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The Citizen, 1992-07-01, Page 9THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JULY 1 ,1992. PAGE 9. Environmentally yours KNKCMTIL Scrimgeour's Food Market 523-4551 By Rhea Hamilton-Seeger and Klaus Seeger Water useage very important in rural areas BY KLAUS SEEGER AND RHEA HAMILTON-SEEGER Have you ever heard the phrase "When it's yellow let it mellow; if it's brown flush it down."? Yes, I am referring to human waste products, urine and faeces. What has this got to do with the environment? Care and concern for our environment has become a primary issue. There is more that we can do than sort our garbage and make wise consumer choices. Those of us who do not have the luxury of sewers will likely have heard the phrase or have mouthed the words. Most people flush the toilet, wash hands (hopefully!) and carry on with whatever they were doing before nature called. If you have an aging septic tank system or one that is not working you quickly get an appreciation of what happens when the toilet is flushed. If the smell of human wastes (much different from the pungency of animal manure) fills the air from what looks like a puddle of darkish water on the lawn which never seems to go away, then it is likely your weeping (leaching) tile are not working any more. The problem becomes more obvious if the toilet wastes reappear in the lower fixtures of the house. Minimum water useage becomes very important if you don't want the puddle on the lawn to exist. Okay, so you have ponding. What are you supposed to do? Well you could move into a town where they have sewers. But this move would not solve the problem of sewage ponding on top of the ground, polluting the groundwater table, and creating a potential health hazard. It's likely that the entire septic tank system will have to be replaced. If the septic tank is in good shape then only the weeping tile (leaching bed) will need to be relocated and probably enlarged. The first step is to call the local health unit office and ask for a Certificate of Approval application form for the installation or repair of a septic tank system. The money you have been saving for that favourite vacation will be wisely spent in providing worry free toilet flushing. We can avoid or delay the problem for a number of years. The current age of your septic tank system, the waler u^page habits in your household, and regular maintenance will help your system last the potential lifespan of 20 to 25 years. Before offering some maintenance tips, I think it's important to have a basic understanding of how a septic tank works. There have been many examples of new rural residents (from large and small urban centres) realizing that they have their own private sewage disposal system. Many people flush toilets, run showers, do laundry without consciously thinking of the wastes produced flow away in a safe efficient manner. It is important to find out if your house is connected to a municipal sewer or your own septic tank system (on-site sewage disposal system). If not on municipal sewage system, hopefully you are connected to an approved septic tank system or similar and not a field tile or other illegal connection. Sewage is mostly waste of domestic origin, which is human body waste, toilet or other bathroom waste; waste from showers and tubs, liquid or water borne kitchen waste or laundry waste. Water softener discharge when backwashing is not considered to be sewage. There arc a few different types of systems which function on the same principle, so I will only explain the basic septic tank and tile bed (weeping bed) type. All sewage must first enter a large septic tank, into a minimum of two compartments, ranging in size, depending on the volume of sewage, from 600 gals (2700 litres) to more than 1000 gals (4500 litres). This tank is necessary to allow the solids (lumps) and organic content time to settle to the bottom. Grease, hair, and other particles which won't settle to the bottom form a scum in a thick layer on top. The basic tile bed (conventional) consists of buried distribution pipe in rows of trenches constructed in native soil; the perforated distribution pipe is surrounded by a bed of clean stone. Trenches must be at least 18 inches (0.5 m) above the ground water. The natural soil underneath the trench stone must be suitable enough to provide good drainage. The effluent from the tank moves through the pipes and slowly seeps out and drains away into the soil. The stone slows down the liquid and also allows for further decomposition and bacterial action to minimize the filtration process the soil provides as it moves through the layers. Most of the purification occurs in the first foot (28-30 cm) of soil. The complete purification process should be complete within 90-100 days. Therefore, it is important that the seasonal high ground water table does not come within 18 inches (.5 m) of the tile trench bottom. There are minimum distances of the septic tank and tile bed to a well, buildings, property lines, and water courses. I know of someone who had a steel tank and 100 feet of tile meandering down the field. Why all the requirements? These specifications may have been adequate when our lifestyles were simpler; the steel tank may not have completely rusted through yet; and there wasn't the population density. Today, we seem to need more toilets, showers along with the bathtub, clothes washer, dishwasher, and in some instances a bidet or a whirlpool. An average household uses 60 to 140 gallons of water per person per day. Each time we flush the toilet five gallons of water goes into the septic lank or municipal sewer. The steel lank and 100 feet of tile can not cope with this volume of water. We now understand better that this type of system probably polluted the ground water and our watercourses more frequently. In many instances where this type of system exists someone sometime has decided it was convenient (acceptable?) to hook up to the nearest farm drainage tile or municipal drain. One reason society in North America does not have common occurrences of cholera, typhoid, hepatitis A, giardiasis (a parasite) outbreaks is primarily due to the effective disposal and treatment of sewage. Some of the many disease causing organisms human sewage contains include: the polio virus, Norwalk-like viral agents, hepatitis A virus; salmonella (including typhoid), shigella, Campylobacter bacteria, and various parasites. Keeping these organisms out of drinking water and our recreational beach bathing areas is critical to avoiding illness which can be caused by them. The soil that the effluent (black liquid from septic tank) has to seep into will directly affect how long the soil is capable of doing this. If the tile bed (weeping, leaching bed) was properly sized and installed with an adequate amount of stone it (the tile bed) should last approximately 25 years. However, the homeowner should not forget the system altogether. There are some important maintenance habits and precautions to be aware of to help in reaching that life expectancy. These include: pumping the tank every three to five years; utilizing low volume flush toilets and urinals for the home; low volume shower heads; using suds saver clothes washers; avoid heavy equipment traffic on tile bed (including tractors, cement trucks, cars etc.); do not build above ground pools on top of the tile bed; do not build wooden decks on top of the tile bed; do not allow eavestroughing rain runoff on top of the tile bed; do not plant deep rooted trees (willows, pine trees) close to the tile bed; ensure that enough land is available as a spare area for the day when the tile bed may need to be replaced. Once the pores in the soil are saturated percolation downwards will be difficult. Septic tank starters should not be necessary. If only normal human wastes are the major contents entering the tank there is enough anaerobic action for good decomposition. Even if the system is idle for a few months, a minimum amount of faeces in the tank is sufficient to begin renewed action. However, avoid using a large amount of toilet cleaners and disposing other chemicals down the toilet. Products which place a measured amount of disinfectant or coloured liquid into the bowl should also be avoided since the specific chemicals in these products are hazardous to humans once reaching the ground water table. Use white toilet paper (preferably single ply) instead of coloured toilet paper since white paper decomposes more efficiently. Double flush toilets are available where a minimum amount of water is used for urine wastes and the second flush lever is for a larger volume of water for faeces disposal. If you discover that your weeping tile are being damaged and plugged with tree roots then products with copper sulphate or other root deterrents as the major ingredients can be flushed down. This can be purchased from most hardware type stores. Protecting our environment is more than recycling. We must recognize our responsibilities for disposing of the "other" wastes we produce. Values in effect from Mon. June 29, 1992 until closing Sat. July 4, 1992. Savings are based on regular retails. We reserve the right to limit quantities to normal family requirements. i------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------With this coupon Save $1.00 off the purchase of 1 - Pkg. of 24 I KNECHTEL POPSICLES 1 99 Special price without coupon 2.99 JL • Coupon valid only at Knechtel Assoc. Stores Coupon Expires JULY 4,1992 SUPER GROCERY BUYS I KNECHTEL FROZEN __ ORANGE JUICE S' .89 KNECHTEL SALAD DRESSING REGULAR y| XV OR LIGHT 1 I LITRE JAR *Z MAXWELL HOUSE INSTANT COFFEE 150 G 200 G 3.99 SARA LEE LAYER CAKES SELECTED VARIETIES ^4^4 369 G. PKG. • KZ vZ KNECHTEL HAMBURGER OR HOT DOG BUNS 79PKG. OF 8 • < KZ KNECHTEL BATHROOM TISSUE 8 ROLL PKG. 1 fl 2 PLY a / yj LAUNDRY DETERGENT TIDE 12 LITRE ORIGINAL ^7 ■OR 6 LITRE / ULTRA ® R.C. COLA OR COTT POP 24 x 355 ML. UNIT PRICE Cl 5.90/100 ML. * • *-Z VZ R.C. COLA OR COTT POP 750 ML BOTTLES PLUS DEPOSIT unit price n / an 6.60/100 ML. A/ • Jz FRESH PRODUCE PRODUCT OF MEXICO OR U.S.A. RED OR GREEN 195 KG- ori SEEDLESS GRAPES lb. PRODUCT OF ONT. CANADA#1 FRESH ENGLISH CUCUMBERS .99 PRODUCT OF ONTARIO FRESH ROMAINE LETTUCE •79 LB PRODUCT OF U.S.A. NO. 1 FRESH RED CHERRIES 1 \ 2.79 PRODUCT OF U.S.A. NO. 1 GRADE RED OR WHITE POTATOES 5 LB. BAG QUALITY MEATS REGULAR OR B.B.Q. KNECHTEL WIENERS 1 Q 450 G. FROZEN CANADA GRADE “A” YOUNG DUCKS QQ 2.18 KG. LB. FRESH YOUNG CANADIAN PORK BONELESS PORK LEG STEAK 1 QQ 439 KG. LB. SCHNEIDER'S WHOLE OR 112 THURINGER SUMMER SAUSAGE 4.39 KG. LB. 2«99 KNECHTEL 33% SALT REDUCED SLICED SIDE BACON I £»Q 500 g. X • Jz CUT FROM CANADA “A” GRADE BEEF HIP OUTSIDE - EYE REMOVED ROUND ROASTS 5.49 KG. LB. 2.49 IN STORE BAKERY WHITE — BREAD 525 G. * ITALIAN PANINI ROLLS TOG. 6/,99 CARROT/PINEAPPLE WALNUT 6/1 QQ MUFFINS OATMEAL RAISIN COOKIES 12/ J QQ