Septic System Alternatives Vendor Fair

Vashon-Maury Island - Chautauqua Elementary School
Saturday April 18, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Vendor Fair Concept
Island residents working with the Septic Solutions subcommittee of the Vashon Community Council are sponsoring a septic vendor fair to educate Island residents about new on-site sewage system technology and alternative approaches to on-site wastewater treatment. Several factors have generated a high level of local community interest in the topic. The King County On-Site Septic System Management Plan adopted in 2008 designated a Marine Recovery Area (MRA) on Vashon-Maury Island. The MRA designation affects 290 parcels and requires property owners to inspect, and repair or replace their On-Site Sewage (OSS) system if needed by July 1, 2012. Additionally the Island is a designated Sole Source Aquifer by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and a Critical Aquifer Recharge Area by King County.

Timing and Promotion
The vendor fair would be held on Saturday April 18 at the Chautauqua Elementary School on Vashon Island, 9309 SW Cemetery Rd. The event is being promoted as a “Sludge Fest” to build on the theme of the recent successful “Be One with Your Sludge” OSS maintenance and operation workshop held on the Island in January.

Sponsor Organizations
Several sponsors have agreed to provide public endorsement of the vendor fair including:

• Septic Solutions Subcommittee of the Vashon Island Community Council
• Vashon-Maury Island Ground Water Protection Committee
• Vashon-Maury Island Water Purveyors Association
• King County Groundwater Protection Program
• Washington On-Site Sewage Association

Wastewater Technology
The goal is to have representative vendors for a variety of state approved new technologies and alternate wastewater systems that could address the wastewater management needs on the Island and ideally work in the constrained shoreline sites included in the MRA. The range of new technologies and alternative systems identified to date include:

1. Aerobic Treatment Unit – Bio-Microbics, Inc. (external link) 
   Retro Fast model (system is Nitrogen-compliant) in combination with Geo Flow drip irrigation - Local vendor, Tri County Monitoring
2. Aerobic Treatment Unit – Delta Environmental Products (external link)
   Whitewater DF Series model in combination with Netafim drip irrigation - Local Vendor, Matzke Company
3. Re-circulating Packed Bed Filter – Orenco Systems Inc. (external link)
   AdvanTex model in combination with HD Fowler continuous flush drip system incorporating only Netafim products - Local vendor, H.D. Fowler Bellevue
4. Composting Toilet – Sun-Mar Corporation (external link)
   Sun-Mar model in combination with reduced drain field - Local Vendor - Environmental Home Center
5. Incinerating Toilet – Research Products / Blankenship (external link)
   Incinolet model electric incinerating toilet in combination with reduced drain field - pending
6. Water conservation techniques to reduce demand on OSS - Watershed LLC
7. Public Health-Seattle King County – On-Site Sewage program information
8. Washington On-Site Sewage Association – WOSSA program information

This list is based on the common types of alternate on-site sewage systems being used in King County and not intended to cover all state approved systems. View the complete list of DOH approved alternative on-site sewage systems (external link, Acrobat PDF).

Vendor Fair Draft Agenda

• Open house - 3 hours from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Presentation - noon to 12:30 p.m.
• 10 min. – welcome public, introduce vendors, acknowledge sponsors, and provide overview of on-site waster management concerns on Vashon-Maury Island
• 20 min. – OSS designer provided by WOSSA to give a short presentation including: 
• Explain range of new OSS technology and alternative wastewater systems
• Explain process to design/permit/install repairs/upgrades/replacement systems

For additional information, please contact Laurence Stockton, King County Groundwater Protection Program Manager.