On December 11-12, 2019 the Environmental Quality Protection Board (EQPB) conducted a workshop on the recently updated Wastewater Treatment and Disposal Regulations. About 60 participants, including contractors, Environmental Assessment preparers, and development consultants attended the 14-hour workshop to learn about the substantive changes that were made to the Wastewater Regulations.
EQPB Engineer/ Scientist Dr. Peter Peshut conducted the workshop, highlighting the various updates to the Wastewater Treatment and Disposal Regulations. On the first day of workshop, Dr. Peshut emphasized the importance of these regulations in protecting groundwater, thoroughly explained the treatment process for different types of treatment systems including septic tanks and leaching fields, and discussed the responsibilities of owners and operators in wastewater systems management. Dr. Peshut also covered how to use the regulations to estimate wastewater flow and explained the proper method in conducting a percolation test. The second day of the workshop focused on hands-on design exercises centered on the knowledge shared the previous day. To ensure that these design exercises were realistic, the scenarios were based on actual residential/rural and commercial circumstances. This hands-on activity provided an opportunity to the participants to practice the knowledge they gained and ask questions to the EQPB staff that were present at the workshop, promoting valuable discussions between EQPB and the participants.
This workshop on the updated wastewater regulations is part of a series of workshops and trainings aimed at increasing public awareness of the EQPB regulations and application review process. For more information, or digital copies of the presentation, please email the EQPB Office at eqpb@palaunet.com or call 488-1639/3600. In addition, all updated EQPB regulations can be found online at https://www.palaugov.pw/eqpb.