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MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH February 24, 2010 Board of Health Minutes Transcription completed by Anne Miles Cassell 5 February 24, 2010 standards and six of them exceeded one or more health related standards. The average age of the wells in the survey area is approximately 35 years old. It is expected that individual water quality problems noted during the survey could be remedied by either repairing the wells with liners to seal off contaminants, by installing water treatment equipment, or by connecting the homes to the public water supply system. Michael Wood asked for clarification on whether the Habitat for Humanity homes that are part of this community have well and septic or city water and sewer. Mr. Konsler said that the Habitat part of the neighborhood had city sewer and water. Of the 45 septic systems assessed, 21 were compliant, 10 were non-compliant, 2 needed maintenance, and 12 were malfunctioning. Of the 12 malfunctioning systems, seven were found to be in need of replacement. Of these seven, further investigation revealed that there is no suitable soil for an on-site repair. The average age of the septic systems in the survey area was 32 years. Steve Yuhasz asked if the wells and septic systems that were shown to be failing were fixable. Tom Konsler replied that some of the failing septic systems may be remedied by performing maintenance to restore functionality. For others, connection to the public sewer may be an option, but this will require crossing other parcels of land, obtaining easements, installing private sewer lift stations, or extending the sewer mains at a considerable cost. Mr. Konsler stated that there is still a need to work with the task force to identify funding sources for a long-term solution. He stated that the Bernard Allen Memorial Emergency Drinking Water Fund will most likely be one source available to help people connect to the OWASA drinking water system that is already there. The No Fault Well Repair Fund that the County Manager is proposing may be another source for either repair or connections to OWASA. He stated that due to the topography it would be approximately a $2 million fix. Mike Carstens asked if the homeowners have received the reports. Mr. Konsler stated that they are working on it but have not provided the individual homeowners with a report on their systems yet. Plans are to provide those reports soon. A community meeting is under consideration to present the findings to the homeowners. Michael Wood asked if those homeowners with an end-of-life septic system were aware of the repercussions. Tom Konsler replied that they were aware and that a question in the survey dealt with this. Of the 45 surveyed all but two stated they would be willing to connect to the OWASA system if funds were available. Mike Carstens asked if the homeowners were obligated to act on the reports, especially the homeowners with end-of-life septic systems and wells with water quality issues. Tom Konsler replied that the reports should be presented along with finding solutions to address the repairs needed. Tony Whitaker asked whether there was a difference between what was considered acceptable drinking water standards and wells that posed health issues. Tom replied that the 3 wells that had bacterial contamination posed health issues. Tony said he