Will septic-to-sewer conversions solve our water quality problems?

Nobody likes to think about what happens after they flush the toilet.

But that out-of-sight-out-of-mind waste can cause serious problems to Florida’s environmentally fragile waterways.

A lot of the people who have been thinking about the problem think the state needs to flush its septic systems — about 2.6 million septic systems that serve about a third of the state’s population and discharge about 426 million gallons of wastewater a day — and hook them up to sewer systems.

But is the costly process of switching from septic to sewer worth the money?

Above: A crew from the Port St. Lucie Utility Systems Department works to convert a home's septic system to the municipal sewage system. Since 1999, the city has switched more than 10,000 homes and businesses from septic to sewer. Photo courtesy of the Port St. Lucie Utility Systems Department

VoteWater Deep Dives take a deeper look at individual issues plaguing Florida waterways.

Read our latest blog to learn why septic-to-sewer conversions are an important tool, but why they shouldn't be hailed as "the solution," and then used as rationale to ignore other, more significant sources of pollution.

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P.S. Signatures Needed! The "Right to Clean and Healthy Waters" petition needs 900,000 signature by November 30 to get on the 2024 ballot. The petition can be printed out and signed here: http://www.floridarighttocleanwater.org/