The 1st meeting of the Subcommittee on Natural Resources of the Interim Joint Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources was held on Wednesday, July 13, 2005, at<MeetTime> 10:00 AM, in Room 149 of the Capitol Annex. Senator Ernie Harris, Chair, called the meeting to order, and the secretary called the roll.
Present were:
Members: Senator Ernie Harris, Co-Chair; Representative W Keith Hall, Co-Chair; Senators David E Boswell, Dan Kelly, J Dorsey Ridley, and Ernesto Scorsone; Representatives Hubert Collins, Tim Couch, Reginald K Meeks, and Terry Shelton.
Guests: Clyde Bolton, Ken Spach, and Guy Delius, Department for Public Health; Randall Carrier, Mike Davis, and Karen Purdom, Kentucky On-Site Wastewater Association; Julie Smoak, Sandy Gruzesky, Jory Becker, Kentucky Division of Water; Eric Gregory, East Kentucky Power Cooperative; and Eleanor Self, Sierra Club.
LRC Staff: Hank Marks and Kelly Blevins.
Chairman Harris called members of the On-Site Work Group to the table. Sandy Gruzesky of the Division of Water (DOW) introduced Ken Spach, Clyde Bolton, and Julie Smoak to the committee. She stated that the Department of Public Health (DPH) has jurisdiction over on-site sewage disposal that has no surface discharge and the DOW has jurisdiction over systems that have a surface discharge.
Ms. Gruzesky provided a Power Point presentation titled "On-Site Wastewater Permitting: a Spirit of Cooperation". She discussed the statutory authority and respective jurisdictions of DPH and DOW. She discussed the number of residential surface discharge permits (1519) in Kentucky and their concentration in Eastern and Northern Kentucky, and in Jefferson and Oldam counties. Ms. Gruzesky discussed the increase in permitting due to SB 18 of 1998 that required on-site system permits before electrical hook-ups to new construction. She noted the unique karst geology of Kentucky that presents on-site system challenges. She discussed the membership of the Workgroup, its meeting schedule, and its activities. A copy of the presentation is on file in the LRC Library.
Ms. Gruzesky then turned the presentation over to Ken Spach of the Department of Public Health. He stated that Kentucky has one of the most innovative on-site sewage programs in the country in terms of permit tracking, standards, options and alternatives, inspection and installer training, and other parameters. He also discussed site evaluations and permits (19,000) and noted other accomplishments, such as a 95% installation/system success rate (up from 50%), training, and innovations that have resulted in a 40% reduction in the required size of lateral fields. He also discussed regional challenges, and noted that Kentucky is one of only two states that require a system separation distance of 12 to 18 inches. In most states it is 24 to 26 inches. He stated that 35% of the state is served by on-site sewage systems.
Mr. Spach discussed the high volume of permit inspections and evaluation, and the unequal distribution of permit applications and local health department environmental personnel available to do the work. He noted the other responsibilities (for 20 other programs) of local health department personnel in addition to their on-site permit responsibilities.
Mr. Spach then turned the presentation over to Mr. Clyde Bolton who discussed the three areas of responsibility of the Department of Public Health in this area: regulation, homeowner information, and industry information. He discussed efforts to streamline the permitting process and coordinate with all elements involved in on-site permitting. He discussed training programs and the effort to provide on-site system options. He described the development of brochures for homeowners and others.
Mr. Bolton then turned the presentation back over to Ms. Gruzesky, who discussed revisions of DOW wastewater planning requirements, and the DOW emphasis on rural wastewater planning. She concluded the presentation with a discussion of challenges faced by the DOW and others responsible for on-site systems, and current and future activities of the agencies and Workgroup.
Senator Kelly stated that the planning process in statute addressed wastewater as well as drinking water. Ms. Gruzesky stated that the statute was being used as the basis for the planning design. Senator Kelly stated that the DOW needs to get planning councils thinking about wastewater in addition to drinking water. Ms. Gruzesky agreed.
Representative Collins stated that in his county drinking water was still a priority. He asked if most systems were not either traditional septic or aerator. Ms. Gruzesky said, no. She said 60% were now alternative media designs. Representative Collins noted the problem homeowners have with the length of time to get a permit and the problems that occur when the local health department denies use of a conventional septic system and turns the permit process over to the DOW for an aerator or alternative. He asked Ms. Gruzesky to describe the process and time involved in permitting.
Ms. Gruzesky discussed the stages in an application and the respective responsibilities of the DOW and Department of Public Health. Representative Collins talked about a bill he introduced in recent sessions of the General Assembly calling for specific timelines for stages in the permitting process. He asked if all on-site systems and permit processes should be placed under one agency. In response, reasons were offered as to why this would not work well, and it was stated that the process is becoming more streamlined and coordinated between agencies.
Representative Collins asked if there is any way to build in timelines. He was told that training and information efforts are underway to inform those involved in the permitting process about what time requirements should be expected and what can be barriers to meeting expected timelines. Representative Collins suggested a checklist be used. He was told that a checklist has been developed; that it is an issue of providing information and training.
Chairman Harris observed that while only 19% of the state's area is covered by planning, the majority of the population is covered. He asked if homeowners are told what system maintenance requirements will be and was told, yes. He asked about lateral field size reductions and the distance between supply and wastewater lines. He asked if realtors are being informed about the process and was told that efforts are being made to do this. He asked about wells in relation to on-site systems and this was discussed by presenters. Finally, he asked about the role of the Army Corps of Engineers (COE). He described difficulties experienced with the COE in Oldham county and asked about the role of the COE vis a vis the DOW and Department of Health Services. He was told that they do not deal with the COE except regarding COE-managed property or sometimes when dealing with wetlands, but not on-site systems.
Representative Collins asked for a list and descriptions of the alternative systems in use. He was told such a list would be provided to him.
Chairman Harris stated that he is impressed that Kentucky is one of the leaders in the nation in this area. He then invited Karen Purdom, Randy Carrier, and Mike Davis of the Kentucky On-site Wastewater Association (KOWA) to the table.
Ms. Purdom opened by stating that the KOWA believes that wastewater treatment should be given equal recognition as a part of the utilities infrastructure as are other water-related systems and public utilities. She described the make-up of KOWA, its structure and membership. She stated that it is different from other trade groups in that it includes regulators and other groups. She discussed the KOWA's relationship to regulating agencies and KOWA's principal funding source (DOW). She discussed KOWA priorities, programs, training, and the training center in Lawrenceburg. She discussed funding sources currently and plans for the future when the current DOW funding ends. She concluded with a discussion of upcoming KOWA initiatives.
Senator Kelly asked about the lease arrangement with Bluegrass Technical and community college. Ms. Purdom said it was working well and described arrangements. Senator Kelly asked about the relationship of training to certification. Ms. Purdom stated that the training center provides annual continuing education requirement training, but not certification. Certification requirements were discussed by the presenters.
Chairman Harris asked about the difference between the KOWA brochure and the Workgroup brochure. Ms. Purdom stated the KOWA brochure was more current. She discussed differences between the brochures, and the KOWA emphasis on maintenance. In concluding the presentation, Mike Davis invited the committee to visit the Lawrenceburg training center. A copy of the presentation is on file in the LRC Library.
There being no further business the meeting was adjourned at approximately 11:45 a.m.