Septic system

Onsite (or on-site) sewage facilities (OSSF) are wastewater systems designed to treat and dispose of effluent on the same property that produces the wastewater.

A septic tank and drainfield combination is the oldest and most common type of OSSF, although newer aerobic and biofilter units exist which represent scaled down versions of municipal sewage treatments. OSSFs account for approximately 25% of all domestic wastewater treatment in the United States.

The primary mechanism of biological waste recycling in the natural environment is performed by other organisms such as animals, insects, soil microorganisms, plants, and fungi, which consume all available nutrients in the waste, leaving behind fully decomposed solids that become part of topsoil, and pure drinking water that has been stripped of everything that can possibly be consumed and utilized. This natural biological purification requires time to process wastes.

In virtually all engineered onsite sewage facilities, recycling and decomposition by natural organisms is still the primary mechanism of sewage disposal. Giving the organisms the time they need to decompose wastes is accomplished by establishing minimum sewage retention and settling times, and minimum liquid flow distances between sewage disposal sites and surface water or water wells.

It is normal for animals such as mice, rats, flies, and parasites to participate in the fully natural biological waste recycling process. Engineered facilities typically attempt to exclude them to prevent out of control population explosions and infestation, and prevent spread of vermin and disease.

Although the solids collected by onsite sewage facilities can potentially be used as compost to build topsoil, these solids are often incompletely decomposed due to either a lack of onsite storage space to wait for decomposition (municipal facilities), or because the solids are being stacked in a layered structure of new waste solids on top of previously decomposed solids (septic tanks and outhouses). Due to the incomplete state of decomposition, when removed from an onsite sewage facility, these solids are typically referred to as sludge rather than compost, and have powerful offensive odors arising from the microorganisms still consuming nutrients in the sludge.

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Wikipedia