vxEPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Ground Water
and Drinking Water
Washington, DC 20460
EPA813-F-95-004
August 1995
Is Your Community's
Drinking Water At Risk?
Misused Septic Systems Can Cost Millions
Businesses throughout the United States generate wastewater from their commercial and
industrial operations. Many manage their wastewater in an environmentally sound
fashion by recycling or collecting it in holding tanks for later treatment off site, or they
dispose of it in properly connected sewers. Unfortunately, some businesses, usually without
access to sewer systems, rely on shallow underground disposal. They use dry holes or cess-
pools, or send their wastewaters into septic tanks. Any of these forms of disposal can lead to
contamination of underground sources of drinking water with grave consequences for a
community. This pamphlet describes some cases of ground water contamination caused by the
improper disposal of wastewater.
The wastewater disposal practices of some kinds of business are of particular concern because
the waste they generate is likely to contain toxic chemicals. This is of particular concern for
certain types of businesses, such as automobile service stations, dry cleaners, electrical compo-
nent or machine manufacturers, photo processors, and metal platers or fabricators. Such
businesses are often found in strip malls, industrial parks, and many areas that are not served
by municipal sewer systems. Without access to sewer systems, these businesses rely on
shallow disposal wells such as septic systems to get rid of their wastes. The environmental
consequences of this form of wastewater disposal, however, can be great.
Dry holes and cesspools introduce the wastes directly into the ground. Septic system^ cannot,
however, treat industrial wastes. They are only designed to treaf "sanitary
wastes. Industrial wastes may contain harmful chemicals which can
kill the bacteria in the septic tank necessary for the primary
treatment of sanitary wastes. When this happens, poorly treated
sanitary wastes percolate into the ground and can reach the water
table. The industrial wastes will pass untreated through the
system and can contaminate drinking water sources. This is
of particular concern for certain types of businesses such as
automotive service stations, dry cleaners, electrical
component or machine manufacturers, photoprocessors,
and metal platers or fabricators because the waste they
generate is likely to contain toxic or cancer-causing
chemicals.
Over the past decade, many communities in the United States
have had to address the contamination of their underground
sources of drinking water by the waste disposal practices of
local businesses. As the next page shows, the costs associated
with cleaning up ground water contamination ranges from tens
of thousands to millions jof dollars per site. These are just a few
of the cases of ground water contamination nationwide that can
be attributed to industrial disposal wells.
> Printed on Recycled Paper
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Cases of Contamination from Shallow Disposal Wells
Place Incident Remediation Financial Impact
Exton,
Pennsylvania
Solvents used to clean
engines at an automotive
repair facility contaminated an
on-site water supply well and
threatened the water supply
for 77,000 persons living
within 3 miles of the site.
EPA placed the site on the
National Priorities List of
Superfund sites and issued
a Record of Decision in
September 1995.
Remediation is expected
to cost approximately
$10,967,000. It will include
carbon filtration, the
excavation and off-site
disposal of contaminated
soils, and air stripping to
treat ground water.
Boulder,
Colorado
A manufacturer of printed
circuit boards used its septic
system to dispose of process
wastewater containing
chlorinated solvents, primarily
trichloroethane. A plume of
volatile organic chemicals has
contaminated area drinking
water wells.
Long-term remediation
plans include connecting
affected residences to the
Boulder municipal water
system. Bottled water is
being supplied in the
interim.
Residents sued the
manufacturer and were
awarded $4.1 million ($3
million for neighborhood
cleanup; $750,000 for a
new water supply;
$225,000 for medical
monitoring; and $165,000
for loss of use and
enjoyment of property).
Ft. Lauderdale,
Florida
A manufacturer of solderless
electrical terminals disposed of
process wastewater
contaminated with
trichloroethylene, heavy
metals, oil, grease, and dye
into a dry well and drain fields.
As a result, ground water in
the area was contaminated.
The selected remedial
action includes the
excavation, aeration, and
replacement of soil
contaminated with volatile
organic compounds,, and
the extraction, treatment,
and reinjection of
contaminated ground
water.
Capital costs of the
remedial action are
expected to be
$653,730. Operation
and maintenance costs
are expected to run
$364,215 per year.
Brewster,
New York
A dry cleaner disposed of
wastewater in a dry well. A
community well field,,which
served 2,100 residents, was
contaminated.
Remediation plans include
the excavation and disposal
of 100 cubic yards of dry
well sediment, sludge, and
soil.
The remedial action is
expected to cost
$241,940.
Vancouver,
Washington
An electroplating company
discharged hexavalent chrome
into a dry well, which
contaminated local ground
water. A well field that serves
10,000 residents is
threatened.
The selected remedial
action includes the
installation of extraction
wells to remove chrome
from the ground water by
ion exchange.
The remedial action is
expected to cost
approximately $3.8 million.
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Cases of Contamination from Shallow Disposal Wells
Place Incident Remediation Financial Impact
South Cairo,
New York
A thermostat
manufacturer poured
trichloroethylene and
tetrachloroethylene
sludges into drains that
led to an abandoned septic
system. As a result, the
community's drinking water
source was contaminated.
Remediation includes
cleanup of ground water
using spray aeration and
air stripping, while
supplying the affected
community with an
alternative water supply.
The remedial action,
which includes the
installation of a new well
and pipeline, is expected
to cost $2.3 million.
Annual operation and
maintenance costs will
run $100,000.
Tacoma,
Washington
A dry cleaner disposed of
solvents in a septic
system and contaminated
2 municipal wells that
supplied water for 30,000
persons.
The contaminated wells
were taken out of service,
and the ground water was
cleaned up by using air
stripping.
The costs of the two
remedial actions are
approximately $1.5
million in capital
expenditures and
$85,000 per year in
operation and
maintenance.
Corvallis,
Oregon
An electroplater disposed of The selected remedial
floor drippings, washings,
and product rinse in a dry
well, contaminating soil and
ground water.
action includes the
installation of wells to
extract chromium-
contaminated ground water
for treatment, and the
excavation and removal of
contaminated soil.
Capital costs of
remediation are expected
to run approximately $1.6
million. Annual operation
and maintenance costs
are expected to be
approximately $261,000.
Gilford,
New Hampshire
Floor drains from several
vehicle maintenance
shops contaminated a
local public water supply
with tetrachloroethylene
and other volatile organic
compounds.
The floor drains were
sealed, and the septic
systems were removed
and replaced.
Removal of the sludge
from the septic tanks
alone was estimated to
cost $20,000.
Missoula,
Montana
Wastewater seeping from
drainage wells at an
automotive service station
contaminated a
community water supply
well that served 45,000
persons.
Three wells were closed,
but no remedial action was
taken.
Costs include the loss of
water supply wells.
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What Can You, as a Local Official, Do to Protect Your Drinking Water
Supply?
There are several important actions that you, as a local official, can take whether you are a
county executive, mayor, health officer, drinking water supplier, or in some other way have a
stake in protecting your community's drinking water. Actions taken now to prevent contamina-
tion can protect your community's water supply and save millions of dollars in site remedia-
tion and new drinking water source development.
• Promote the use of best management practices (BMPs) and voluntary methods by
encouraging pollution prevention, waste minimization, and recycling. BMPs are standard-
ized operating procedures that businesses can use to reduce, or better manage, the waste
they produce. BMPs can be as simple as "good housekeeping," such as using absorbent
clay to clean up small spills of petroleum products and solvents, rather than wash the
liquid down the drain. Local officials who have used education and outreach tools to
promote best management practices among the businesses in their communities have found
that these efforts save money, protect ground water, and forge strong public-private
partnerships.
• Use local authority to implement a ground water protection program. Thousands of
communities nationwide are developing programs following the steps for delineating the
area that needs to be protected, identifying the potential sources of contamination, and
managing those sources through a variety of regulatory and voluntary methods. Some
communities have used senior volunteers, students, and other private organizations to
make wellhead protection a great success.
• Work with State and Federal ground water and drinking water protection programs.
Promote the closure of shallow underground wells that dispose of industrial wastewater.
Disposal of hazardous waste in a shallow underground well could be a violation of the
Safe Drinking Water Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, as well as state
and local law, and subject to enforcement orders. By first asking and finding out where the
drains lead, local officials have found shallow underground disposal wells in their commu-
nities and made sure that the. wells complied with the requirements under these laws.
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