Article in Todays Charlotte Sun Herald "Pollution Theory" Save our Septics Guest Columnist In response to your article on July 2, 2013, the Sun left out the most important facts that came out of the Special Meeting. - For example, Dr. Beever told SOS, “CHNEP (Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program) requires at least 60 samples at a station when we run trend analysis. That equates to at least 5 years of monthly testing.” SOS has told the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) for months that the “science” from Tetra Tech would not be acceptable for years to come. CCU’s subcontractor Tetra Tech, in its $92,700 taxpayer funded report, took four samples in most locations, just two in others, yet this was presented as “real” science. - Dr. Beever also presented the current FDEP impairment map, which clearly shows no fecal coliform “impairment” in Spring Lake, or the harbor in general. This is terrific news and confirms what SOS has said all along. Charlotte Harbor is in great shape! Let’s all celebrate this fact. There is one fecal area at the Port Charlotte beach complex, which we’ve documented as most likely coming from the Sunrise Waterway, which is sewered and has had numerous sewage spills, most recently on July 1, 2013. - On page 20 and 22 of Tetra Tech’s expensive report to the BOCC, your paper did not mention the fact that all the water samples were tested in CCU’s East Port laboratory. Clearly, a conflict of interest. CCU is not a disinterested party in the outcome of these test results. - Tetra Tech stated three different times, on pages 31 and 39, that the septics are not polluting the harbor. On page 31, “these results are not meant to represent an impact of the East and West Spring Lake area from either OSTDS’s (septic systems)..., etc.” regarding Nitrogen testing. On page 39, regarding Tetra Tech’s fecal coliform tests, they again state that the tests “are not meant to indicate a direct correlation or contribution from OSTDS’s within the East and West Spring Lake area.” - Also on page 39, Tetra Tech states that the “…initial ground water wells were randomly placed throughout East and West Spring Lake area. This random placement… is not directly indicative of an issue with a failing OSTDS.” - Then, on page 42, Tetra Tech states that “... new ground monitoring wells were installed adjacent to the (failing) OSTDS systems.” This means testing wells were drilled next to failing septic systems on purpose! Why did your paper not report this critical fact? SOS wants to know why a professional, global water testing company like Tetra Tech would place testing wells near failing septic systems? Tetra Tech’s multiple legal disclaimers tell us something about the reliability of its tests, but was it their idea, or CCU’s? - The EPA’s Paul Gagliano cited the EPA’s 2008 study stating, “Adequately managed decentralized wastewater treatment systems (septics) are a cost effective and long term option for meeting public health and water quality goals.” You did not report this to your readers. We also noted Mr. Gagliano never mentioned that the EPA says 37% of the pollution in U.S. waterways comes from sewer spills. - We also learned that our local Department of Health has not been taking the monthly water quality samples required by Final Order AC89-5, nor have they been keeping an accurate septic tracking database. DOH could not answer how many pre-1983 systems have been brought up to code. DOH could not even tell the commissioners what kinds of “repairs” have been done on any particular septic system. How is that possible? SOS has always called for every septic system to be well maintained and up to code. This information is vital, yet the agency required by law to keep the data, doesn’t have it. - CCU once again reported its fictitious $9,998 cost to homeowners. We all know that the secret clause was inserted into the MSBU language allowing cost increases in the future. CCU also neglected to mention the more than doubling of our water bills in its sewer vs. septic cost comparison. - Lee County’s expert, Ms. Karen Bickford, planned to talk about a 1995 study done in the Florida Keys. A radioisotope dye was flushed down a toilet on septic and it showed up at a monitoring well 167 meters away 11 hours later. Very dramatic science, indeed. A “Smoking Gun” said her slide. Apparently, she wasn’t going to tell the commissioners that the same test was done on nearby sewer injection wells and had the same result. The test was meaningless. An SOS member called her out on this point and Ms. Bickford confessed SOS was correct during her presentation. The Sun failed to mention this fact. - Presentations were changed many times because SOS investigated the expert’s “science” and told the commissioners, and panelists, beforehand what we found. SOS finds this manipulation of science shocking. When we asked Chairman Constance to give SOS “equal time”, just the 15-20 minutes the BCC had granted in the past on other topics, we were refused. SOS had hoped to point out the manipulations in detail. The panelists had unlimited time to speak, we had three minutes each. Not one pro-septic expert testified. - Let us speak frankly - a panel of pro-sewer “experts” presented no science to prove that septics are polluting the harbor. None. Tetra Tech and Dr. Beever’s science actually proved our case. In fact, Dr. Beever was quoted in your paper as saying; “The problem is there is not very much data (read: science) in the area you want to sewer.” This has been SOS’ position from the beginning – there is no science. When panelists stated, “sewers would improve water quality”, they were merely expressing personal opinions, not scientific facts. Otherwise, your article would have trumpeted the scientific proof. - Ironically, the “experts” were telling taxpayers to trust them and put in the sewers, while at the exact same time, CCU was scrambling huge 10,000 and 20,000-gallon septic trucks to pump out the overflowing sewer system on Sunrise Waterway! The spillage, as usual, headed right down the canal, directly to the beach complex. The beach was closed for the entire 4th of July holiday. How much money did our local shops and restaurants lose on one of the biggest holidays of the summer? As we’ve documented scientifically on these pages, SOS believes the pollution/bacteria at the beach is coming right out of Sunrise Waterway. There are no other 7,000 count fecal spikes on the USF/Water Atlas that we are aware of. - Taxpayers were not fooled by the panelists. SOS has provided indisputable, independent science to prove the harbor is in great shape. Septics are organic, safe and reliable. Sewers spill billions of gallons of sewage every year into US waters. These are EPA facts, not SOS’. It’s time for the microscopic minority of pro-sewer advocates to realize their ‘pollution theory’ has been dispelled by a well-armed set of scientific facts. - The overwhelming majority of taxpayers are against the sewers. The commissioners should end this boondoggle now. We again urge them to focus on fixing CCU’s management, broken sewer system and its enormous $181,000,000 debt burden. - The Sun titled its article, “Experts Favor Sewers”. A more accurate title would have been, “Seven Experts, Six Hours, Zero Science Proving Septics Pollute Harbor”. - Scott Andrichak and Robert Herriman are spokesmen for the group, Save Our Septics.
Posted on: Fri, 19 Jul 2013 13:25:23 +0000
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