TRUMBULL COUNTY Probe prompts ban on common septic system

Developers say eliminating the use of off-lot septic systems will raise the minimum cost of a home in the country.
By STEPHEN SIFF
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- Faced with an investigation by the Ohio EPA and state department of health, the Trumbull County Board of Health will no longer approve a type of septic system used on smaller parcels of land.
"Don't bring a half-acre parcel to the health department for a permit," said Dr. James Enyeart, the new health commissioner. "There are going to be very rare exceptions."
On Wednesday night, the board of heath voted to only issue permits for home septic systems in cases where there is enough land and good enough soil for an on-lot septic system to be used. The decision will have no impact on areas of the county served by sewer lines.
The effect of the motion, passed with four yes votes and one abstention, will be to end the use of off-lot septic systems, which in the past the board has routinely allowed.
Frowned on
Off-lot septic systems, which typically discharged treated waste into roadside ditches, are frowned on by the EPA, which considers them potential sources of pollution.
They are also considered less prone to failure than on-lot systems, in which treated waste is allowed to be absorbed by the soil on the property. Although the amount of land needed for an on-lot system depends on the type of soil, proposed Trumbull County Subdivision Regulations use a guideline of 1.5 acres.
The health board's decision "is what we have been looking for," said Kara Allison, an EPA spokeswoman.
The agency and the Ohio Department of Health have launched an investigation into the use of off-lot septic permits in Trumbull County.
"We have several concerns about the scope and scale of off-lot disposal of household sewage," said Jay Carey, a spokesman for the Ohio Department of Health. "We need to make sure the local health department is in compliance with the sanitary code."
Neither spokesperson would say what sanctions could result from the investigation.
EPA appeal
The investigation comes after the EPA formally appealed a local health board decision to issue three off-lot septic permits to developer Jerre Hentosh for duplexes in Champion township. In a letter to the health board dated Sept. 25, the head of the EPA's surface water division said the agency's position was that granting the permits violated both the Ohio administrative and sanitary codes.
The Ohio Sanitary Code allows for off-lot permits only in a limited number of circumstances when the use of an on-lot system is not possible.
The EPA has identified about a dozen areas where failing septic systems result in waste getting into roadside ditches. Most are in areas on the outskirts of cities or villages, where houses were built close together and use off-lot systems, Enyeart said.
Will raise cost
Eliminating the use of off-lot septic systems will raise the minimum cost of a home in the country, by forcing people to buy more land, developers say. The decision could also render some lots unusable.
The health board's decision to no longer grant off-lot septic permits could also halt the construction of more duplexes in the Champion development which initially caught the EPA's interest. Hentosh created eight, 0.5 acre parcels for the duplexes on state Route 305, but the health department only issued off-lot permits for six of them before Wednesday's moratorium.
In its appeal, the EPA worried that waste from the septic systems would work its way into a creek.
siff@vindy.com