Lee Rackus, Whitehall Township’s bureau chief for planning, zoning and development, headed up a meeting with Coplay-Whitehall Sewer Authority and Whitehall commissioners April 27. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss revamping the township’s 537 Sewer Plan. The groups met last year to discuss extending public sewer to the northern tier of the township. At the prior meeting, the economic costs did not justify extending the system.

This latest meeting was called to address on-lot septic systems. According to the information presented by the township, there are 270 parcels with on-lot septic. Rackus asked that the two boards concentrate initially on a definition of public sewer availability. According to Rackus and confirmed by CWSA, the definitions are slightly different. CWSA considers public sewer available if the main line runs along the entire property frontage. The township considers public sewer available if the property is within 150 feet of a public sewer. If public sewer is available, homeowners are required to connect to the public system.

David Harleman, CWSA’s general manager, contended that CWSA’s requirement is based on maintenance considerations.

“We can check main lines for leaks and problems with our cameras, but we can’t get to lateral lines run to serve a specific house,” he said.

The two definitions have confusing implications. An example presented by the township is Summit Street. Most of the homes are on half-acre lots with septic systems. The latest requirements require at least one-acre lots.

“Some of the people on the street are reporting that their systems are failing,” Whitehall Township Mayor Edward D Hozza Jr. said.

Summit Street identifies problems the township is working to resolve. The house closest to the existing sewer main is within 150 of the connection; however, the main does not cross the property frontage.

“There is a valley in the street, so the main was stopped because we couldn’t gravity-feed the sewage,” Harleman said.

According to Harleman, if Summit Street were on the public sewer system, it would need to be served by a main from Cherry Street.

As Rackus pointed out, if the first house connects to the public sewer, then the second house is within 150 feet of the main and it must connect. The chain reaction happens down the street. As Hozza contends, the failures may come in the middle of the block.

“How can residents deal with a major problem? The homeowner has no alternative other than a costly repair or abandons the house,” he said.

“Repairs on a system might require that it rest for a year,” CWSA engineer Darryl Jenkins said.

Any problems with repairs would increase the complexity of the problem.

“I don’t think you will ever avoid a situation where someone spent money to get their system repaired and now are required to pay for a new main,” he said.

The further question is if a failure occurs at one of the last houses on the block, do all the residents need to pay a one-time charge to build the new sewer main? CWSA will address the problem and come up with a cost to avert a major problem.

As Jenkins pointed out, the minimum requirement for an on-lot septic system is one acre.

“That is the minimum,” he said. “The new rules require that there is an alternate location where a separate septic system can be added. The alternate location requirement might increase the minimum acreage required.”

What the township is looking for is a detailed assessment of on-site septic systems.

“We have no idea of the condition of any of these systems … We need to collect information from the owners and compile it, so we can focus on how to address the situation,” Rackus said. “The easy solutions are over, and now we need to concentrate on the potential problem areas.”

Detailed data is something required by the state DEP.

“They are cracking down on septic systems,” Rackus said. “We need to be ahead of the curve.”

The township prepared a draft of a septic tank inspection form for review. No one in attendance expected to resolve problems, but there is a commitment to get a consensus on taking action. Whitehall commissioners and CWSA will meet on the last Wednesday of the month for the next two months to work out an agreement and get financial details.