Greg. I'm not aware of any prohibition on the use of these systems in KS. I had this system in Texas and it worked great. The key is regular inspection/maintenace. City of Denton/Denton County, TX has a good set of regs/permitting.

I think it should be pointed out that septic systems do not pollute ground water when installed and maintained correctly. The problem is many people do not realize having a septic system is the equivalent of operating your own, personal waste water treatment system. They must be pumped regularly to remove non-organics, they must be sized properly to make sure they can handle the wastewater entering them. They are essentially anaerobic disgestors which means they operate much slower than an aerobic system. I have heard of a NoDak system, so named because it was developed in North Dakota to work in wet environments. Another name for this type of system is a mound system. There are several new small scale wastewater treatment systems on the market today that are more efficient than septic systems and can be sized to handle small developments. I sat through a presentation on one such system at the ICMA Conference in San Diego. For a small community, the most efficient form of wastewater treatment is probably still a pond system, but as with small developments of a few houses located a distance from a community, it is possible alternatives are out there, but they are probably considerably more expensive. I know of a company called Solar Bee that manufactures solar driven pond mixers that because of the technology are able to move many thousands of gallons a day. In doing so the water in the pond stays more aerobic throughout and is more efficient in treating wastewater.

Thanks for this insight - and for asking the question Gregory! I work for ICMA International and am investigating low tech waste water options that may work in an arid environment - particularly in the West Bank. Only 3% of all wastewater is treated in the West Bank so USAID is interested in lower tech solutions that would cost less than building wastewater treatment plants and the piping system to go with it. If you have any other ideas or other companies or solutions to check out - I would appreciate it! my email is lhagg@icma.org. Thanks!