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Monday's Internet Edition, March 15, 2010.
Wilton residents learn of new septic regulations
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Photo by Fran Soto
Over 250 Wilton residents and homeowners attend a community meeting at Dillard Elementary School on Feb. 24 regarding proposed Sacramento County regulations on home septic systems. New state regulations originally planned for Jan.1 are no longer viable.
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By Fran Soto
River Valley Times Staff
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Over 250 Wilton residents gathered in the multi-purpose room of Dillard Elementary School on Wednesday, Feb. 24 to hear from officials on new county well and septic system inspection requirements. The evening was a follow-up to an earlier community meeting on the subject and was sponsored by Wilton Action Group.
Officials on hand at the meeting were Val Siebal, director of Sacramento County Department of Environmental Management (EMD); Dennis Green, chief of EMD Environmental Compliance Division; and Barry Marcus, a professional geologist with EMD.
A large announcement came when officials informed residents that previously discussed new state well and septic regulations would not go into effect as originally planned, and that the state legislation requiring them is dead. “If your septic system is working, nothing at this meeting will affect you,” Siebal said. “If it is failing, you may want to stay.”
Marcus addressed the residents, saying that in light of the statewide legislation not going into effect, the county has decided to move forward with their own code changes on septic systems to protect area groundwater. “These changes are mainly to get things into code that we are currently doing by policy,” Marcus said. “Since there is no statewide legislation, we thought it was time to update our ordinance and bring Sacramento County in line with other Northern California counties.”
According to Marcus, these updated regulations apply only to new construction and major repairs of an existing system. Major repairs include drilling new seepage pits. The new code regulations require site evaluation including a soil profile and percolation test before the pits can be drilled. “The site evaluation could be waived if an evaluation already exists,” Marcus said. “We will also look at lot size. Two acres is big enough for a well and septic system, but on one acre - there’s only room for a septic system.”
According to a handout outlining the slide show given by Marcus during his talk, existing lots would be grandfathered in but may need an alternative or experimental system if replacement becomes needed.
According to Marcus, the county ordinances now governing septic systems were last updated in 1986. Currently with 20,000 systems in the county and more to come, Marcus said the current ordinance does not address the increased density or groundwater concerns. Although Marcus did confirm that the county is not aware of any threat to the groundwater at this time, the number of systems going in is a concern. Marcus confirmed that, unlike the proposed statewide regulations, the county is not requiring any annual charges or inspection requirements of residential septic systems.
At the meeting, residents also received a handout on conditions present that should alert homeowners as to when wells should be tested. The EMD offered residents a partial list of area laboratories that test well water.
At this time, the county expects the new ordinance to go into effect on May 10. According to Green, the ordinance will come before the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors on March 23, followed by a one-week public comment period before being formally adopted by the board on March 30.
Residents can get further information and read the ordinance in its entirety at www.emd.saccounty.net.
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