Environmental Health - Buena Vista County

Sanitation is a way of life. It is the quality of living that is expressed in the clean home, the clean farm, the clean business and industry, the clean community. Being a way of life it must come from within the people; it is nourished by knowledge and grows as an obligation and an ideal in human relations.

Through this department, the Buena Vista County Board of Health contracts with the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals to inspect restaurants & other food establishments, hotels, motels, and vending machines; with the Iowa Department of Public Health to inspect tanning beds, tattoo parlors and swimming pools; with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to administer the well testing, closure and rehabilitation program and the Septic Pumpers inspections.

This Department issues permits for septic systems, junkyards, and well construction. In addition, the Department is responsible for indoor air quality including radon; unsafe structures and nuisance complaints.

Healthy Homes – Mold – Bedbugs Confined Animal Feeding Operations Food and Food Establishments Hotels and Motels Public Health Complaints Public Swimming Pools Junkyards Radon Septic Systems Tanning Beds Septic Time of Transfer Tattoo Parlors Well Information Iowa Smokefree Air Act

Confined Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO)

This office reviews all new construction of Animal Feeding Operations, up to and including the Master Matrix evaluations as required by Iowa Administrative Code. We also maintain the annual updates for the Manure Management plans. MMP’s are available for viewing at our office. For more information, please contact this office visit the Iowa DNR.

Food & Food Service Establishment (Click on the link above for more information)

Hotels/Motels (Click on the link above for more information)

Junkyards

BV County Code of Ordinances 5.7

Application for Junkyard License

Public Health Complaints

Situations including open burning, livestock runoff, open septic systems, improper disposal of dead animals, and rodent harborages are just a few of the concerns investigated by the Environmental Health Department staff in cooperation with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Nuisance Ordinance

Dangerous Building Ordinance

Public Swimming Pools

Each public swimming pool is inspected annually and per complaint. This is done to insure the pool operators are complying with Iowa code and thereby your health and safety.

Iowa Department of Public Health Pools

Radon

Radon is a natural radioactive gas that can cause cancer. You can’t see, smell or taste it, but it can be in your home. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Radon is the first leading cause of lung cancer in nonsmokers and the second leading cause of lung cancer. We have test kits available for testing radon.

Septic Systems

Prior to construction or re-construction of a private sewage disposal system (septics), the owner is required to obtain a permit from the Environmental Health Office. The size of a system is determined by State Code based on factors such as soil type and the number of bedrooms in the house. In all cases soil analysis is needed to determine the length of drainfield. Tank size is determined by the number of bedrooms. All systems must receive prior approval and inspection before the system is completely installed.

Private sewage disposal systems are a very common treatment option in the United States. About one-fourth of the total population is served by onsite wastewater systems, and about one-third of new construction employs this type of treatment. A conservative estimate is that anywhere from 10 to 30 percent of onsite systems are failing annually. Nationwide, this represents over 2.5 million malfunctions, resulting in more than 700 million gallons of improperly treated wastewater being discharged each day. Clean Water Act goals are not being met partly because of improperly operating onsite wastewater systems. New technologies are being applied to onsite systems, resulting in higher treatment levels, greater reliability, and more flexibility than ever before. The EPA has finally conceded that septic systems are viable, permanent solutions to wastewater treatment and disposal. Key to the success of a septic system is the analysis before installation and proper care of the system once in place.

Chapter 69

Time of Transfer

Iowa’s time of transfer septic system inspection law requires that every home or building served by a septic system have that septic system inspected prior to the sale or deed transfer of the home or building. All inspections must be conducted by an inspector that has been certified by the Iowa DNR. The purpose of the law is to eliminate sub-standard or polluting septic systems. A sub-standard septic system is one that has no treatment (secondary treatment) following the septic tank or has a secondary treatment system that has failed. These sub-standard septic systems pose an environmental and public health hazard and require repair. If you have a septic system with a septic tank AND a secondary treatment system such as a seepage (leach) field, sand filter or other approved device, and it is not creating a public health or environmental hazard, it does not have to meet current code.

Those properties that are exempt from inspection include:

(1) A transfer made pursuant to a court order, including but not limited to a transfer under chapter 633 or 633A, the execution of a judgment, the foreclosure of a real estate mortgage pursuant to chapter 654, the forfeiture of a real estate contract under chapter 656, a transfer by a trustee in bankruptcy, a transfer by eminent domain, or a transfer resulting from a decree for specific performance.

(2) A transfer to a mortgagee by a mortgagor or successor in interest who is in default, or a transfer by a mortgagee who has acquired real property at a sale conducted pursuant to chapter 654, a transfer back to a mortgagor exercising a right of first refusal pursuant to section 654.16A, a nonjudicial voluntary foreclosure procedure under section 654.18 or chapter 655A, or a deed in lieu of foreclosure under section 654.19.

(3) A transfer by a fiduciary in the course of the administration of a decedent’s estate, guardianship, conservatorship, or trust.

(4) A transfer between joint tenants or tenants in common.

(5) A transfer made to a spouse, or to a person in the lineal line of consanguinity of a person taking the transfer.

(6) A transfer between spouses resulting from a decree of dissolution of marriage, a decree of legal separation, or a property settlement agreement which is incidental to the decree, including a decree ordered pursuant to chapter 598.

(7) A transfer for which consideration is five hundred dollars or less.

(8) A deed between a family corporation, partnership, limited partnership, limited liability partnership, or limited liability company as defined in section 428A.2, subsection 15, and its stockholders, partners, or members for the purpose of transferring real property in incorporation or corporate dissolution or in the organization or dissolution of a partnership, limited partnership, limited liability partnership, or limited liability company under the laws of this state, where the deed is given for no actual consideration other than for shares or for debt securities of the family corporation, partnership, limited partnership, limited liability partnership, or limited liability company.

Inspection

New Installation Waiver

Demolition Waiver

Future Inspect Waiver

Tanning Beds

Buena Vista County is in the beginning stages of adopting a tanning bed inspection Ordinance. Please check back.

Iowa Department of Public Health Tanning Facilities

Tattoo Parlors

Tattoo Parlors are checked for sterilization and sanitary conditions. With the increase in blood borne diseases such as HIV, it is imperative that these operations are following strict public health safety rules and regulations.

Iowa Department of Public Health Tattoo

Well Information

Private well water testing

Coliform Bacteria and Nitrates are the most common forms of contamination found in private water wells. We also test for Arsenic and Manganese as they also can cause health issues. Private water tests through the Grants To Counties Program are FREE, and our staff will take the sample and mail you the results. We will make recommendations on how you can correct the problem if your well is contaminated.

Well closings and rehabilitation

Contamination of our groundwater is most common through old abandoned wells or poorly constructed wells. The groundwater moves through the soil and any well that taps into this vital resource is a potential channel for pollution. Many abandoned wells are not covered adequately and small animals are often found floating in the water. This polluted well has direct contact with the water others are using everyday for drinking and bathing. Poorly constructed wells are also a channel for pollution, and some wells can be rehabilitated to produce good water The Grants To Counties Program provides cost share assistance plug or correct well construction problems that may allow contaminants to enter the well and the groundwater supply.

Well construction permits

New wells need to be constructed in a sound manner, and in locations where contaminants are not able to penetrate the groundwater. It is for this reason, that anyone having a well drilled must obtain a permit prior to having the work completed. The well driller also must be a State Certified Well Driller in order for them to work in the State of Iowa.

Well Permits are required on all private wells including drinking water wells, vertical heat pump wells, livestock wells, monitoring wells, etc. A permit fee of $125 is required on all wells. Well drillers are required to arrange for a permit prior to starting work. A penalty may apply if a permit is not obtained and a well may be required to be filled in if standards are not met.

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