Rome 3

from the late 19th century cities had sewer systems to dispose of waste, replacing gutters and private pit disposal
some richer farms had pumped water and septic tanks, but poorer farms had outhouses
flush toilets produce a lot of contaminated water
people wanted flush toilets, not outhouses, before they would move to the suburbs
but it would be expensive to put in sewer systems

Septic tanks in subdivisions:

• In 1945 4.5 million homes had septic tanks
• that number increased rapidly because they were used even in tract developments with small lots
• when they went bad government mortgage insurance often ended up paying, so the federal government decided to subsidize local governments to build sewer systems to replace them where lots were small
• The Federal Housing Authority did research when they realized there was a problem and found that up to 1/3 of systems in subdivisions failed within 3 years
• some subdivisions had swamps of sewage
  
• set minimum standards for houses with government mortgage insurance
• builders saw standards as better than regulation
• slowly builders started financing sewage treatment plants
• 

The problem was initially a health problem in developments, but became a broader problem

• groundwater pollution--bacteria and detergent in well water
• the sudsing agent in detergents did not break down in a septic tank
• biodegradable detergents were required in some states in 1980s or 1990s
  
• were they harmful to health?
• they were in people's homes, not just in streams and rivers
• 1965 rules on federal aid to home-builders prohibited large subdivisions with septic tanks, unless sewers were not economically feasible
• government subsidized sewer construction particularly in the 1970s
• in the mid-1970s state regulation of septic tanks became common
• what happened to the waste if septic tanks were properly pumped?
• the number of new subdivisions with septic tanks fell from 45% to 25%
• regulations were not well enforced