By CLINT STUDABAKER, guest columnist

Mark your calendars for the Septic Summit 2.0 on Nov. 18 from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Brown County Fairgrounds.

The summit will bring equipment, service providers and experts together at one place for easy information exchange for us all. There will be fun, food and prizes.

A Community Needs and Assessment study was completed by the Brown County Community Foundation and published in 2008. The BCCF study included a written survey that questioned what the county’s residents considered the most pressing concerns. The No. 1 concern was understandable: Jobs.

However, the No. 2 concern was: Effectiveness of septics and sewers. When asked to prioritize their issues, 61 percent of the citizens said their No. 1 priority was “to improve the sewer and water systems,” and with good reason.

The need for improvement is grounded on scientific basis. Household wastewater contains disease causing bacteria and viruses and high levels of nitrogen, phosphorus and even pharmaceuticals.

When residential septic systems are well designed, maintained and working properly, they will remove most of the pollutants found in typical household wastewater. However, sewage from poorly operating septic systems can cause groundwater contamination and spread disease in humans and animals.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sets standards for our nation’s waterways because improperly treated sewage poses the risk of contaminating nearby surface waters threatening swimmers with various infectious diseases, from eye and ear infections to gastrointestinal illness and hepatitis.

The Indiana State Department of Health states that several diseases are caused by bacteria and parasites found in sewage or sewage contaminated water. These include campylobacteriosis, the most common diarrheal illness in America. Another disease is cryptosporidiosis caused by a microscopic parasite and is the most common waterborne disease in the United States. And, a disease of particular concern to young children and the elderly is caused by a strain of Escherichia coli. E. coli bacteria is found in water contaminated with feces from warm-blooded animals, including humans.

To develop a thorough understanding of Brown County’s broad usage of septic systems, the Brown County Regional Sewer District was awarded a grant from the Regional Opportunities Initiatives, Inc. Ready Communities Initiative.

The ROI grant enabled the BCRSD to retain a professional engineering company to evaluate water quality issues in the streams and tributaries throughout Brown County. The project is a comprehensive wastewater infrastructure strategic engineering evaluation of on-site septic treatment systems and community sewer systems.

Lochmueller Group, a multi-disciplined engineering firm from Indianapolis, began its work in April 2020. The engineering study included sampling and analysis of surface waters to determine the source characteristics of E. coli contamination. Ongoing work of the study includes evaluating options for improving wastewater management practices for residential properties and commercial businesses.

The Lochmueller project team has also started to investigate on-site wastewater management best practices of other counties. The strategic planning and engineering study is nearly completed.

Other practical work has been completed since the first Septic Summit was presented in 2019. The Brown County Board of Health reevaluated and updated the county’s septic ordinance. BCRSD and the Helmsburg Regional Sewer District engaged in a regionalization study funded by a grant from the Indiana State Revolving Fund to examine the feasibility of combining services.

The Brown County Health Department continues to actively research their files of residential septic records. To date, nearly 3,600 property files with homes have been reviewed. Results are indicating that nearly 60 percent of properties have septic records on file, but roughly 40 percent of the households do not have records of septic systems on file at the health department.

With the Septic Summit 2.0 being planned for Nov. 18 at the Fairgrounds, individual homeowners can take charge of their own impact on health and water pollution concerns.

A septic system is an individual wastewater treatment system that uses soil to assist in treating domestic wastewater. When properly designed, installed and operated, septic systems provide good wastewater treatment.

Most septic systems have two main parts, a holding tank, or septic tank, and an absorption, or drain field/lateral field.

In Brown County, several types of on-site septic systems are used, including conventional lateral field systems, mound systems, sand-lined filters, drip distribution and aerobic treatment units. Septic tanks are buried near the house and are water-tight containers typically made of concrete, fiberglass or polyethylene.

Sewage from the home enters the septic tank where heavier solids, or sludge, settle out and scum — like oils, grease, and other floatable stuff — rises to the surface.

Anaerobic bacteria — or bacteria that does not require oxygen — degradation occurs in the sludge layer. The water between the scum and solids layer is called effluent and leaves the septic tank and flows into the lateral field. The lateral field distributes the effluent so that it trickles down into the soil. Naturally occurring bacteria in the soil further consumes harmful bacteria in the effluent and eventually “cleans” the wastewater.

If a septic system is not functioning properly and needs repaired or replaced, it is likely to be discharging untreated sewage onto one’s own yard, directly into the groundwater or into a nearby waterway or stream. An unusable septic system or one in disrepair will lower your property value, pollute the environment and potentially pose a costly legal liability.

Look for more specific details and information on residential septic systems in a later edition of the Brown County Democrat.

Next month you can explore options and get information on the correct answers to your own wastewater treatment needs. Experts, suppliers, service providers, soil scientists and neighbors will be at your “disposal.”

Food and prizes will make Septic Summit 2.0 the place to be on Thursday evening, Nov. 18 at the Brown County Fairgrounds.

Clint Studabaker of Brown County is a retired professional engineer and a volunteer member of the Brown County Regional Sewer District board. He holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and an executive MBA, and has extensive experience with Fortune 500 companies in environmental engineering, project management, business integration, strategic planning and regulatory affairs.