As you may have heard – that is, if you stay tuned into all things septic and sewer in this valley of ours as I do – last week, Flathead County commissioners adopted a new set of septic regulations and construction standards, per a recommendation from the county’s Board of Health.

A brief recap: Health board officials spent the last 18 months reviewing the new standards, updating them to make the process of approving county septic systems more efficient for both applicants and staff.

Tucked inside the new regulations was a provision to allow gravity-fed septic systems in the county for the first time since 2004, when county officials set uniform pressure systems as the standard. While gravity-fed systems rely on gravity to drip effluent to drainfields, pressure systems regularly pump the effluent, creating an even flow. Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) notes pressure systems “outperform” gravity as the distribution is “more uniform, controlled, and can be used in any application.”

Commissioners approved the new standards on St. Patrick’s Day, citing cheaper costs for gravity systems and added options for property owners looking to install septic. They noted that pressure systems will remain the standard and speculated that it was unlikely the county would receive an influx of gravity systems after the new standards go into effect.

For some, however, the conversation is not over. I’m Zoë Buhrmaster, with the latest.

At Thursday’s health board meeting, local watchdog groups who had protested the new regulations citing environmental concerns showed up for public comment. Representatives from Citizens for a Better Flathead and Flathead Lakers requested the board consider adding a requirement that applicants interested in gravity systems go through a deviation process, which requires administrative approval from environmental health staff.

“As we stand here today, we have now added back to the menu gravity-fed systems,” Chris Swanberg, a Flathead Lakers board member, said. “However, gravity-fed systems is not a main menu item, it’s a chef’s special.”

County health officials said that to consider adding a deviation requirement would likely need a rule change, meaning the new standards would have to repeat the process they just finished – a public comment period, review from health board members, and a recommendation to the commissioners.

Don Barnhart, the health board chair who was the final lone vote against the new regulations, said he had spoken with Environmental Health Manager Jim Wardensky and that the board would keep an eye on the impact of the septic changes.

“I think we just need to let this process play out a little bit,” Barnhart said. “And keep track of what Jim has going on down the hall and see what the impact for his group is before we look at changing any rules, rules that we just put into effect.”

Still, he put the deviation process up for discussion on the health board’s agenda next month, at the request of Mayre Flowers with Citizens for a Better Flathead.

“If someone wants it to be discussed, heck we can say, ‘anybody have an item for discussion?’ and if everyone says no, then that’s the end of discussion,” Barnhart said. “I just think we ought to keep the public involved as much as we possibly can, that’s our job.”