[Adopted 6-11-1981]
A.
All sewage disposal works hereafter constructed, altered, installed
or repaired shall be of approved material and design. No part of the
actual leaching works shall be located less than:
(1)
Twenty feet from any dwelling.
(2)
Ten feet from the line of any street, court or passageway.
(3)
Ten feet from an adjoining lot line.
(4)
One hundred feet from a private water supply or suction line therefrom.
(5)
One hundred feet from any known source of water supply or tributory
thereto.
(6)
Fifty feet for a single dwelling or 100 feet for a multiple dwelling
from an open stream or watercourse, not tributary to a public water
supply.
(7)
Ten feet from and 18 inches below any drinking water supply line
under pressure.
B.
Wherever possible, the leaching works should not be located under
paved areas or ledge which has fissures and from which a water supply
is obtained. No part of the actual leaching works should extend into
groundwater during any season of the year.
C.
Construction, alteration, installing and repair of such works shall
be permitted at a time when the ground is frozen, provided such ground
is frozen less than 12 inches in depth and all frozen material is
removed and replaced with unfrozen, clean material. Work in the leaching
area shall be complete and inspected in one day. A permit for such
work shall be obtained from the Board of Health.
D.
The site of the works should permit gravity flow from the dwelling
and one from which surface drainage is away from all sources of water
supply. All portions of the system shall be constructed of durable
material and with watertight joints, if located within 100 feet of
a well or suction line from a well; 100 feet from any water supply
or its tributaries; 10 feet from any drinking water supply line under
pressure.
Individual sewage disposal systems must conform with the following
specifications:
A.
House sewer. The house sewer must be at least four inches in diameter,
cast-iron pipe with properly caulked lead joints, laid with a minimum
grade of 1% (1/8 inch per foot) but preferably 2% (1/4 inch per foot
is desirable).
B.
Septic tank. All septic tanks hereafter installed shall have an effective
capacity of at least 1,000 gallons and shall be constructed of concrete;
the inlet and outlet shall be provided with a sanitary tee or equivalent
baffle, extending 10 inches below the flow line on the inlet and 15
inches on the outlet. Access openings (manholes or cleanouts) shall
be provided over each inlet and outlet, and each tank shall be provided
with at least one manhole (with a minimum diameter of 16 inches to
permit maintenance and cleaning out of the tank). The top of the manholes
and cleanouts shall be made watertight and be extended where necessary
to between 12 inches to 18 inches below the ground surface.
C.
Distribution box. A distribution box of approved material and design,
with an access cover, must be provided for each installation and shall
be installed in a manner satisfactory to the Board of Health. The
inverts of all outlets shall be level and shall be at least two inches
below the invert of the inlet.
D.
Absorption field. The size of the absorption field required shall
be determined on the basis of the number of bedrooms and facilities
provided in the dwelling and the results of percolation tests conducted.
Disposal fields for residential construction shall have a minimum
area of 800 square feet.
(1)
Absorption field design for leaching trenches.
(a)
Minimum number of lines: two.
(b)
Maximum length of individual lines: 100 feet.
(c)
Uniform trench width throughout field: 18 inches to 36 inches.
(d)
Minimum depth of pipe cover: 18 inches.
(e)
Grade of pipe lines: two inches to four inches per 100 feet.
(f)
Minimum stone fill under pipe: 12 inches.
(g)
The large stone in the trench from the top to 12 inches below
the pipe shall be washed gravel, crushed stone or clean bank-run gravel,
between 3/4 inch and 2 1/2 inches in size, and shall be free
of fines, dust or clay.
(h)
The two-inch layer of stone on top of the large stone, to support
the backfill, shall be clean gravel or crushed stone 1/8 inch to 1/4
inch in size.
(i)
The ends of all leaching pipes should be sealed with concrete.
(2)
The absorption area for trenches shall not be less than 800
square feet.
(3)
Modification of absorption field design for seepage beds. The
size of the absorption field shall be determined in the same manner
as that for leaching trenches, but no less than 800 square feet.
(a)
The bottom of the bed and distribution tile shall have a relatively
level grade.
(b)
Lines shall be spaced not less than six feet on center and greater
than three feet from the bed sidewall.
(c)
Where more than one bed is used, there shall be a minimum of
six feet of undisturbed earth between adjacent beds.
A.
Percolation tests and maximum groundwater elevation determinations
shall be restricted to the period from December 1 of a given year
through April 30 of the following year; and said tests and determinations
shall not be allowed during said period if the total precipitation
for the 30 days preceding the day of the test is less than 75% of
the average precipitation for that period. The data used in determining
the current precipitation and the total average precipitation period
shall be obtained from the ten-year averages of a given month as compiled
by the National Weather Service in Boston, Massachusetts.
B.
Soil with a percolation rate of over 20 minutes per inch shall be
considered unsuitable for the subsurface disposal of sewage.
C.
At least three percolation tests shall be performed at the site of
each disposal area; two in the primary disposal field area and one
in the area proposed for possible expansion of the system.
D.
An initial percolation test over 10 minutes per inch shall require
a minimum four-hour soaking period and overnight swelling of the test
hole as detailed in Title 5 of the State Environmental Code. In cases
where colloidal material is suspected within the subsoil, a soak-and-swell
period shall be required by the Board of Health regardless of the
initial percolation rate.
E.
Construction in fill. In the location of an individual sewage disposal
system in an area requiring fill, such filling shall be done as required
in Title 5 of the State Environmental Code before a permit shall be
issued.
Wherever possible, all individual sewage disposal works shall
be located in the front of lots to facilitate connection to the public
sewage collection system.
Detailed engineering plans and test results shall be submitted
in duplicate with the application provided by the Board of Health
to construct or alter during initial construction of an individual
disposal system.
A.
A plot plan with a scale of one inch equals 20 feet shall be submitted
and shall include a locus plan in sufficient detail to permit later
location of the property with reference to town streets, adjacent
lots by address, and any waterways within 200 feet from the lot line.
B.
The plot plan shall indicate the location and size of the structure,
boundary lines, perimeter and subsurface drains, retaining walls,
driveways, existing topography of the land before excavation or preparation
of the site, proposed final grading contours in the immediate area
of the leaching system and accurate ties from the property bounds
or other fixed references for the later location of the components
of the system. The plot plan shall also indicate the permanent benchmark
used for establishment of topography and shall show the location of
two prominent, temporary, local benchmarks for use during construction
and inspection. Locations of percolation test pits, leaching field,
septic tank, and proposed water supply lines shall be given relative
to these benchmarks. This benchmark or system of benchmarks shall
be used at the time of groundwater testing and percolation tests.
Under no circumstances should groundwater or percolation test data
be referenced to existing ground grade at the time of testing. Final
plans must include triangulation fix from corners of the house to
the distribution box and septic tank.
C.
Elevations at all significant parts of the system shall be shown
on the plot plan, beginning with the elevation of the sewer pipe leaving
the building and continuing through the system and designating the
elevation of the bottom of the bed, stone, distribution pipes and
distribution box. No deviation from the planned elevations of the
system shall be permitted, and the use of the sill of a building not
yet constructed as a reference point shall not be permitted.
D.
The primary disposal area constitutes that area constructed therein
for immediate use. The plot plan shall designate an area equal in
size to the primary absorption field and which meets all the distance
requirements required of the primary field, This area must be free
of prohibitive features, including, but not limited to, ledge, driveways,
and outbuildings. An interceptor drain may be required for efficient
operation of this expansion field.
E.
Percolation tests and groundwater elevation determinations shall
be observed by an authorized agent or member of the Board of Health.
Results of these tests must be filed with the Board within 60 days
either as part of an application for a disposal field construction
permit or as a separate report, certified by a sanitary engineer or
registered sanitarian, and including test date and signatures of the
performing parties. Test results will be considered invalid two years
after the date of performance, but the Board may require further tests
if the water table or drainage patterns in the area may have been
influenced by local drainage, other changes, or building activities.
F.
No deviation from the approved plot plan shall be enacted without
prior notice to and approval of the Board of Health. Any deviation
enacted without approval of the Board shall be subject to revocation
of permit. Any licensed installer who deviates from the approved plan
may be subject to revocation of his/her installer's permit.
G.
Drainage. An individual disposal system shall be located in such
a manner that no surface water will accumulate, and interceptors or
other provisions shall be required to minimize the flow of water over
the disposal field and also from the disposal field into any area
of the neighboring land. In any instance where interceptor drains
are required to remove surface water and/or lower the water table,
such drain shall be installed and the area then retested for water
level and percolation rates.
H.
The person responsible for the construction, repair or alteration
of an individual sewage disposal system shall have such construction
inspected by the Board of Health before such construction is covered,
and such covering shall thereafter be applied in a manner approved
by the Board of Health. This final inspection shall include determination
of proper grades and elevations within the system in accordance with
the approved plan.
I.
All trees and stumps must be removed within a distance of 10 feet
from the perimeter of the primary bed.
J.
The issuance of the certificate of compliance shall not be construed
as a guarantee that the system will function satisfactorily.
All persons engaged in the practice of pumping out individual
sewage disposal installations shall be licensed annually by the Board
of Health. The license fee is $10, and the license shall expire in
December of the same year issued, but may be renewed annually by the
Board of Health.
Every owner, occupant or agent of premises in which there is
any private sewer, drain, privy vault, septic tank, or cesspool shall
keep the same in a sanitary condition and shall have every privy vault,
septic and cesspool emptied and cleaned when necessary or at such
times as ordered by the Board of Health. No privy vault, septic tank
or cesspool shall be emptied except by such parties licensed by the
Board of Health. If the owner, or occupant fails to comply with such
order, the Board of Health may cause the nuisance source of filth
or cause of sickness to be removed, and all expenses incurred thereby
shall be paid by the person who caused or permitted the same if he
has had actual notice from the Board of Health of the existence thereof.
Whenever a water closet, privy vault, septic tank, cesspool
or drain becomes offensive or obstructed, the owner, agent or occupant
of the premises shall cause same to be cleaned or otherwise corrected.
No person shall use equipment to remove or transport the contents
of privies, cesspools, or septic tanks or other offensive substances
unless such equipment has first been inspected and approved by the
Board of Health.
A.
Inspection. Equipment shall be inspected annually and shall carry
a certificate of approval issued by the Board of Health.
B.
Hydrostatic test. A certificate of a hydrostatic test made within
three years shall be presented at the time of inspection of equipment.
C.
Mobile tank. Mobile tanks shall be securely mounted on trucks. They
shall be watertight and provided with a leakproof cover and tight
discharge valves.
D.
Venting of mobile tanks. Mobile tanks shall be provided with a vent
constructed in a manner that will permit the escape of gas, but not
the liquid contents of the tank.
E.
Hose. Suction or pressure hose shall be in good repair. A minimum
of 50 feet of hose shall be provided.
F.
Pumps. Pumps shall be maintained in a condition that will prevent
the leakage of sewage. A portable pump shall be provided for transporting
sewage more than 50 feet. An automatic pump or an internal alarm shut-off
shall be provided to prevent overfilling.
G.
Vehicles. Vehicles shall be painted a light color and shall be maintained
in a clean condition.
A.
The
Board of Health may vary the application of any provisions of these
regulations (except where expressly forbidden by Title 5 of the Environmental
Code) with respect to any particular case when, in its opinion:
B.
Any
variance granted by the Board of Health shall be in writing and conform
to the various regulations in Chapters 20 and 21 of Title 5 of the
Environmental Code of the commonwealth.
If any paragraph, sentence, clause, phrase, or word of this
regulation shall be declared invalid for any reason whatsoever, the
decision shall not affect any other portion of these rules and regulations,
which shall remain in full force and effect; and to this end the provisions
of these rules and regulations are hereby declared severable.
