I hereby would like to bring your attention to the below mentioned
Section dealing with the different types of sewerage tanks, taken from the
Mossel Bay “Water Services By-Law” for implementation from the 25th of
June 2021 relating to all applications submitted for building plan approval
from the previously mentioned date.
SEPTIC TANKS AND TREATMENT PLANTS
(1) The municipality may approve and determine, on
such conditions as it may prescribe, the disposal of sewage or other effluent
by means of septic tanks or other on-site sewage treatment plants.
(2) A septic tank or other sewage treatment plant on a
site must not be situated closer than 3 meters to any dwelling unit or to any
boundary of the premises on which it is situated.
(3) Effluent from a septic tank or other on-site
sewage treatment plant must be disposed of to the satisfaction of the
municipality.
(4) A septic tank must be watertight,
securely covered and provided with gas-tight means of access to its interior
adequate to permit the inspection of the inlet and outlet pipes and adequate
for the purpose of removing sludge.
(5) A septic tank serving a dwelling
unit must—
(a) have a capacity below the level
of the invert of the outlet pipe of not less than 500 liters per bedroom,
subject to a minimum capacity below such an invert level of 2 500 liters;
(b) have an internal width of not
less than 1 meter measured at right angles to the direction of the flow;
(c) have an internal depth between
the cover and the bottom of the tank of not less than 1,7 meter; and
(d) retain liquid to a depth of not
less than 1,4 meter.
(6) Septic tanks or other on-site
sewage treatment plans serving premises other than a dwelling unit must be
designed and certified by a Professional Engineer registered as a member of the
Engineering Council of South Africa.
(7) No rain water, storm-water, or
effluent other than that approved by the municipality may be discharged into a
septic tank.
FRENCH DRAINS
(1) The municipality may, on such
conditions as it may prescribe having regard to the quantity and the nature of
the effluent and the nature of the soil as determined by the permeability test
prescribed by the South African Bureau of Standards, approve the disposal of
waste-water or other effluent by means of French drains, soakage pits or other
approved works.
(2) A French drain, soakage pit or
other similar work shall not be situated closer than 5 m to any dwelling unit
or to any boundary of any premises on which it is situated, nor in any such
position that will, in the opinion of the municipality, cause contamination of
any borehole or other source of water which is, or may be, used for drinking
purposes, or cause dampness in any building.
(3) The dimensions of any French
drain, soakage pit or other similar work shall be determined in relation to the
absorbent qualities of the soil and the nature and quantity of the effluent.
(4) French drains serving premises
other than a dwelling house must be designed and certified by a Professional
Engineer registered as a member of the Engineering Council of South Africa.
CONSERVANCY TANKS
(1) The municipality may, on such conditions as it may
prescribe; approve the construction of a conservancy tank and ancillary
appliances for retention of sewage or effluent.
(2) Conservancy tanks serving premises other than a
dwelling unit must be designed and certified by a Professional Engineer
registered as a member of the Engineering Council of South Africa.
(3) No rain water, storm-water, or effluent other than
approved by the municipality may be discharged into a conservancy tank.
(4) No conservancy tank must be used
as such unless—
(a) the invert of the tank slopes
towards the outlet at a gradient of not less than 1 in 10;
(b) the tank is gas and water tight;
(c) the tank has an outlet pipe, 100
mm in internal diameter, made of wrought iron, cast iron or other approved
material, and except if otherwise approved by the municipality, terminating at
an approved valve and fittings for connection to the municipality’s removal
vehicles;
(d) the valve and fittings referred
to in paragraph (c) or the outlet end of the pipe, as the case may be, are
located in a chamber that has hinged cover approved by the Municipality or its
authorized agent and which is situated in a position required by the
municipality;
(e) access to the conservancy tank
must be provided by means of an approved manhole fitted with a removable cast
iron cover placed immediately above the visible spigot of the inlet pipe.
5) The municipality may, having regard to the position
of a conservancy tank or of the point of connection for a removal vehicle,
require the owner or customer to indemnify the municipality, in writing,
against any liability for any damages that may result from rendering of that service
as a condition for emptying the tank.
(6) Where the municipality’s removal vehicle has to traverse private premises for the emptying of a conservancy tank, the owner shall provide a roadway at least 3,5 m wide, so hardened as to be capable of withstanding a wheel load of 4 metric tons in all weather, and shall ensure that no gateway through which the vehicle is required to pass to reach the tank, shall be less than 3,5 m wide for such purposes.
(7) The owner or occupier of premises on which a conservancy tank is installed shall at all times maintain the tank in good order and condition to the satisfaction of the municipality
In summary,
·
No
SEPTIC TANKS AND TREATMENT PLANTS constructed on a site are to be situated closer than 3 meters to
any dwelling unit or to any boundary of the premises.
·
The minimum capacity level below the
invert level are be not
less than 2 500 liters
· FRENCH DRAINS, SOAKAGE PITS OR OTHER SIMILAR WORKS shall not be situated closer than 5 m to any dwelling unit or to any boundary of any premises on which it is situated, nor in any such position that will, in the opinion of the municipality, cause contamination of any borehole or other source of water which is, or may be, used for drinking purposes, or cause dampness in any building.
Taken in consideration the above mentioned and taking into account the
sizes of the properties within our Jurisdiction, it would be safe to say that
where no Municipal sewerage line are provided, Conservancy Tanks are to be installed and these Conservancy
Tanks are to be designed and signed-off by a Competent Person (Structural
Engineer). As such, all applications containing the
installation/construction of a Conservancy Tank, submitted for consideration of
Building plan Approval are to be accompanied by an Engineers Appointment for
sign-off of such installation/construction.
For the purposes of emptying these tanks, a suction pipe are to be laid to the front of the property, fitted with a suction head and enclosed in a manhole for easy access when required to be emptied.
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Mossel Bay Municipality,
101 Marsh Street,
Mossel Bay,
6506,
South Africa
Tel: +27 44 606 5000
www.mosselbay.gov.za