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4 <br /> which is the focus for Orange County. He highlighted a significant regulatory change with the <br /> engineered option permit (EOP), which came about 8-9 years ago. Under this system, private <br /> engineers can design systems, avoid the regulatory review process by essentially standing in the <br /> shoes of the regulatory agency, administer their own quality control of the drawings that they <br /> produced, and issue a permit for construction for that system. He noted that state regulatory staff <br /> now review only about 10 percent of big system designs, with about 90 percent going under this <br /> private option. He emphasized that this is a significant change. <br /> Slide #6 <br /> Individual System vs. Community System <br /> Conventional 1p� ClusteT Septic <br /> Septic System r System <br /> ■ ■ <br /> -MN M�Wlon <br /> ML <br /> Tony Whitaker explained that in an individual system, each house would have its own <br /> septic tank and private distribution lines extending into the yard for dispersal. In contrast, a <br /> community system serving four homes would have individual septic tanks for each home that <br /> connect to a more centralized, compact dispersal field. This system is supported by common <br /> pumping and control mechanisms that manage the effluent distribution, allowing the cluster <br /> dispersal field to effectively serve all four homes as a single entity. This setup not only requires a <br /> smaller total land area but also enhances land use efficiency, particularly when advanced <br /> treatment levels are implemented, allowing for more compact neighborhood designs. <br /> Chair Bedford asked about the relationship between topography and well water placement <br /> relative to septic drain systems. <br /> Tony Whitaker explained that while it's generally preferred for wells to be uphill from septic <br /> systems, one can't always infer that groundwater is flowing like surface water is flowing. He <br /> emphasized that horizontal separation is the key factor for protecting wells from wastewater <br /> systems. <br /> Chair Bedford asked about whether developers grade plots to use gravity flow. <br /> Tony Whitaker said that it is preferred but not always feasible, and many community <br /> systems use STEP (septic tank effluent pump) systems to get effluent from individual homes to <br /> common dispersal areas. <br /> Commissioner Greene said the Fiddlehead project proposal had that sort of system where <br /> there was a pump between individual homes and the field. <br />