Letter to the Editor: Alternative Septic Systems Should Be Banned

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Having read the May 10 Loudoun Extra article on alternative sewage systems, I agree that the proposal for developers and manufacturers to secure a five-year performance bond might bring about better systems.

But every year, our precious groundwater should be protected through serious fines for failing systems. Failing systems poison groundwater. We need laws that protect us by imposing fines on those who have failing systems and do not report them. If people buy a house with an alternative system, they should be held accountable.

The point, really, is that these systems should be installed only in cases where older houses have failing conventional systems that would function better if they used alternative technology. No newly constructed houses should have alternative systems until they are guaranteed to be safe, and that has not happened.

When a piece of land fails a percolation test, indicating that the soil absorbs liquid poorly, it is because water from rain or runoff is reentering the ground in the area. This is how the groundwater that feeds our streams and springs gets replenished. Putting houses, garages, driveways and other impervious surfaces on this ground removes that parcel's purpose in the ecosystem. Good science will tell you not to put houses there.

Alternative systems are not sustainable. They should not be permitted.

Marcia Woolman, The Plains

Tagged: Letter to the Editor, opinions, utilities

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