Section 24.17.180 Operation and maintenance.

24.17.180 Operation and maintenance.

(1) The OSS owner is responsible for properly operating, monitoring and maintaining the OSS to minimize the risk of failure, and to accomplish this purpose shall:

(a) Immediately notify and request assistance from CCPH upon occurrence of a system failure or suspected system failure:

(i) When critical deficiencies are identified during an operation and maintenance inspection, correct said deficiencies within thirty (30) days of the inspection;

(b) Obtain approval from the health officer before repairing, modifying, expanding an OSS, or before beginning the use of any newly constructed OSS;

(c) Secure and at all times maintain a current contract for periodic maintenance for all alternative systems and where required by CCPH:

(i) All maintenance contracts executed pursuant to the requirements of this chapter shall include:

(A) A provision requiring that the O&M service provider enter the property only upon consent by the owner; however, such consent may be provided in advance if the owner agrees to allow entry without notification by so signifying in writing on the contract itself;

(B) A written description of the frequency of required inspections per Chapter 246-272A WAC, the cost of such inspections, and the estimated cost of any laboratory testing to be provided;

(d) Assure a complete evaluation of the system components and/or property by a certified O&M specialist to determine functionality, maintenance needs and compliance with this chapter and any permits. Assure a report of the inspection is submitted to CCPH within fifteen (15) calendar days.

(i) At least once every three (3) years for all conventional gravity systems without a lift pump;

(ii) Pressure distribution systems (PD) require annual inspections per WAC 246-272A-0270. CCPH may allow property owners to have their PD systems inspected every two (2) years under an existing waiver granted to the county by DOH in 2012. Inspection frequency for PD will revert to annually if DOH waiver is rescinded;

(iii) Annually for all other systems unless more frequent inspections are specified by the health officer;

(e) To comply with the requirements of WAC 246-272A-0270(1)(e) or (1)(k), an inspection must include, at a minimum, inspection and evaluation of:

(i) The status of all sewage tanks including baffles, effluent filters, tank contents such as water level, scum, sludge, solids, water tightness, and general structural conditions;

(ii) The status of all lids, accesses, and risers;

(iii) The OSS and reserve area for any indicators of OSS failure or conditions that may impact system function, operation, or repair; and

(iv) Any other components such as distribution boxes;

(v) A review of the record drawing and related documents, if they exist, including previous reports to confirm the system is operating as designed; and

(vi) Any proprietary products following the procedures of the accepted operations and maintenance manual associated with those products;

(f) For property sales and transfers:

(i) Evidence of an OSS property transfer inspection as required in WAC 246-272A-0270(1)(k) must be provided to the local health jurisdiction on a form approved by the local health officer, including at a minimum:

(A) All applicable information from subsection (1)(e) of this section;

(B) The address of the property served by the OSS;

(D) The permitted type and design flow for known OSS; and

(E) Verification that the record drawing is accurate, if it exists, or an OSS site plan showing the location of all system components relative to structures and prominent site features.

(ii) Ensure that a current report of system status is on file with CCPH when a property served by an OSS is offered for sale. The report of system status is considered current for purposes of this subsection if it was completed within one (1) year of the date of sale;

(iii) Transferor’s Notice of On-Site Septic System to Transferee. At the time of property transfer, the transferor must provide to the transferee a copy of the current operation and maintenance inspection report on file with Clark County public health, any available maintenance records, and a record drawing if not already on file, in addition to the completed seller disclosure statement in accordance with Chapter 64.06 RCW for residential real property transfers;

(g) Employ a certified pumper to remove the septage from the tank when the level of solids and scum indicates that removal is necessary;

(h) Provide maintenance and needed repairs to promptly return the system to a proper operating condition;

(i) Protect the OSS area and the reserve area from:

(i) Cover by structures or impervious material;

(ii) Surface drainage and direct drains, such as footing or roof drains. The drainage must be directed away from the area where the OSS is located;

(iii) Soil compaction, for example, by vehicular traffic or livestock; and

(iv) Damage by soil removal and grade alteration;

(j) Keep the flow of sewage to the OSS at or below the approved operating capacity and sewage quality;

(k) Operate and maintain systems as directed by the health officer;

(l) Request assistance from the health officer upon occurrence of a system failure or suspected system failure; and

(m) At the time of property transfer:

(i) Provide to the buyer all available OSS maintenance and repair records in addition to the completed seller disclosure statement in accordance with Chapter 64.06 RCW for residential real property transfers;

(ii) Beginning February 1, 2027, obtain an inspection, as required in WAC 246-272A-0260(5), by a third-party inspector authorized by the local health officer. The local health officer may:

(A) Remove the requirement for an inspection at the time of property transfer if the local health jurisdiction has evidence that the OSS is in compliance with subsection (1)(e) of this section and the OSS was inspected by a third-party inspector authorized by the local health officer;

(B) Verify the results of the property inspection for compliance with WAC 246-272A-0260; and

(iii) Beginning February 1, 2027, obtain an inspection of proprietary treatment products per the product manufacturer recommendations, as required in WAC 246-272A-0260, by a third-party inspector authorized by the local health officer. The local health officer may:

(B) Verify the results of the property inspection for compliance with WAC 246-272A-0260; and

(iv) Submit the results of the inspection, and any additional information or reports required by the local health officer, to the local health jurisdiction, using an inspection report form approved by the local health officer. The local health officer may require a compliance schedule for repair of a failure discovered during the property transfer inspection.

(2) Persons shall not:

(a) Use or introduce strong bases, acids or chlorinated organic solvents into an OSS for the purpose of system cleaning;

(b) Use a sewage system additive unless it is specifically approved by DOH; or

(d) Use any remediation process or activity unless it is approved by the local health officer.

(3) The health officer shall require annual inspections of an OSS serving food service establishments and may require pumping as needed.

(4) Homeowner Inspection of Own OSS.

(a) Homeowners may inspect their own OSS under the following conditions:

(i) The system is located at their primary place of residence;

(ii) The system is a conventional gravity system;

(iii) They participate in the CCPH training course and pass the exam;

(iv) They provide a report of findings on a CCPH-designated form.

(v) The inspection is not a final inspection following installation or one that is used to meet the requirement of inspection at the time of sale or transfer of ownership;

(vi) The inspection must be not be past due and cannot be to fulfill CCPH deficiency case requirements;

(vii) An inspection is carried out by the resident homeowner no more than every six (6) years with every other inspection to be done by a certified O&M specialist;

(viii) They agree to have their first self-inspection field-audited by CCPH staff; and

(ix) They comply with all other requirements of this chapter. (Sec. 19 of Ord. 2007-10-01; amended by Sec. 14 of Ord. 2021-11-05; amended by Sec. 11 of Ord. 2021-11-05; amended by Sec. 14 of Ord. 2025-03-12)