Vero Beach Mayor Dick Winger says the city and the Indian River Neighborhood Association have succeeded in breaking the logjam at the state level that was preventing the installation of STEP systems to stop the flow of septic tank pollution into the lagoon.
Vero Utility Director Rob Bolton says he expects to apply for a permit for a pilot project in an island neighborhood within the next 60 days.
Bolton came up with the idea of using STEP – a modified/combined Septic Tank Effluent Pump system – last fall after Harbor Branch scientist Brian LaPointe revealed septic tanks on the barrier island and across the county are flooding the lagoon with nitrogen that feeds algae blooms and kills marine life. Outdated and leaky tanks also contaminate the waterway with bacteria and household chemicals.
STEP’s biggest selling point is that it’s only half as expensive as standard sewer installation, cutting approximate per-household cost for getting off septic from $16,000 to $8,000. STEP leaves existing septic systems in place as a backup while capturing household effluent before it goes into the ground and pumping it into the city’s existing sewer system for treatment via a series of small diameter pipes that can be installed without tearing up streets or trenching yards.
When Bolton began investigating STEP as a solution he found state regulations appear to have contradictory clauses that bear on the technology. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection, which regulates septic systems, says it is OK to leave a septic system in place after a home is connected to city sewer, but Florida Department of Health regulations, which govern everything having to do with sewers, seem to prohibit leaving the systems in place.
Working with the city, Rep. Debbie Mayfield introduced a bill earlier this year to clarify the situation and make STEP systems legal in Florida. The bill passed in the Senate but got bogged down in the House Agriculture Committee and never came up for a vote.
Reacting to that setback, Winger on June 18 sent a letter to Governor Rick Scott’s office asking for executive intervention.
“The FDEP says the hybrid system is lawful while the FDH say it is not,” Winger wrote. “Since they are interpreting the same law it would be helpful … if you would use your influence to bring the FDH interpretation to agree with the FDEP interpretation so we could start installing the STEP system and stop polluting the Indian River Lagoon by septic tanks.”
Indian river Neighborhood Association executive director Dan Lamson wrote a similar letter, and on June 23 an official from the Division of Environmental Assessment and Restoration responded on behalf of Scott’s office.
“DEP has the authority, under existing law and rule, to authorize the construction of sewer collection systems that incorporate elements of septic systems into their design and operation,” the letter states.
Taking the cue, Bolton met with the state Health Department last week and planned to meet with DEP this week “to discuss details of what they will be looking for in the permit application.
“The permit application will have to include detailed plans of the system components, a clear description of how we are going to implement and administer the program, and a description of the area where it will be installed.”
The pilot project area has not been selected yet, but Bolton mentioned the homes along Bethel Creek as a possibility. “We are refining our study of which systems cause the most pollution and that is where we will want to start,” Bolton says.
The city likely has the power to impose the sewer work on neighborhoods but City Manager Jim O’Connor says the city would probably be looking for resident buy-in before going ahead.
“It will be our job to convince residents that they will have a good, economical system that will also help protect the lagoon,” O’Connor says.
The city might sweeten the pot for the first residents who go along with the plan.
“If it cost $6,000 to go on STEP, we might pay $3,000 and they would pay $3,000,” says Mayor Winger. “I would like to see us have a permit by the end of the year and have a pilot project built next year to begin the process of getting off septic tanks. This is something the city can do to help the lagoon.”
