Gary Hall, extension agent from Colorado State University, told the audience at a Protect Our Wells meeting June 4 that proper maintenance of septic systems is essential to protect ground water quality. Hall, in conjunction with CSU, conducted a water quality study in El Paso County earlier this year. While only one well tested above Environmental Protection Agency standards for nitrate pollution, Hall said pollution from septic systems could become a problem as more development occurs in the county.”There are approximately 600,000 septic systems in Colorado and that number is increasing every day,” Hall said. “About 10-20 percent of those systems are not functioning properly, which is a very scary statistic for people relying on wells for drinking water.”Protect Our Wells is a nonprofit, citizen-based organization formed to promote the unified interests of private well owners. Advocating water conservation and educating private well owners about Denver Basin groundwater is part of their mission. POW holds quarterly public meetings to update citizens about legislation and other activities the organization is pursuing to achieve their goals.Many new residents moving to the area have lived in cities with large municipal water and waste water treatment plants. Hall’s power-point presentation was designed to show homeowners how septic systems, basically individual waste water treatment systems, use the soil to treat waste water and what occurs when those systems are not properly maintained.Conventional septic systems have two parts: a septic tank and an absorption or “leach” field, he said. “Tank size is determined by the number of bedrooms in your home,” Hall added. Homes with two bedrooms need a 750 gallon tank, while four bedroom homes need a 1,250-gallon tank. Waste water enters the tank, and heavy solids settle out and are partly decomposed by bacteria.Effluent, the liquid left after solids have settled, flows out of the tank through pipes and into a leach field. Leach fields, excavated at the time a septic system is installed, contain porous material designed to absorb the effluent.But not all of the solids, also called sludge, are decomposed by bacteria and that is why septic tanks must be pumped, Hall said. A family of four should have their septic tank pumped at least every three years, because, without proper maintenance, the sludge will overflow from the tank, clogging the leach field and making absorption impossible.”Once that occurs, the leach field is destroyed,” Halls said. “It costs around $250 to have a septic tank pumped and around $5,000 to have a leach field replaced.”Hall also described other steps homeowners should take to keep their septic systems functioning properly.
- Avoid driving or parking on any part of the septic system.
- Don’t plant deep-rooted plants over the leach field.
- Never irrigate the lawn over the leach field because that saturates the ground, impeding its absorption ability.
- Do not flush non-biodegradable items such as disposable diapers down the toilet.
- Do not install a garbage disposal because undigested waste will not decompose in the septic tank.
- Do not flush harmful chemicals down the drain.
