Waste Water - Septic systems
Managing waste water on your property is critical to keeping your family and the environment healthy.
There are several types of on-site wastewater management systems. All of them are required to be registered with Council. Council will carry out regular inspections to make sure the system is working properly and will charge inspection fees for this service.
We have included some information about septic systems. Septic systems rely on a trench to disperse waste water through the soil and subsoil. The permeability of the soil can be affected by chemicals, such as detergents in the wastewater. One such chemical that can harm the soil permeability is sodium contained in laundry detergent. Sodium was used as a replacement for phosphates used a "fillers" in laundry powders.
In a septic system, phosphates dispersed through the subsoil may be able to be taken up by plants whereas sodium may cause far greater problems. Lanfax Laboratoriesin Armidale, have tested a range of laundry detergents for both phosphorus and sodium content and published the results in the attached brochure as well as providing a detailed description of how septic systems are designed and work.
Aerated water treated systems (AWTS) are also available and these usually come with instructions from the supplier, and are required to be maintained on a regular basis.
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