Environmental groups raised concerns Tuesday about a bill they say would set back efforts to find and fix failing septic systems.
Officials with the Michigan Environmental Council say every day 30-thousand gallons of raw sewage gets into Michigan waterways and this bill would set back efforts to curb that.
Charlotte Jameson is with the Council. She said the bill removes any local jurisdiction for inspection and doesn’t include language for regular inspections.
“That’s what those local inspection requirements do, they allow them at the local level, health departments, to go back and make sure everything is being maintained and operated correctly.”
Jameson worried that without inspection language in the bill there will be no way to know if a septic system is leaking.
Brian Westrin is with Michigan Realtors, which supports the bill. He said inspection would be required in some instances and could be conducted after complaints are filed.
“But I think what the environmental groups have been getting at is they would like to see some form of frequency of all systems and unfortunately it was not an idea that got widespread support.”
Westrin said the bill creates a statewide septic code - which has been a long time coming. He said this gets rid of a patchwork of local rules that have been difficult to navigate.