./"•"% ?• *r& ^7^ I UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY tj»_ .j WASHINGTON. D.C. 20460 ;P- XV A fER -\NO M A D *•? 1Q7R HAZARDOUS MATERIALS W1AK 0 I3/O Construction Grants Program Requirements Memorandum PRM s 78-9 SUBJECT: Funding of Sewage Collection System Projects FROM: John T. Rhett, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Water Program Operations (WH-546) f TO: Regional Administrators Attn: V/ater Division Directors I. PURPOSE This memorandum supersedes Program Requirements Memorandum (PRM) No. 77-8, on construction grant funding of sewage collection system projects «nd amends that policy in accordance with P.L. 35--217. This memorandum sets forth guidance for rigorous review of grant applications to ensure that proposed projects meet the established requirements of both P.L. 92-500 and P.L. 95-217, plus the construction grant regulations. II. DISCUSSION Sev/age collection system projects may be grant eligible projects under P.L. 92-500 (the Act). Eligibility is limited, however, by Section 211 of the Act which provides for funding cf collection systems only (1) for the replacement or major rehabilitation of an existing collection system or (2) for new collection systems in existing communities. Sewage collection systems are defined in 40 CFR S35.905-19 as: For the purpose of S35.925-13, each, and all, of the common lateral sewers, within a publicly-owned treatment system, which are primarily installed to receive wastewaters directly from facilities which convey wastewater from individual structures or from private property, and which include service connection "Y" fittings designed for connection with those facilities. The facilities which convey Wastewater from individual structures or from private property to the public lateral sewer, or its equivalent, are specifically excluded from the definition, with the exception of pumping units, and pressurized lines, for individual structures or groups of structures when such units are cost-effective and are owned and maintained bv the crantee. ------- -2- Th«j eligib.'lity of sewage collect-ion system projects is further defined in 40 CFR 535.925-13, which reads: That, if the project is for, or includes sev/age collection system work, such work (a) is for replacement or major rehabilitation of an existing sewer system pursuant to S35.927-3(a) and is necessary to the total integrity and performance of the waste treatment works servicing such cor.nunity, or (b) is for a new sewer systen in a community in existence on October 13, 1972, with sufficient existing or planned capacity to adequately treat such collected sev/age. Replacement or major rehabilitation of an existing sewer system may be approved only if cost-effective and must result in a sewer system design capacity equivalent only to that of the existing system plus a reasonable amount for future growth. A community, for purposes of this section, would include any area with substantial human habitation on October 18, 1972. No award may be made for a new sewer system in "a community in existence on October 18, 1972, unless it is further determined by the Regional Administrator that the bulk (generally two-thirds) of the flow design capacity through the sewer system will be for waste waters originating frcm the community (habitation) in existence on October 18, 1972. The above sections of the EPA regulations implement Section 211 of P.L. 92-500. Section 36 of p.L. 95-217 amends. Section 211 of P.L. 92-500 to pjrecJkLde_us.e._of_the_popu,la.tion densii:y..cr.lter_ion_in_BRM_77r8_as_a_tes.t 'qf_ grant jeligiblity for collector sewer projects_ but pennits_use_of_the. crTtje>'io'n.f_6r""evaluating_.a.lternatives. A one household per two acre density criterion may be used only for identifying less closely populated areas where individual or other small wastewater treatment systems are .likely to be more cost-effective than collector sewers and thus must be evaluated in detail if collector sewers are proposed for such areas. Such use of the population density criterion should assist with and simpltfy the cost-effectiveness analysis for collector sewer projects. All treatment works funded under the Construction Grants Program must be cost-effective to comply with the requirements of the Acts. Treatment works are defined in Section 212 to include sewage collection systems. EPA cost-effectiveness requirements are found in 40 CFR S35.925-and in Appendix A to 40 CFR, Part .35. Public disclosure of costs is a fundamental prerequisite for all grants projects, including collection systems. Program Requirements Memorandum 76-3, "Presentation of Local Government Costs of Wastewater Treatment Works in Facility Plans," August 16, 1976, requires that cost information-be presented at all public hearings held on facility plans ------- -3- after January 2, 1977. However, public hearings were held on many collection systsn projects prior to this date. Special measures are necessary to ensure the public is aware of the cost implications of collection systens prior to their approval. The following policy is to be followed in preparing future grant applications for collection system projects. This policy supplements all existing Agency regulations and policy statements. It provides guidance for more rigorous review of grant applications to ensure that proposed orojects meet the established requirements of the lav/ and regulations. Compliance with this policy will help to assure that only grant eligible and cost-effective collection system projects are funded by EPA. III. Policy EPA policy on the funding of sewage collection systems is as follows: A. Substantial human habitation New collector sewer projects are eligible for funding only in a community in existence on October 18, 1972, with sufficient existing or planned capacity to adequately treat such collected sewage. A community qualifying for Federal grant assistance to construct a collector sewer system may be a geographic or jurisdictional area that is smaller than the jurisdiction of the municipality applying for the treatment facility grant. The Tttle II regulation states in Section 35.925-13 that a community would include any area with substantial human habitation on October 18, 1972. The bulk (generally two-thirds) of the flow design capacity through the sewer system is to be for wastewaters originating from the habitation exsting on October 18, 1972. The Agency policy is that areas to be served by new collector sewer projects must meet the requirement for "substantial human habitation." Habitation existing as of October 18, 1972, should be evaluated block by block or, where typical city blocks do not exist, by areas of five acres or less to determine if it is substan- tial. Collector pipes designed primarily to serve blocks or five acre areas without substantial human' habitation as of October 18, 1972, would not be eligible for grant assistance. B. Cost-effectiveness New collector sewers must be proven in the facility plan to be necessary and cost-effective in addition to being eligible under the "substantial human habitation" and the two-thirds rule require- ments. ------- -4- New collector sev/ers should be fundsd only when the systsr.s in use (e.g., septic tanks or raw discharges from homes) for disposal of wastes from the existing population are creating a public health probl«n, contann'natirg groundwater, or violating the point source discharge requirements of the Act. Specific documentation of the nature and extent of health, groundwater and discharge problems must be provided in the facility plan, Where site characteristics are considered to restrict the use of on-sita systems, such characteristics, (e.g., groundwater levels, soil pennability, topography, geology, etc.) must be documented by soil maps, historical data and other pertinent information. The facility plan must also document the nature, number and location of existing disposal systems (e.g., septic tanks) which are malfunction- ing. A community survey of individual disposal -systems is recommended for this purpose, and is grant eligible. Where the population density within the collection system area is less than 1.7 persons per acre (one household per two acres), collector sewer projects shall be considered non-cost-effective unless a severe pollution or public health problem is specifically documented and collector sewers are shown to be clearly less costly than any of the alternatives for sparsely populated areas as cited below. In addition, the facility plan must demonstrate, where population density is less than ten persons per acre, that alternatives are less cost-effective than new gravity collector sewer construction and centralized treatment. Such alternatives are cited in the previous Administrator's memorandum of December 30, 1976, subject: "Encouraging Less Costly Wastev/ater Facilities for Small Communities." The alternatives to be evaluated include the following: —measures to improve operation and maintenance of existing septic tanks, including more frequent inspections, timely purnpouts and prohibi- tion of garbage grinders. —new septic tanks. —holding tanks and "honey wagons." —various means of upgrading septic tanks, including mounds, alternate leaching fields and pressure sewers plus ponds or other small treatment facilities. —other systems to serve individual households or a cluster of households. Such systens include, for example, v/astewater separation, water conservetion and recycle systems where feasible. ------- The facility plan, whc:r applicable, must examine alternatives such as limited sewer service for a portion of a community. For example, septic systt-is wcrk very well in n^ny small tov/ns except in one isolated area such -is a business district where open space for adequate en-site disposal is not available. The collection system shall not afford capacity for new habitations or other establishments to be located on environmentally sensitive lands such as wetlands, floodplains or prime agricultural lands. Moreover, the proposed collection system must conform with approved 208 plans and air quality plans, Executive Orders on Wetlands and Floodplains, and Agency policy on wetlands. C. Public disclosure of costs All projects, including collection systems, on which public hearings were held after January 2, 1977, must corcply fully with the requirements of Program Requirements Memorandum 76-3 prior to approval. Agency policy is to ensure public disclosure of the costs of any collection system projects where a public hearing was held on or before January 2, 1977. Such disclosures snail take the form of. a prominently published notice in a local newspaper, and the cost is grant eligible. The notice shall include the estimated monthly charge for operation and maintenance, the estimated monthly debt service charge, the estimated connection charge and the total monthly charge to a typical residential customer for the new collection system being funded and any other associated wastewater facilities required. Such associated facilities would include new treatment capacity needed to handle the flows from the new collection system. The charges may only be rough estimates, and may be presented as a range of possible costs when major unknowns exist, such as whether or not substantial parts of the project are grant eligible. IV. Implementation The States are to be advised of the issuance of this amended policy at once. All pending and future grant applications for collection system projects or projects containing collection systems are to be reviewed for compliance with this policy. ------- V. References A. Sections 201, 211, 212, P.L. 92-500 and Section 36 of P.L. 95- 217. B. 40 CFR SS35.905-19, 925-7, 925-13, Appendix 8. C. PRM 76-3, "Presentation of Local Government Costs of Wastewater Treatment Works in Facility Plans," August 16, 1976, D, Memorandum to Regional Administrators from Russell E. Train, "Encouraging Less Costly Wastewater Facilities for Small Communities," December 30, 1976. ------- |