Septic System Task Force Earns Grant

Conservation Director Alicia Mozian announced today that the Septic System Education Task Force earned a $6,000 grant from the Long Island Sound Futures Fund. 

“The task force, a subcommittee of the Selectman’s Wastewater Management Committee, was awarded the grant to educate Westporters on the importance of proper septic system maintenance and management, and its environmental impact on rivers, streams and the Long Island Sound,” Mozian said in a news release.  “Westport’s grant was part of over $1 million dollars awarded to 33 projects in Connecticut and New York.”   

 The grant program pools funds from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Shell Marine Habitat Program. 

Westport’s grant proposal includes plans for mailing information brochures to all 6,000 households with septic systems, a Public Service Announcement campaign on cable television and radio, enhancements to the Westport/Weston Health District’s Web site, the production of a short-form, humorous “mock-u-drama,” and the creation of a septic system scale model, according to the release. Those efforts are intended to educate residents about the proper function and management of septic systems and conservation of water resources. 

Several project elements will involve students from Staples AP Environmental Science classes, and the planned mock-u-drama and public service announcements will likely include talented high school actors and singers, according to the release.

 The Septic System Education Task Force initiated a consumer survey this past summer to assess general knowledge and habits regarding septic systems.  Combining adult volunteers and students, the survey teams will be visiting households with septic systems again in the coming weeks, seeking to complete a sufficient sampling of homeowners to establish a baseline against which a subsequent survey, conducted after the education campaign, can be compared.

The task force will also continue to monitor septic system pumping data, as collected by the Westport/Weston Health District, according to the release.