EPA orders sewer service for part of Sandusky Township

6/13/2006

FREMONT - Sandusky County commissioners have agreed to build a sanitary sewer system to serve the State Rt. 6 area of Sandusky Township because failing septic systems are causing unsanitary conditions in Bark Creek, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency announced yesterday.

The EPA order allows the county nine months to submit plans and a permit application to construct sewer lines in an area bordered by County Road 562, County Road 243, and Route 6. Once the agency approves the plans and issues a permit, the county has 30 months to complete construction. The county will require residences and businesses in the area to connect to the sewage system and stop using their septic systems.

The order follows a complaint by the county Board of Health in January, 2004, prompting the Ohio EPA to investigate conditions in the area. Conditions and odors indicated there was untreated sewage in Bark Creek, which is a tributary of the Sandusky River.

Sampling in July and September, 2004, found fecal coliform bacteria exceeding state water quality standards. These conditions, along with local soil conditions and hydrology, make replacement of the septic systems unacceptable and prompted the order for a public sewer to serve the area.