Aging and poorly maintained septic systems can contribute to degradation in water quality through supply of nutrients and pathogenic microorganisms. However, as non-point sources of pollution, septic-derived wastes receive poor regulatory oversight. Septic system maintenance and eventual replacement is entirely reliant on individual homeowners. In the state of Montana, nearly half of all homes utilize septic systems for wastewater disposal. The combination of expanding populations, with dispersed development, and hence increased dependence on septic systems, together with weak regulatory enforcement, has high potential to lead to increased septic-derived degradation of surface waters and groundwaters across the state. The harnessing of smart technologies, including real-time data collection, transmission, and automated data analysis, may provide a novel opportunity for engaging homeowners in septic system best practices. This project will engage active stakeholder groups in the Flathead Basin, including the Flathead Basin Commission, a state-legislated organization; nonprofit water protection groups; and state and federal agencies. By forging new collaborations between natural and social scientists and the basin-wide community, the project will identify data-driven solutions to a growing problem specific to lake water quality.

This project will engage a local stakeholder network, building on their work to date to address septic systems as a non-point source of pollution to Flathead Lake in northwest Montana. Specific planned activities as part of the project include: (a) co-host a 3-day workshop of local and basin stakeholders to identify gaps in research, knowledge, and expertise; (b) proof-of-concept on the use of real-time data to motivate homeowners to adopt septic system best management practices; (c) pilot a shoreline monitoring approach using a combination of remote sensing and microbial source tracking technologies to identify lakeshore areas receiving poorly treated septic leachate; and (d) assess policies and governance frameworks, including incentives and financing solutions, that work to mitigate the risks from failing septic systems to public health and surface water and groundwater contamination. This project's interdisciplinary approach combines efforts to understand environmental responses, potential behavioral responses of homeowners, and possible policy and governance responses to the septic issue, which is a first step to resolving knowledge gaps that prevent identifying solutions. Outcomes from our activities will inform a subsequent effort to advance data and research infrastructure in geospatial and socio-hydrological sciences, with specific focus on strategies for developing a smart and connected basin community.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.