. Coast watch. Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology. Bobby Carlile with mound system Many of the systems, he found, were saturated almost all year, with the ef- fect of releasing raw sewage into groundwater and estuaries. But the study did find that low-pressure systems in the group performed much better than conventional ones in marginal soils, although they also per- formed poorly on sites saturated most of the year. For his Sea Grant project, Cogger is setting up test sites at West Onslow Beach. There, he will operate model septic systems, including conve
. Coast watch. Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology. Bobby Carlile with mound system Many of the systems, he found, were saturated almost all year, with the ef- fect of releasing raw sewage into groundwater and estuaries. But the study did find that low-pressure systems in the group performed much better than conventional ones in marginal soils, although they also per- formed poorly on sites saturated most of the year. For his Sea Grant project, Cogger is setting up test sites at West Onslow Beach. There, he will operate model septic systems, including conventional septic tanks and the low-pressure alternatives. Using various loading rates, dosings and separation dis- tances, Cogger will study each com- bination for the movement of effluent through the soil. Cogger will also use "tracer" com- pounds to monitor the flow of wastewater horizontally through water-saturated ground. The studies are designed, he says, to show just how far contaminants travel in each direc- tion, and how complete is the treat- Sticking up for the lowly septic tank The very words have a malodorous, subterranean tone: septic tanks. But are they really so villainous as their reputations? Dennis Osborne, a Sea Grant researcher and member of the NCSU Soil Science Department, says no, they aren't. "The ones that work, work beautifully," Osborne says. "It's the best, low-cost, natural treatment system there ; Osborne says that in conventional septic systems, work- ing properly, things happen this way: Waste collects in the septic tank, where it decomposes through the anaerobic action of bacteria. From there, liquids containing nitrogen and phosphorous are released into perforated drain lines, laid in gravel-lined trenches about three feet under ground. The lines are laid so that gravity disperses the li- quids through the absorption field, which is usually plant- ed with grass. As liquid passes through the soil, some of its suspe
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