Otter Tail County has received grants to provide financial assistance to homeowners to replace non-compliant sewage treatment plants. Financial support comes in the form of grants and / or an interest-free loan. Applications are accepted from January 1st through December 31st and the grant will be awarded first. If a resident has a non-compliant sewer system, they will be encouraged to apply.
Otter Tail County is blessed with water, with over 1,000 lakes and groundwater. Replacing non-compliant sewer systems is an easy way to protect this valuable natural resource, ”said Chris LeClair, director of Land & Resource. “With this grant, Otter Tail County can help homeowners protect our surface and our groundwater.”
Last year, Otter Tail County made nine grants to low-income residents to replace non-compliant sewage treatment plants and 31 interest-free loans totaling $ 528,101.75. Natural resources have also been protected by preventing more than 4 tons of “suspended matter” and other contaminants from entering the waterways.
Eric Ruther, owner of Ruther Excavating Inc., has installed septic tanks as part of the loan and grant programs assigned by the county’s Land & Resource Department. “We see two or three a year that are pretty bad and could use some help – they go into a swamp or a pipe into a ditch. If you have backups in your home or sewage in your yard, you know your system is down. “
Inspections are required to complete a sale or change of names on property, or work on any structure within 1,000 feet of the lakefront. Otherwise, residents will have to inspect their own sewer to understand the state in which it is.
North Central Camp Cherith, an interdenominational Christian camp near Vergas, had to install a new sewer system before its 2021 season. “When we applied for a building permit for the construction of two new buildings in autumn 2018, we realized that we had to install a new sewage treatment plant before our 2021 season. One day in late spring, my husband happened upon an ad for the septic loan program offered by Otter Tail County. I inquired immediately and our board of directors decided to apply for a loan, ”said Kendra Mohn, General Manager of Camp Cherith. “I highly recommend looking into the county’s septic loan program. It’s not pleasant to have to deal with this type of expense, but the loan program definitely makes it a lot easier to deal with. “
Underground Sewage Treatment Systems (SSTS) Fix-Up-Fund program for local co-payment
The Clean Water Fund has awarded the county a $ 15,000 grant that can be used to replace eligible SSTS in 2021. Remember Grants will be awarded until the grant is financed for the financial year depending on availabilitywas assigned.Grants are awarded for up to 50% of the total cost of the replacement SSTS, which may not be exceeded$ 5,000.
Zero Interest Septic Replacement Loan
The Minnesota Clean Water Partnership (CWP) and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) have awarded Otter Tail County a grant to provide interest-free loans to homeowners to replace non-compliant Underground Sewage Treatment Systems (SSTS). Otter Tail County acts as the lender as the cost of the system is calculated based on the owner’s property taxes, which are paid interest-free over a 10-year period.
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