Chapter 05. Innovative and Alternative On-Site Sewage Disposal System Grant Program

“Department” means the Department of the Environment.

“Includes or including” means includes or including by way of illustration and not by way of limitation.

“Innovative and alternative on-site sewage disposal system” means any new, experimental, or non-conventional technology that is added to or used in place of a conventional septic or other on-site sewage system.

“Program” means the innovative and alternative on-site sewage disposal system grant program.

Have local funding and manpower resources available to establish and maintain local innovative and alternative on-site sewage disposal system programs including the ability to:

Submit an agreement to be signed with the Department as outlined in Regulation .06 of this chapter, and their innovative and alternative program plan within 3 months of their notification by the Department of the availability of program funds. The program plan and agreement shall detail the role of the local county health department in the innovative and alternative program.

Have known hydrogeological problems, such as permanently high or seasonally high water table conditions, shallow soils, or slowly permeable soils, which can be addressed by innovative and alternative sewage disposal systems.

Submit a final eligibility and priority list of applicants to the Department for review and approval as outlined in Regulation .06 of this chapter within 1 year of the execution of the Department agreement with the political subdivision.

Own property in this State that is included in the county master water and sewer plan as an area where individual on-site water and sewer systems may be used that:

Have made a good faith effort to obtain approval of, or to use a conventional septic system;

Agree to conditions of the experiment as outlined in Regulation .07 of this chapter; and

Be limited to one grant to serve one homesite to:

An existing failed on-site sewage disposal system which cannot be repaired using conventional methods;

An existing pollution or public health problem related to sewage disposal; and

Property which offers a significant opportunity for providing useful data to the experimental effort.

Applicant screening and site evaluations;

Input to and review of system design;

System inspection and monitoring;

Technical reporting on system performance in accordance with requirements established by the Department; and

Review by the local planning agency for relation to land use or other pertinent information.

Applicant screening;

Site evaluation;

Review of system design; and

Monitoring and reporting.

A site evaluation and determination of the nature of the project and its suitability to receive grant assistance including:

Preparation of a site location map or maps which identify the location of the eligible sites in relation to the nearest roads and topographical features; and

Prioritization of eligible applicants.

Soil depth to ground water or bedrock, or both;

Soil profiles;

Soil permeability;

Extent of tree cover; and

Any other site characteristics which may affect the performance of innovative and alternative sewage disposal systems considered applicable for the site.

Review of screening, prioritization, and site evaluation procedures and results;

Consideration of the ability of available technologies to meet site constraints;

Consideration of the potential of the site to support feasible and economical monitoring systems and provide useful experimental data; and

Consideration of comments received from the Department's submittal of the final priority listing of eligible projects and the site location map or maps of the eligible sites to the State Clearinghouse for intergovernmental review in accordance with the process described in COMAR 16.02.01.

Identifies project elements and fixes their cost based upon a fair assessment of project installation costs, and establishes that the amount of State grant participation may not exceed 50 percent of the anticipated total project cost.

Establishes financial responsibility of homeowners for:

Limits the State's share of the project installation cost to $10,000 or less.

Establishes applicant repayment requirements for the full amount of funds provided under this agreement if, for reasons of neglect, the innovative and alternative system is not adequately maintained or is damaged beyond repair.

Establishes the applicant's financial responsibility for system modification which may be required by the Department or the political subdivision when failure of the system to operate satisfactorily poses a threat to the public health, safety, or comfort. In these cases, necessary system modifications shall be in accordance with the requirements established by the Department or the local health department. System modifications may include requirements for installing holding tanks and regular pumping and hauling of sewage wastes from the holding tanks.

Establishes salvage rights of the State upon default of the applicant.

Establishes access for the political subdivision and the Department to enter the applicant's land in order to make periodic inspection and to monitor the system for at least 2 years from initiation of system use or for the duration of the project.

Requires installation by the applicant of either a water meter or cycle counter (for effluent pumping systems), which shall be monitored.

Acknowledges that the proposed innovative and alternative sewage system is experimental and that the applicant's participation is voluntary.

Acknowledges that the political subdivision, the Department and any of their agents or employees do not, either officially or individually, underwrite the operation of any innovative and alternative system approved under this program or incur any liability to the applicant if the innovative and alternative system fails.

Requires that the applicant assure continued, efficient, and effective operation of the system.

Requires the terms of this agreement to run with the land and bind the applicant, his heirs, successors or assigns, and that this agreement shall be recorded in the land records of the political subdivision where the property is located.

Provides for this agreement to be voided at the discretion of the Department if the system construction is not completed within 6 months of the grant award and requires the applicant to repay all funds with interest.

Establishes any special requirements or conditions deemed necessary by the Department and the political subdivision.

Outline applicant responsibilities in the program;

Describe the innovative and alternative system most appropriate for the site; and

Explain any special design or maintenance features of the system which may require applicant involvement beyond that required for a conventional septic system.