As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
COMMUNITY SEWERAGE SYSTEM A system utilized for the collection and disposal of sewage or other wastes of a liquid nature, including the various devices for the treatment of such wastes, serving more than one lot, whether owned by a municipal corporation or private utility.
DISPOSAL FIELD An area in which open joint or perforated piping is laid in appropriate aggregate material in trenches or excavations for the purpose of distributing the effluent discharged from a private sewage disposal system for absorption into the soil.
PERSON An individual, public or private corporation, political subdivision, government agency, municipality, industry, copartnership, association, firm, trust, estate or any other legal entity.
PRIVATE SEWAGE DISPOSAL SYSTEM A sewage disposal system or facility that is not directly connected to an approved community sewerage system and serving a single residential lot or other facility generating sewage in quantities of less than 1,000 gallons per day.
SEEPAGE PIT A covered pit with open-jointed lining surrounded with washed gravel or crushed stone through which septic tank effluent may seep or leach into surrounding ground.
SEPTIC TANK A watertight receptacle which receives the discharge of a building sanitary drainage system or part thereof and is designed and constructed so as to separate solids from the liquid, digest a portion of the organic matter through a period of detention, reduce the velocity of discharging wastes and allow the liquids to discharge into the soil outside of the tank through a system of open joint or perforated piping or a seepage pit.
SEWAGE Human excreta or the water-carried discharges of the human body and/or the human liquid wastes from the household, such as laundry wastes, kitchen sink and bathroom fixtures, or liquid wastes of human origin from business, recreation, industry, trade establishments or other places.
SEWER A watertight conduit for carrying sewage.
Private sewage disposal systems shall meet the construction standards as set forth in Standards for Individual Sewage Disposal Systems, published by the Monroe County Health Department. Said standards are incorporated by reference in this article.
Where a public sanitary sewer is available and accessible, no person shall construct, repair, alter or provide on any property a private sewage disposal system for the disposal of sewage except a temporary privy for use in connection with a construction project.
No person shall construct, maintain or operate any private sewage disposal system so as to expose or discharge sewage or sewage effluent therefrom to the atmosphere or onto the surface of the ground or into any lake or stream or stormwater sewer or drain or roadside ditch without the permission of and treatment acceptable to the County Health Department. When a private sewage disposal system is constructed, operated or maintained so as to expose or discharge sewage or sewage effluent as indicated above, the Department of Health may order that the premises from which the sewage originates be vacated until repairs are made and permission to occupy is issued, in writing, by the permit-issuing official.
For safety purposes, all abandoned septic tanks shall be crushed, removed or filled with stone, earth or sand.
An alternative method of sewage disposal or a variation may be approved by the permit-issuing official if it provides equal or better treatment than the minimum requirements provided for herein or if, in his judgment, it will secure substantially the objectives of the standards or requirements of these rules and regulations. Variations shall be specifically approved, in writing, by the permit-issuing official before construction or installation. Such approval shall cover the details of construction to be used.