POLITICS

Sen. Debbie Mayfield wants state to change septic tank oversight, fund conversion projects

Ali Schmitz
Treasure Coast Newspapers
An aerial image shows the St. Lucie River, the Indian River Lagoon, Hutchinson Island and the Atlantic Ocean on Feb. 16 in Martin County. At least 35 percent from a proposed 1 percent sales tax would be spent on septic-to-sewer conversions and stormwater improvements, all with the goal of improving water quality.

Florida Sen. Debbie Mayfield wants the state to overhaul how they handle leaky septic tanks, from moving oversight to the tanks to the state's Department of Environmental Protection to creating a grant program for water infrastructure projects. 

Mayfield filed SB 1758 Friday. 

The bill would: 

  • Transfer the onsite sewage program of the Department of Health to the Department of Environmental Protection
  • Establish a wastewater grant program within the Department of Environmental Protection
  • Revise the state's requirements for basin management action plans
  • Require a wastewater treatment plant to notify customers of unlawful discharges of raw or partially treated sewage into any waterway or aquifer within a specified time frame

Currently the Department of Health oversees "onsite sewage systems," more commonly known as septic tanks. 

More: Don't believe myth about septic tanks | Guest column

Few are receiving inspections however, after legislators and former Gov. Rick Scott supported a 2012 repeal of law that required septic tank owners to have their tanks inspected every five years to make sure they aren't faulty or leaking. At the time lawmakers said it would cost homeowners too much. 

The wastewater grant program proposed in Mayfield's bill would only be applicable for local projects that: 

  • Retrofit onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems
  • Construct, upgrade, or expand facilities to provide advanced waste treatment
  • Connect septic tanks to sewage systems

The bill says the program's administrators must give a priority to fund septic to sewer conversion projects or any projects that would cover the cost of inspecting and assessing septic tanks.

Local water management districts would work with the DEP to determine which projects should be funded. Local governments would have to cover at least half of the cost for any project that receives a grant unless they are within an area designated as a "rural area of opportunity" by the state. 

Currently, septic-to-sewer conversions are funded on a case by case basis by state legislators, and few requests are funded each year. 

In 2016 and 2017, former Gov. Rick Scott and proposed providing $40 million in funding for a similar matching grant program for homes in areas affected by blue-green algae blooms. The Legislature did not fund or create the program both years.

More: Gov. Rick Scott proposes more money for septic to sewer conversions to help Indian River Lagoon

If passed, the bill would take effect July 1. 

Other Bills 

Other legislators have proposed different ideas on septic tank regulation and grants for water projects.  

Cornelius Kossen (left) of the Stuart Public Works Department and Holwinster Alexis install a grinder tank in 2015 at a home on Osceola Street in Stuart. The system, which could be used if neighborhoods in northern Sewall's Point vote to switch from septic tanks to the Martin County sewer system, grinds sewage which is pumped through a 1.25-inch hose also buried in the yard into an established sewer line.

Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, wants the state to inspect septic tanks at least once every five years and to map out all the tanks in the state. SB 214 would also require the Department of Health to develop minimum standards and requirements for repairing or pumping out any failing septic systems. 

Sen. Gayle Harrell filed a bill that would create grants for projects to restore the Indian River Lagoon region, such as connecting septic tanks to sewer systems and projects that manage groundwater, freshwater and agricultural discharges. 

Lake Okeechobee discharges cause toxic blue-green algae blooms that plague the St. Lucie River on the East Coast and Caloosahatchee River on the West Coast. However, nitrogen from leaky septic tanks feed those blooms and nearshore red tides.

More: Lake Okeechobee discharges, not septic systems, cause algae blooms

Business and industry groups, especially the Florida Chamber, have been strong proponents for septic to sewer conversions over large-scale water projects like a southern reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee.