on-site wastewater
systems are contributing excessive
amounts of nitrogen to our harbors, em-
bayments, estuaries and salt ponds.
Nitrogen is a nutrient that comes from
human waste, fertilizer, storm water run-
off and the atmosphere. This nitrogen
consumes oxygen within our water re-
sources and fosters algae blooms, which
kill aquatic habitats and produce an
overall degradation of our water quality.
With our on-site wastewater systems con-
tributing to this pollution, what type of
repair or replacement can be effected
within certain designated water quality
protection areas to protect our water re-
sources?
WHAT CAN WE DO TO STOP
THIS POLLUTION?
Massachusetts Estuaries Reports (MEP)
MEP Reports are completed for Nantucket Harbor,
Polpis Harbor, Madaket Harbor, Long Pond, Sesa-
chacha Pond and Hummock Pond. In summary, the
r e s u l t s s h o w t h a t c u l t u r a l
eutrophication caused be excess nutrient loading from
human sources is contributing excessive amounts of
nitrogen to these water resources, which require solu-
tions to reverse the current degradation before we lose
our precious water resources and aquatic habitat.
Nitrogen can also effect our drinking water supply and
the aesthetic beauty of Nantucket’s recreational waters.
The MEP also identifies our on-site systems as a
dominant controllable source of nitrogen for these wa-
ters. Eventual long-term impacts of this could also
impact tourism, property values, and our fish and shell-
fish industries.
HOW DOES AN ON-SITE
WASTEWATER SYSTEM WORK?
On-site systems utilize soils as their source of
‘treatment” for wastewater that is generated by our
properties. Wastewater includes water from toilets,
sinks, drains, showers, washing machines and dishwash-
ers. The picture shows a typical residential home and
how an on-site wastewater system works. The
wastewater is carried via pumps and pipes to a septic
tank that separates out the solids from the liquids. The
solids sink to the bottom and are pumped periodically.
The liquids are then percolated through the soils, which
“cleanse’ the wastewater before it reaches groundwater
and is carried off through the groundwater system to
other water resources. While the soils are capable of
removing some contaminants, a typical on-site system
removes a
very limited
amount of
n i t r o g e n .
Degradation
of our water
resources is
occurring
due to a
number of reasons, with on-site systems being a
major locally controllable source.
On-site systems do NOT completely control the
release of nitrogen. When Massachusetts imple-
mented Title 5 of the State Environmental Code in
1978, it included basic rules for the regulation of on-
site wastewater disposal. At that time, the Code was
designed to control human pathogens, such as bacte-
ria. There was no foresight in the 1970s to control
nitrogen at the levels we are now experiencing from
on-site systems.
So our on-site systems-whether Title 5 or Innova-
tive/Alternative (I/A) - do NOT control nitrogen at
the levels that Nantucket needs to control in order
to maintain water quality levels required by the Mas-
sachusetts Department of Environmental
Protection (MassDEP). MassDEP has issued Total
Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) in multiple water
resources areas of Nantucket, which the Town must
meet.
The TMDL mandates that Nantucket reduce the
nitrogen loading in our water resources to very spe-
cific levels deemed allowable in order to maintain
good water quality.
Nantucket must now develop solutions that will be
able to meet the parameters of these TMDLs and in
many cases it will involve reducing nitrogen loads
from on-site wastewater systems.
This means that in many areas of the Island, on-site
wastewater systems will need to be removed and
another source of wastewater service developed as a
long-term solution to meet not only the needs of the
property owner AND meet the mandates of the
TMDL, but to preserve and protect Nantucket’s
water resources for decades to come!
IT IS UP TO US TO PRESERVE AND
PROTECT NANTUCKET’S
WATER RESOURCES !
What on-site wastewater disposal systems can and cannot do