Category Archives: Septic

On November 25, 2009 the Devil’s Lake Water Improvement District’s (DLWID) Manager sponsored a meeting with Lincoln City officials and representatives from various agencies to discuss a program to regulate septic tanks tributary to Devils Lake. This action taken by the DLWID Manager toward implementation of the “Septic Revitalization Program” occurred prior to the DLWID board being provided with details of the program, an opportunity to review the program or the ability to authorize the creation of such a program.

Under this program, the operating costs of your lakefront home will be impacted and it is possible you will lose the right to use your lakefront property!  Property owners, who do not comply with the terms of the Septic Revitalization Program, will have their water shut off by the city and be assessed daily fines, until the property is brought into compliance.  Without water, your property would be rendered uninhabitable.  It may cost $1,200 for the required pumping and the initial inspection of your septic system. The potential costs could be much greater, should a problem be identified; your septic system could require repairs or replacement.  This may also impact functioning systems that are declared not up to current construction standards.  Repairs costs could be measured in the $1,000, and replacement costs could range from $10,000-$15,000, with some properties requiring expensive Advanced Treatment systems running as much as $20,000 plus required 24/7 monitoring costs as much as $1,000 annually. Continue reading →

In order to better understand the current situation it is useful to look at the procedural history of the DLWID Septic Revitalization Program.  To accomplish this I reviewed the DLWID public record available online covering the period January 2006 through December 2009.  The result was the creation of a document entitled “Septic Program Documented History” which highlights all excerpts related to “septic” from all DLWID online records.  Given the importance  of context a hyperlink is provided to the original document should the reader wish to continue their research.

2006 Board Activities

There were very few activities or discussions regarding septic systems in 2006.  Septic systems were not discussed in any DLWID 2006 board meeting. The district did trial a discount coupon good for getting your septic system pumped.  The coupon took $25 off pumping services provided by T&L Septic Tank Service.  Very few residents took advantage of the offer.

2007 Board Activities

Discussions related to septic systems began to appear in 2007 DLWID board meetings, exactly 3 meetings contained a reference to this topic.  None of the 2007 references are related to actions of DLWID.  The year began with the Vegetation Management Workshop on February 20, 2007.  A portion of the discussion in that meeting was about the removal of septic systems on Clear Lake which was an example of a lake with SolarBees.  In May during public comment there was a complaint about a building permit for a new dock that was really more related to the activities at a rental property.  Concerns about the septic system being overworked due to the high occupancy rate were expressed.

2008 Board Activities

Discussions related to septic systems by the DLWID increased dramatically in 2008.  Septic tanks were mentioned in 6 meetings during the year with most of the discussion related to the Devils Lake Plan and SolarBees as there was an attempt to fund both SolarBees and the Septic Revitalization Program from the Oregon DEQ Revolving Loan Program.

During the Goal Setting Workshop held February 16, 2008 a goal was produced to create a Lake Management Plan as well as a goal to investigate grants for home repair with an eye to septic tank revitalization within the watershed area. Continue reading →