The Public Health Risks from Inadequate Septic Tank Percolation in Low Income Areas of California

摘要

The community of Quail Valley is tucked in the hills upstream of the cities of Canyon Lake andLake Elsinore. All community members use septic tanks, which face major operationalchallenges due to the dense bedrock drain fields built under capacity. During the winter rainseason, this area experiences puddles, ponding, and occasional home flooding. A hypothesis ofconcern by many residents is that this rainwater contains wastewater overflow from inadequatelydesigned septic tanks. The goal of this study is to describe the public health strategy necessary toprevent the health risk from inadequate septic tank construction. To accomplish this goal, thefour-step microbial risk assessment framework is combined with community outreach strategiesand crowd sourcing methods. The community outreach strategies are participatory and evidencebased with real data as outputs that the community can later use to justify applications forgovernment funds to mitigate the problem.