The term “enhanced treatment” is a relatively new term, at least in this area. It is in direct reference to on-site waste water treatment systems or septic systems.
There is another generic term used that essentially means the same thing, “alternative design.”
This basically means a type of septic system / leach field design that is not the traditional concept of the good old stone and pipe leach field.
Stone and pipe leach fields, properly called absorption areas, have been the recognized design for many, many years.
Properly designed, with good site and soil analysis, this is still the preferred method of allowing the treated effluent from the septic tank, back into the ground.
Treated effluent is what leaves the septic tank… which provides the primary source of raw sewage treatment.
Again, the key to any properly operating absorption area [leach field] is proper site and soil analysis and, of course, proper installation.
An alternative design is anything except the traditional stone and pipe.
There are many out there, the most commonly known probably is the Eljen Mat idea.
Many people have heard this term.
All too often someone who really is not very knowledgeable will, with great enthusiasm, say “we are putting in an Eljen system!!” with the assumption they are putting in the best possible absorption area.
Certainly, there is nothing wrong with using the Eljen mat system as an alternative to stone and pipe.
It has proven to work very well for hundreds of systems.
But they are not the only solution for excellent, in-ground absorption solutions.
The Town of Webb is not the only township that has very challenging and diverse site conditions. But, there is no doubt the Town does not lack in tough sites either.
Sure, there are lots of areas that the soils, and subsurface conditions, are perfect for conventional stone and pipe.
At the same time, the Town of Webb has an abundance of tough sites.
Steep slopes, rocky lands, bedrock, wet conditions, impervious soils or strata layers, miles of waterfront and years of pre-regulation development on small parcels are just some of the typical conditions.
Just as an alternative design is something different from the stone and pipe, the enhanced treatment system is something more than just the traditional septic tank.
A simple septic tank is designed to hold back the solids and particles of waste until they have broken down into a liquid state.
This is called pre-treatment.
The tank size is critical for proper pre-treatment. The smaller the tank, the less bacterial action is allowed to break stuff down, which is a key part of treatment before entering the absorption area.
Oversizing a tank would never be a bad idea, under-sizing a tank can allow passage of solids to the absorption area, which leads to failure because the solids, particles or sludge forced out of the tank will seal the ground of the absorption area. Thus failure.
Again, just as there are different types of alternative designs for absorption areas, there are a number of enhanced, pre-treatment systems that replace, or work in conjunction with septic tanks.
This is not new technology, as these things have been around for decades in other countries and even right here in the USA.
Why are they becoming more widely known you ask?
Because, as time moves forward more old septic systems begin to fail, or people expand their buildings, as enforcement becomes more involved, awareness of improper septic waste is increased… all to find out a code compliant system can’t be installed for a host of reasons, property owners demand alternatives and solutions.
No one likes to be told “no” and most like the idea of increased treatment.
All enhanced or alternative concepts have gone through regulatory testing, monitoring and in most cases, the test of time.
They do work. Treatment is greatly enhanced. They provide good alternatives to those properties that have been around a long time with non-conforming systems.
Of course, another alternative may be to declare properties uninhabitable when the old septic decides to fail and there is no way a truly compliant system can be installed. That’s fine, unless it’s you, right?