Title 5 Inspector Memo

To:  Title 5 Inspectors
From:  Tracy L. Mayo, R.S., Health Agent
Re:  New Requirements for Title 5 Inspections
Date:  June 1, 2006

The Duxbury Board of Health amended its Supplementary Rules & Regulations to Title 5.  The new regulations will take effect on July 1, 2000.  A copy is enclosed for your convenience.

The new regulations require that all seepage pits must be located and inspected.  Pits will fail an inspection when the liquid depth in a seepage pit is less than six inches from the inlet pipe invert or the remaining volume within the leaching system above the liquid depth is less than ½ of one day’s design flow.  All cesspool systems shall constitute an automatic failure.  Additionally the Board of Health or Health Agent may request a soil evaluation by a State Certified Soil Evaluator for any Title 5 inspection.  (See section 1.16 CRITERIA FOR INSPECTION and section 1.17 SYSTEM FAILURE CRITERIA)

As a reminder, section 2.08.8 of the Duxbury Private Well Regulations requires that a water quality test of a potable well (drinking water well) shall be required any time the property changes ownership.  The testing must be performed regardless of the distance of the well from the soil absorption system.  A list of the parameters that shall be tested for is enclosed.

In order to maintain consistency of Board of Health records and help facilitate the review of Title 5 Inspection reports, the following information is required on all reports submitted to the Duxbury Board of Health.

Septic inspection reports shall be submitted to the Board of Health on a System Inspection Form approved by the Department of Environmental Protection (revised 9/2/98), within 30 days of the inspection, as required by 310 CMR 15.301(10).  The 15 pages of the inspection report must be legible.

All information relevant to the system must be included in the report.  The owner’s name and address shall appear on all 15 pages of the inspection report.  Do not forget to enter the last date of occupancy.

Under each component, there is an area for comments with specific criteria to comment on.  At a minimum, you must make comments on the items listed (refer to 310 CMR 15.302).

Example:

Septic Tank:  Comments:  (Recommendation for pumping, condition of inlet and outlet tees or baffles, depth of liquid level in relation to outlet invert, structural integrity, evidence of leakage. etc.):  Do not recommend pumping at this time, inlet and outlet tees intact, liquid level equal with outlet invert, tank in good condition with no evidence of leakage.

Soil Absorption System:  Comments:  (Note condition of soil, signs of hydraulic failure, level of ponding, condition of vegetation, etc.):  Soil is sandy, there are no signs of hydraulic failure now or in the past, there is 1’ of effluent in the pit at the time of inspection with staining up 2.5’, vegetation is normal.

The sketch of the septic system must be on page 14 and not on a separate attached sheet.  The sketch shall include the location of the public water supply entering the house and all wells within 100’ of the system.  A photocopy of the original plan or as-built, unless it can be photocopied onto page 14, is not acceptable.  You may attach addenda to the back of the report to clarify any of your findings.

Groundwater determination maybe accomplished in the following ways:

• Using perc test data, only if the perc was done after October of 1995.
• Hand auger below the deepest component to show that it is not sitting in groundwater.

A statement such as, “Augered 2’ below leaching, no groundwater encountered.” is acceptable.  If you encounter groundwater by augering but the system is sitting above the groundwater, you must indicate the separation, in inches or feet, between the bottom of the deepest component and the groundwater.  You will also need to consider the site and the time of year the inspection is being conducted and if high groundwater adjustments may be applicable.

Repairs of sanitary tees and the installation of risers do not need a Disposal Works Construction Permit from the Board of Health.  All other repairs will need a permit and a licensed installer.

System inspection reports, which are not complete, will be sent back to the inspector and the homeowner will be notified.  If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me at (781) 934-1100, thank you for your cooperation.