We need to keep requiring the use of Best Available Technology Septic Systems outside of critical areas as Conventional Septic Systems have been proven to be of great concern to human and environmental health.  Read below for a more detailed explanation of how this impacts you.

Onsite Wastewater Systems are more commonly referred to as Septic Systems.  There are two types: Best Available Technology (BAT) septic systems and their predecessors, conventional septic systems. 

Conventional septic systems do not treat the water. They are simply a holding tank which holds the sewage and then allows the sewage to leach into the ground (aka wastewater effluent).  This lack of processing allows pathogens, bacteria and nutrient pollution to enter into our groundwater as this sewage/effluent is likely to contain high levels of bacteria and nutrients.  The EPA reports that onsite wastewater effluent is frequently a source of drinking water contamination nationwide.  Contaminated drinking water can expose us to chemicals and also causes a variety of health problems for you and your family.  At this point the only way to fix your drinking water contamination would be to have a costly, whole in-house water treatment system installed.

On the other hand,  Best Available Technology (BAT) Septic Systems help to protect the environmental and public health by treating the wastewater.  BAT’s, unlike conventional systems, use oxygen to break down the organic matter.  This is much the same way as municipal waste water treatment systems, but in a scaled-down version.  It has been proven that BAT septic systems reduce onsite wastewater impact and help to protect public health, the health of the environment and the overall quality of life in Maryland.

On Aug 20, 2016, Gov Hogan announced that he would start the process to repeal the BAT requirements outside of the critical areas.  You probably have already realized that this is a bad move as it will negatively affect the environmental and public health.  Let’s fight to keep the Best Available Technology (BAT) instead of going backwards to the less than best technology conventional systems.