Developers Can Offer Creative Waste Water Solutions and A Carefree Lifestyle
by Darlene McCormick
Water quality issues continue to drive the regulations that shape our landscapes. Title V regulations were re-vamped over the last several years, and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection included alternative systems that are on the leading edge of environmental protection. Modern on-site sewage treatment plants are ecologically sound and return clean, drinking-quality water back to the environment.
On-site sewage treatment facilities enable development of land that would not otherwise be possible in towns not served by public sewer. The treatment facility costs are approximately $20,000 per home, the same as an average individual septic system costs in a new development. One of the major benefits is that no individual Title V concerns will surface at the resale of the home, as would be required for a homeowner with an individual septic system. You will likely see these alternative systems becoming more popular as environmental regulations become more stringent and individual septic systems become more regulated.
The Mass. DEP requires private community treatment facilities to be owned and maintained by a condominium association which defines the responsibilities of all the affected parties. The Developer will be formally involved for one year after completion of the entire project and will assist the condominium trustees in assuming their responsibility as overseers of the treatment plant operations. A licensed, qualified treatment plant management and operations company which reports to the trustees must be contracted to oversee the operation, maintenance, inspections and filing of reports to the DEP.
The condominium documents will require payments towards the system’s repairs and replacement as well as operation, protecting each and every homeowner’s long-term interests. These operations and maintenance costs will be comparable to a municipality’s fee for public sewer. Since many of these costs are structured as part of a contract, the plant’s operating costs are predictable and controllable by the homeowners.
Condominium associations are also able to offer the homeowners many other services that support the busy lifestyles we all share today, such as rubbish removal, landscaping services, and snow removal—an added plus!
Wedgewood, in Southborough, a 70-lot single family home community is being developed with an association-owned waste water treatment facility. For more information about small community sewage treatment facilities, contact the Wedgewood office at 508-303-8800.