Nantucket has been ordered by both the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the EPA to solve the sewer issue in Madaket. We recently met with Richard Ray, Nantucket Health Inspector, to gain clarification on the situation. The good news is that the state (DEP) has recently re-rated the existing sewer beds in Surfside and determined that they now have ample capacity to handle wastewater from Madaket (and potentially other areas as well). When a property serviced by a septic system transfers the seller of the property must have an inspection performed to determine whether or not the system passes the state’s Title V ground water protection regulations. Nantucket regulations require a minimum of 6’ of separation between ground water and the system and many systems are unable to meet the 6’ separation. This is considered a “technical failure” but the septic system still works. Nantucket regulations are more stringent regarding ground water separation than the state regulations. In some cases the system actually passes the standards of the Commonwealth but not local standards. Options, in this case for the seller of a Madaket property with a technically failed system are: Install a new septic system, likely an alternative one (at considerable cost) knowing that the circumstances will change in the near future. Once Town sewer comes to Madaket ALL PROPERTIES will be required to hook into it regardless of whether or not the septic system is in working order. The second option is for the buyer of such a property to enter into an Administrative Consent Order with the Town of Nantucket. Each year an amount equal to 1/20th of the estimated septic system total cost would be paid into this forced non-interest bearing savings account. Mr. Ray thought it would be likely that an account would only be in place for 4-5 while Nantucket agrees to a solution. The next steps are for Nantucket’s Annual Town Meeting to approve two things – the sewer concept and the method for funding it. Once there is an approved plan with funding mechanism in place, and once the sewer lines have been run to Madaket, owners will have up to 6 months to comply by hooking into Town sewer. At that point the escrow funds will be returned to the property owner. The only potential glitch for sellers and buyers of a property with a technically failed system is that some lenders may have concerns about writing a loan on the property. This is new territory and it should get easier as more of these types of sales occur.