Following a flood, many hazards remain that may make coming home, or even staying home, unsafe. KC Counts talked with New Mexico Environment Department Liquid Waste Specialist Peter Mitchell about that and here's a transcript of their conversation:
KC Counts:
How does one get into liquid waste?
Peter Mitchell:
I started with a degree in civil engineering and focused on the environmental health side of it. And I was working with the Indian Health Service for a bit. And so, I worked on community water and sewer systems and solid waste systems and individual on-site systems, also known as septic systems.
KC Counts:
Well, we certainly know we have our challenges with water infrastructure and septic in our region and part of that is largely due to underdeveloped areas like our regional colonias. And so when we have these massive rain events and the flooding that they can cause, obviously liquid waste becomes a huge concern.
Peter Mitchell:
Yes, very much so. And in some areas, people have had standing water over their drain field. I was out in one in La Union a few years ago. I think it was 2021 and the guy had something like a foot 18 inches of water over his drain field. And so his septic system was not working at the time.
KC Counts:
Now, what is the hazard that is created? Obviously, we could have sewage just in standing water, right?
Peter Mitchell:
Yes. And so if you have standing water over the drain field, you have a couple of different hazards. One, Anything you flush down the drain, down the toilet, et cetera, shower, sinks, laundry, toilets just won't move. So it could potentially, depending on how it all works out, could potentially lead to sewage backups inside the house. Another thing is it can lead to the standing water over the drain field becoming contaminated and you really don't want to have contact with that. Another hazard is if people try to pump their septic tanks while they're standing water in the area, or if the water is a little below the ground surface, they run the risk of floating their septic tank out of the ground.
KC Counts:
Okay, that sounds like a nightmare.
Peter Mitchell:
Yeah, the greatest risk of that is with plastic and fiberglass tanks. But under the right conditions, it can happen with a concrete tank too. And as the tank floats up, it would also damage the piping between the house and the tank, as well as the tank and the drain field.
KC Counts:
What are the most common issues that you've seen in your work in this region?
Peter Mitchell:
Well, when it comes to the flooding, it would just be, you know, just where it was located at. Certain types of systems, you know, maybe did not were not built in a way that diverted rainwater away from it. drain fields are best when they're placed in a rain shed or a watershedding location.
KC Counts:
Now we can talk about some things that folks can keep in mind. Like obviously we're speaking after the main rain event, right? But maybe before the next one. So I don't know which way you want to take this from after the rain to before and then during, right? So some things that people can keep in mind to go from the preventive side.
Peter Mitchell:
From the preventive side, one, you want to have a copy of your septic system permit. If you don't have one, you can reach out to the New Mexico Environment Department and get a copy of that. Here in southern New Mexico, we have our offices in Las Cruces, Alamogordo, Silver City, and Ruidoso. And we have more on the east side of the southern part too. And then what you'd want to do is to make sure that where your septic system is located. And also if you have, if your system involves electrical components such as pumps or advanced treatment systems, something like that, you want to make sure you know where the power is at. And if, that way if you have to, you can shut the power off before the floodwaters hit so you don't create electrical concerns too. Another thing that would be very good to do is make sure that you have a protective latch or cover over the electrical outlet that will protect it from rain and snow, prevent damage like that. So those are some key things you can do ahead of time and also know who you can call to maintain your system. And this is just in general, as well as before and during and after. You want to already have a maintenance service provider and you can, there are numerous or several professionals here in the area who are licensed contractors, appropriately licensed for septic systems. You could have their number on standby.
KC Counts:
Right. Now, I'm gonna ask you an impossible question. I can't imagine you know the answer to this, but I'll ask anyway. in say the area that you would consider your own kind of service area. How many septic systems do you think, do you know if we have?
Peter Mitchell:
Our coverage area in the Las Cruces office is Dona Ana and Sierra Counties and the Otero portion of Chaparral. And A couple 10s of thousands, 30 some thousand, give or take.
KC Counts:
Okay, so that wasn't such an out of reach question then to ask you. Yeah, good. I'm glad I asked. You knew the answer. Okay. Now, so there's some common sense, practical things to do before something bad happens, right? But let's say the rain just starts coming down. It starts accumulating and you're not necessarily sure how much of this is done. What are some things that you need to do in that moment to kind of mitigate possible damage?
Peter Mitchell:
Okay, so one of the first things you want to do is just listen to any evacuation orders. So if there's an evacuation order for your area, get out, don't drive through, flooded stuff like that. But what you could also do, and this kind of jointly applies with wells, if you know there's a possibility of a flood coming, stock up on water, start filling some containers, and if need be, have some extra garbage bags on hand, and we can touch on that later for emergency sewage situations.
KC Counts:
I don't think I want to touch on that. But it's important. All right. And so after the flood, so let's say you've ridden it out, whether you stayed at home or you went somewhere else and evacuated and you're coming back, what should you keep in mind?
Peter Mitchell:
All right. No matter how curious one could be trying to figure out, maybe they want to get a sump pump from the store and throw that down and empty their tank out. Like if they flush the toilet and nothing moves, There might be that temptation to lift a concrete lid on a septic tank. Don't do it. A, there's the biological factor, but of much greater concern are the gases inside could be very hazardous. And also, you know, if someone was trying to pump one out, A, that's just not good. But the other thing is, even if you called someone who had the appropriate equipment out, You don't want to pump a tank under flooded conditions. As I mentioned before, you run the risk of floating your tank. And if you have some type of electrical component, they're not common, but some people have them, you know, maybe a pump or an advanced treatment system, you know, turn it off or if you forgot, turn it off as soon as you can. You know, those are some key things. Also, do not drive over your drain field. They're much more likely to be compacted if you drive over them and compaction will cause essentially permanent future damage, degrading your drain field's ability to function going forward.
KC Counts:
There's so many things to keep in mind during emergency situations, and I think maybe our septic systems are probably the least of our concerns. And so I was really curious to learn more, because that's a safety concern for a whole community, right?
Peter Mitchell:
Yes, very much so. And having appropriately done code compliant systems, you know, protects the aquifers for all of us, that we all rely upon here. But, getting back to, when you're back in the situation, if you're stuck in the house and your system is functioning but very slowly, do everything you can to reduce water usage. so for example, if one uses the toilet and it was just urine, you don't have to flush it.
KC Counts:
There's an old saying for that, right?
Peter Mitchell:
If it's yellow, let it mellow.
KC Counts:
Right.
Peter Mitchell:
That's the saying. You know, so you want to avoid it, you know, and be very sparing in your water use until your system, until the water has a chance to go down and your system has a chance to catch up. Some other things you never want to do, and I don't know how many people here have split level homes or basements..
KC Counts:
Not a lot of basements in the region, but split level, yeah.
Peter Mitchell:
So if you have a, lower level bathroom, that'd be a good time to, use the upstairs bathroom instead. But also if you have, depending on how it's all set up, but another thing is if you have a sump pump that's down there in the split level or a basement, never pump that water into your septic system. You're just adding extra water.
KC Counts:
Okay.
Peter Mitchell:
You know, that'll just cause troubles.
KC Counts:
Now, so what if someone is thinking, okay, I'm here in my house, there's standing water outside, things are okay, but I'm concerned about getting out there and getting into some hazardous waste. Who do you call in that situation to kind of help you know if it's safe to go outside?
Peter Mitchell:
Well, I would try to avoid water as much as possible. You know, you just.
KC Counts:
Standing water at all?
Peter Mitchell:
Yeah. You know, but One of the biggest concerns would be if you, and I guess this is a good thing for also preparatory, but if you knew that you had an improper septic tank lid or a damaged septic tank lid or a loose lid, loose meaning not all the screws are in, you really want to know where it's at because you don't want to accidentally go walking out in the water. And if you don't know where your septic tank is, You would hate to step onto a loose or damaged lid and fall in. When somebody falls in, yes, there's that immediate hazard, but that gas hazard also has the potential to overwhelm anybody who makes the attempted rescue. So it's a very dangerous situation and so you have to be very careful on that.
KC Counts:
So obviously that is a 911 call.
Peter Mitchell:
Yes and that's why we want to focus on prevention with the you know with appropriate lids that are secure that are not damaged and actually another excellent step that people can take as a preventative measure and just general safety measure with septic systems in general is get one of the internal safety devices that goes on. It's kind of like an internal safety net so that somebody cannot fall in.
KC Counts:
Sounds like a wise investment.
Peter Mitchell:
Yes.
KC Counts:
And so for other help in terms of, you know, just knowing if you're safe, getting more information and finding help maybe in the form of testing and knowing when it's safe to, you know, reuse, start using your water normally again.
Peter Mitchell:
Yes. So if you're on a well, like your own private well or on a shared well in the area, maybe a couple of homes in the area flooded, you do want to stop using your water during the flooding scenario. And you also want to have the water tested before you start reusing the water. And if you go to our New Mexico Environment Department Drinking Water Bureau, they have a water sampling and analysis section and you'd want to look up certified labs. And so that's where you could send a sample from your wells. and that'd be one thing you can do. We also have some additional information that we just added onto our website. And that is for, if you go to the New Mexico Environment Department liquid waste program, there's a septics and septic safety system information. And we did post some septic safety resources from both the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the National Environmental Health Association. Oh, and I forgot to mention that in the event that somebody does have a sewage backup inside the house, hopefully that doesn't happen, we do have information on how to do cleanup procedures for inside the house as well as sewage spills outside the house too if that unfortunate incident does happen, either one. We do have that information available.
KC Counts:
In terms of just kind of some immediate actions to take, that's going to be just with what you have available, right? Is that where the trash bags come in handy?
Peter Mitchell:
So if you have a sewage spill inside the house, it's easiest when you have a hard surface, linoleum or something like that. You can mop it with hot water with bleach, and then you can use, I mean, hot water with laundry detergent, something like, or soap detergent, a little bit of detergent, mop it with that, and then you can use a bleach solution and just let that evaporate. And we have more detailed information. Now, what to do if your septic system just is not working at all? Maybe there's another place you can go to a family member, friend's house, something like that, emergency shelter. Porta potties could be a good option. Kind of a last case scenario is if you have garbage bags and you could and try to. A bucket is what you're saying. Yeah, double you want to double that bag. Double line it, put some kitty litter or lime or something like that inside, take care of business, tie it shut and prepare it for disposal later on.
KC Counts:
All right. Well, anything else that you want to leave folks with? Peter, that we haven't discussed as of yet.
Peter Mitchell:
Well, I guess another general safety note for septic systems, and I cover this with the children at the water fair every April when they come, all the 4th graders and I get to see them. But oftentimes children may miss, especially the younger ones, can mistake the plastic lids for looking kind of like playground equipment. And so you want to tell your kids, don't play on them. They're not a great base for tire technology.
KC Counts:
It looks like you're supposed to jump on it, man.
Peter Mitchell:
Yeah, you don't want to. And also I would invite people who have septic systems to just go out and check the lids. Make sure that they are not loose, that if they're the type that has screws, that every screw is in place. If the lid is cracked, get it replaced. And we strongly recommend and support getting the internal safety devices and your septic system professional can install one for you.
KC Counts:
All right. Well, Peter, thanks so much for all that helpful information. It was great having you.
Peter Mitchell:
Okay, thanks.
You can find more information on this topic right here.
