1985-11-27 Letter, Summary of Septic System Inspections

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Larry and Diane Higgins November 27, 1985 Page 2 It is clear to me now, and was clear to me when I inspected the property in 1981, that the system had been installed in an excavated walk -out swail, that the drainfield was probably located in soils which originally had been as deep as 6-8' below the surface, that an unusually large amount of run- off water was directed right at the drainfield, and that the system likely would need to be replaced eventually. However, Orono's code is written in a manner such that, except for minor items such as inspection pipes, septic systems are not required to be upgraded or replaced until such time that they are found to be actually failing. "Failure" has been considered to be occurring when a) there is actual discharge of untreated sewage effluent to the ground surface or directly to a wetland or water body; and b) when the plumbing backs up in the house because the system outside can accept no more sewage. Neither of these conditions were known to exist during the 1981 inspection, hence orders to repair were not issued. According to your statement, you (the Higgins') bought the property in Fall of 1984. The City was not requested at that time to inspect the system. For the record, note that Orono Code does not require a septic system to be inspected or upgraded at the time of sale. The system was not inspected again by the City until 1985. On September 26, 1985, Inspector LyLe Oman completed an inspection of the septic system, as part of a routine inspection of all the systems in the Dakota Avenue neighborhood. He noted that the drainfield was discharging to the surface and in a failing condition, and indicated that the system must be repaired within 90 days. The inspection report of September 26, 1985 was erroneously addressed to Douglas Miller and was forwarded by the Post Office to him in Colorado. On October 21, 1985, the report was returned to the City by Mrs. Miller who indicated the Higgins' now owned the property, hence the address was cor- rected and the report mailed to you shortly thereafter. On Friday, November 22, 1985, I met with the property owners and with site evaluator, Steve Shirmers, who indicated that a suitable drainfield system could likely be installed at the south side of the house, requiring a pump in the system and likely using pressure distribution. It appears that at the time you purchased the property in the Fall of 1984, the City had not issued repair orders to the Millers (except that the 1981 report indicated that they had to install inspection pipes in the tanks) and had not informed the Millers of any immediate problem with the system. Neither the Millers nor you requested that the City re -inspect the system prior to the sale. Hence, the City cannot verify whether the system wa- *.n the failing condition at the tima of sale, cannot verify whether the Millers were aware of a surface discharge if one was occurring, and cannot verify whether the Millers would have perceived of the discharge as a "failure" if they knew it was discharging.