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eptic woes (3 / 12/99 , CHN) http : //www . chapelhillnews . com/Issues/ 1999/03 / 12/news02 . html <br /> . ,. <br /> NeWS <br /> : <br /> �t <br /> 3 <br /> '.: <br /> Home Classifieds News Sports Opinion Around Town <br /> Arts Calendar Chapel Hill News Real Estate Section Search Contact Us <br /> Septic woes <br /> Inspire ' fear and loathing ' <br /> The county plans to improve inspection and maintenance of septic tanks . <br /> Those near reservoirs would be considered first. <br /> By DAVID SCHULMAN, Staff Writer <br /> HILLSBOROUGH -- For every yang , there is a yin . For every ego , there is an <br /> id . <br /> And for every drinking water well ? <br /> " A lot of people moving to this area today, it becomes a big discovery for <br /> them, " observed County Commissioner Stephen Halkiotis , " when they find out <br /> they have a septic system . " <br /> An estimated 19 , 000 households in Orange County rely on back yard septic <br /> tanks to deal with what happens when they flush . That' s about 40 percent of the <br /> county' s households , and includes everything from posh houses in rural buffer <br /> subdivisions to weathered mobile homes to old Chapel Hill and Carrboro <br /> neighborhoods not yet connected to the Orange Water and Sewer Authority . <br /> But failing septic systems , in theory , can affect both their own well water and <br /> the quality of water that town- dwellers drink . According to Orange County <br /> Environmental Health Director Ron Holdway, studies have indicated that <br /> between 8 percent and 10 percent of septic systems fail . And about 1 , 600 septic <br /> systems lie within areas designated as " water quality critical areas " for <br /> reservoirs that serve the towns of Chapel Hill , Carrboro and Hillsborough. <br /> So since June , members of the county Board of Health have been meeting with <br /> Holdway and County Commissioner Margaret Brown to develop a proposal to <br /> change the current system of septic tank inspections , hoping to improve <br /> protection of drinking supply watersheds . <br /> Tanks are required to be inspected - - at the owners ' .expense - - only when <br /> subdividing property or adding buildings . The bill for inspecting an existing <br /> system, when no construction is planned, is $ 50 . <br /> But an inspection that finds a failing system can cost a homeowner thousands of <br /> dollars in mandatory repairs , giving little incentive for regular inspections . <br /> of 3 3 / 12/99 1 * 25 PM <br />