Septic Tank Grant eligibility must be widened - Fox

The increase of the Septic Tank Grant from €5,000 to €12,000 has been welcomed across the county, but calls have been made for widening the eligibility and closer monitoring.

Cllr Joe Fox said that the grant increase was something he had been lobbying for, for sometime. "While I’m delighted the grant has been increased and the requirement to have your tank registered with the local authority before 2013 has been dropped, eligibility of the grant needs to be extended.

"At present grants are only available to upgrade or replace septic tanks if your tank is inspected by the local authority and it fails the test. Only a small number of tanks are inspected each year. For example, just 43 grants were approved last year by Meath County Council out of thousands throughout the county. There are over a half million septic tanks in the entire country.

"Most septic tanks that were installed in the 1960s, 70s and 80s are in need of an upgrade or replacement. The failure rate for tanks that are tested is around 50 per cent."

He said that making grants more widely available would encourage people to upgrade their systems.

"It would have a very positive impact on groundwater and the water quality in our streams and rivers as the run-off from faulty tanks often ends up there.

"I believe the widening of eligibility of grants would have a major positive impact on our environment at a relatively small cost," Cllr Fox concluded.

Cllr Nick Killian welcomed the announcement to increase grant aid for septic tanks.

“Septic tanks, collect, treat, and discharge wastewater from households that are not connected to public sewer systems, so are therefore a crucial component for sustainable rural housing development which is important to rural communities.

“Currently all domestic wastewater treatment systems, including septic tanks, must be registered with your local authority with a fee of €50 and that failure to register your system, and if convicted, could result in a fine up to €5,000.”

Cllr Killian said he would be seeking clarity from the Minister for Housing and Local Government to set out how he proposed to ensure septic tanks would be monitored to ensure compliance with environmental safeguards.