Sir, – The real unspoken fear of the septic tank debate is not of costly repairs to tanks, but that many owners know that their tanks were installed either without approval, or with approval that should never have been granted. It is common knowledge that where one person was refused permission to build on a site because a septic tank wasn’t suitable, their next-door neighbour who “knows a man” frequently got it straight-away. In such cases an inspection might deem a site to be unsuitable altogether for a septic tank, regardless of repairs, and some owners might be forced to vacate buildings permanently.
Our nudge-and-wink culture has always held connections in local government more important than physics, chemistry, biology or indeed common sense when it comes to one-off housing developments. – Yours, etc,