HB 645 — Distributed Wastewater Treatment System Permits

F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S HBCS/HB 645 2025 A bill to be entitled An act relating to distributed wastewater treatment system permits;

authorizing the Secretary of Environmental Protection to grant a general permit for the replacement of certainan septicexisting systemsonsite sewage treatment and thedisposal installationsystem ofwith certaina distributed wastewater treatment units;system under certain circumstances;

providingauthorizing requirementsthe forinstallation suchof permitsdistributed andwastewater permittees;treatment units to proceed without any further action by the Department of Environmental Protection if a permittee submits a notification to the department at least a specified number of days before installation;

providing requirements for such notification;

requiring a permittee to take specified actions for such distributed wastewater treatment units;

delegation.— (13)(a) AsFor usedthe inpurposes of this subsection, the term:

"Distributed wastewater treatment system" meansor a"DWTS" categoryPage of1 domestic wastewater facility consisting of one4 orCODING: more distributed wastewater treatment units.

2.

"Distributed wastewater treatment unit" means an advanced onsite closed-tank wastewater treatment system that is:

a.

Designed to achieve secondary treatment standards and a minimum of 80 percent total nitrogen removal before discharge to a subsurface application system;

and b.

Remotely operated and controlled by the permittee using an electronic control system.

Page 1 of 3 CODING:

hb645-00hb645-01-c1 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S HBCS/HB 645 2025 (b)means Aan generalintegrated permitsystem isapproach grantedto fortreating thewastewater replacementconsisting of septicone systemsor subjectmore todistributed s.wastewater treatment units.

381.00652. that have a distributed wastewater treatment system which is commonly owned and operated by the permittee in accordance with this subsection.

The"Distributed installation of a distributed wastewater treatment unitunit" underor the"DWTU" permitmeans mayan proceedadvanced withoutonsite anyclosed-tank furtherwastewater agencytreatment actionsystem bythat theis departmentremotely if,operated atand leastcontrolled 30by days before installation of the distributedpermittee wastewaterusing treatmentan unit,electronic acontrol notificationsystem certifyingand that the unit was designed byto aachieve professionalsecondary registeredtreatment instandards thisand statea inminimum accordanceof with80 rulespercent adoptedtotal undernitrogen thisremoval chapterbefore anddischarge willto meeta allsubsurface ofapplication thesystem. following requirements:

(b) A general permit is granted for the replacement of an existing onsite sewage treatment and disposal system, otherwise subject to s.

381.0065, with a DWTS if the DWTU and DWTS are commonly owned and operated by the permittee.

Pursuant to obtaining this permit, the installation of each DWTU may proceed without any further action by the department if the permittee submits a notification to the department at least 30 days before installation.

Such notification must certify that a Florida- registered professional designed the DWTU in accordance with applicable rules adopted under this chapter and that the proposed DWTU meets all of the following requirements:

The design capacity of the distributedDWTU wastewaterdoes treatment unit will not exceed 10,000 gallons per day of domestic wastewater or 5,000 gallons per day of commercial wastewater.

The distributedDWTU wastewater treatment unit may discharge without disinfection into a slow-rate subsurface application system that is designed and operated to protectPage public2 health and safety and meets the current separation from, and at all times has a minimum of 124 inchesCODING: of separation from, the seasonal high groundwater.

3.

Horizontal setback distances from the distributed wastewater treatment unit and subsurface application system to property lines, surface waterbodies, potable water wells, and utilities are consistent with rules adopted under s.

381.0065 Page 2 of 3 CODING:

hb645-00hb645-01-c1 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S HBCS/HB 645 2025 protect public health and thissafety chapter.and maintain the current separation, and in no case has less than 12 inches of separation, between the bottom surface of the drainfield and the water table elevation at the wettest season of the year.

(c) A permittee under this subsection must:

1.

Have legal access to maintain, operate, and, in the case of termination of service, remove the distributed wastewater treatment unit.

2.

Submit a plan for conducting monthly effluent compliance sampling of a representative number of deployed distributed wastewater treatment units, the results of which may be aggregated to determine compliance with performance standards consistent with this subsection and rules adopted under this chapter.

ConductThe monthlyhorizontal reporting,setback annualdistance inspections,from recordkeeping,the DWTU and biosolidssubsurface managementapplication system to property lines, surface waterbodies, potable water wells, and utilities is consistent with rules adopted under this chapter.chapter and s.

381.0065.

HaveThe staffingpermittee andhas visitationlegal byaccess licensedto operatorsmaintain inand aoperate mannerthe thatDWTU isand consistentremove withthe rulesDWTU adoptedin underthe thiscase chapter,of excepttermination thatof visitationservice. may be accomplished using an electronic control system.

(d)5. The operation of any distributed wastewater treatment unit installed under the general permit may not:

1.The permittee has submitted a plan for conducting monthly effluent compliance sampling of a representative number of deployed DWTUs, the results of which may be aggregated to determine compliance with performance standards consistent with this subsection and rules adopted under this chapter.

6.

The operation of the DWTU does not:

a.