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' Spring 1994 - SEPTIC SYSTEMS VS. CITY SEWERS - WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD? The State mandated upgrade of septic systems located less than 3' above the seasonal water table will again be a topic of discussion among Orono's rural residents this spring and summer as the construction season gets underway. City staff estimated last fall that as many as 600 of Orono's 1100 existing septic systems don't meet the 3' separation requirement, and will eventually have to be upgraded or replaced. The process of identifying those "non-conforming" systems began last summer, and is expected to continue over the next five years. STUDY UNDERWAY ' In September 1993, the Ciry Council ordered that a study be commenced to consider the implications of requiring non-conforming systems to be upgraded when any type of building permit is requested; to consider the implications of requiring such upgrades in areas that might be served with municipal sewers in the future; and to review the possibility of amendments to the City code and Comprehensive Plan to implement the results of the study. The study is nearing completion, and questions which will be addressed include: • Identification of neighborhoods where future sewers might be needed due to small lot sizes or other factors. • Analysis of whether individual lots in those neighborhoods have the space for system replacement. • Estimation of the cost of septic system replacement vs. costs of municipal sewers. • Consideration of the planning impacts caused by extending sewers. • Review of what financial aid is available to residents to upgrade septic systems. • Examination of the limited number of alternatives to sewers or septic systems. • Analysis of whether the deadline dates for required upgrades or system replacement are feasible or practical. The intended result of the study is to determine which areas of the City, if any, will be provided with municipal sewers, and establish an expected time frame for that to occur. Further, those areas which will not be provided with municipal sewer in the foreseeable future will be firmly established. Finally, if extending the deadlines for required system replacements is found to be appropriate, then those deadlines will be revised. UPGRADE MORATORIUM EXTENDED Last fall the Council declared a moratorium on the enforcement of City ordinances that require upgrade of those systems which are non-conforming only because they don't meet the 3' separation requirements. That moratorium has been extended to September, 1994 but may be repealed sooner if the study reaches its conclusion before September. In 1993 the Council also adopted an ordinance allowing up to two full construction seasons for repair of systems found to be non-conforming due to lack of separation. Systems identified last summer would still have until the end of 1995 to complete the necessary upgrades.