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<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><u>Professional Standards for Inspection, Operation, and Maintenance of Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems<o:p></o:p></u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u><o:p><span style="text-decoration:none"> </span></o:p></u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The key to environmental protection, minimizing OWTS failures, and maximizing the life of septic systems is regular inspection, proper operation, and regular maintenance.
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The DEM is sending out this reminder to the OWTS professional community to encourage all practitioners to attend the inspector training classes that are available at the
<a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__web.uri.edu_owt_&d=DwMFAg&c=tSLbvWYfvulPN3G_n48TUw&r=mFo_PQgKiG9BdqWd-3e80ftB8ffgqCZgAhuqVNuMqAM&m=SDLQwSFRywEdiZC3o00QKGfm5mLV1GVk-luMjWW1pgU&s=0biRTZJjs81X3hv8CLnwrpjgRr50crjgjjBp85rLDbQ&e=">New England Onsite Wastewater Training Program [web.uri.edu]</a>.
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For those of you who have already attended these training classes, you know that there are established standards for inspections. Proper inspection, maintenance, troubleshooting, and diagnosis procedures exist and should be followed in
Rhode Island. The DEM strongly encourages all service providers to utilize these tools to avoid unnecessary and premature failure of systems in RI and to avoid unnecessary replacement of systems that may be repaired. One example of the tools that are available
for OWTS Professionals is the <i>Residential Evaluation Survey</i> – This checklist is used for protecting the system from owner misuse. Utilize this checklist to spur those important conversations that need to take place between you the professional and system
users.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Several guidance documents are available outlining these professional standards and are provided here:
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><o:p> </o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Conventional Systems</b>: <a href="http://www.dem.ri.gov/pubs/regs/regs/water/isdsbook.pdf">
Septic System Checkup: The RI Handbook for Inspection</a> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Conventional and Advanced Treatment Systems</b>: <a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.onsiteconsortium.org_omspchecklists.html&d=DwMFAg&c=tSLbvWYfvulPN3G_n48TUw&r=mFo_PQgKiG9BdqWd-3e80ftB8ffgqCZgAhuqVNuMqAM&m=SDLQwSFRywEdiZC3o00QKGfm5mLV1GVk-luMjWW1pgU&s=3EQpeq2D7HDtil3m4qlQ7dackB1r7vvHW2KPzjTwPkw&e=">
O&M Service Provider Checklists [onsiteconsortium.org]</a> developed by the <a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.onsiteconsortium.org_home.html&d=DwMFAg&c=tSLbvWYfvulPN3G_n48TUw&r=mFo_PQgKiG9BdqWd-3e80ftB8ffgqCZgAhuqVNuMqAM&m=SDLQwSFRywEdiZC3o00QKGfm5mLV1GVk-luMjWW1pgU&s=LKenGvQw2xe68wwvw5p5M1hMuB_m28l-8f4QqZQ__mg&e=">
Consortium of Institutes for Decentralized Wastewater Treatment [onsiteconsortium.org]</a>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">(Links to these guidance documents are also available on the DEM OWTS website under: OWTS Professionals.)
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><img border="0" width="117" height="57" style="width:1.2166in;height:.5916in" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image002.jpg@01D516DF.DAA1C2D0" alt="cid:image003.jpg@01D510B6.317633A0"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Franklin Gothic Book",sans-serif;color:#767171">Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Franklin Gothic Book",sans-serif;color:#767171">Office of Water Resources – Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems (OWTS) Program<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Franklin Gothic Book",sans-serif;color:#767171">235 Promenade Street, Providence RI 02908<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Franklin Gothic Book",sans-serif;color:#767171">Website Address:
</span><a href="http://www.dem.ri.gov/septic"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Franklin Gothic Book",sans-serif;color:blue">www.dem.ri.gov/septic</span></a><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Franklin Gothic Book",sans-serif;color:#233A9D">;
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Franklin Gothic Book",sans-serif;color:#767171">OWTS Phone Line: 401.222.3961;
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Franklin Gothic Book",sans-serif;color:#767171">OWTS General Information Email Address:
</span><a href="mailto:DEM.OWTS@dem.ri.gov"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Franklin Gothic Book",sans-serif;color:blue">DEM.OWTS@dem.ri.gov</span></a><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Franklin Gothic Book",sans-serif;color:#767171"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#C00000"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
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