Lake County Board of Health conditionally approves vault privy variance for Leadville backcountry cabin

The Lake County Board of Health on April 9, 2025, voted to conditionally approve a variance allowing a limited-use vault privy supplemented by an incinerating toilet and a gray-water tank to serve a temporarily occupied backcountry cabin at 11715 County Road 7 in Leadville.

The variance, requested by applicant Samuel Beard, permits a vault-style gray-water tank in place of a traditional on-site wastewater treatment system (OWTS) for a single-room, under-400-square-foot cabin in the county's backcountry zone. The board's approval is subject to the applicant addressing minor engineering redlines identified by the county's consultant and to deed-recorded restrictions limiting occupancy and setting recording costs as the property owner's responsibility.

County staff described the legal framework for the hearing, noting the Board of Health's authority to hear variance requests under section 1.9 of the Lake County on-site wastewater treatment system regulations and relevant Colorado regulation 43. Anne, county staff, told the board that approval must be based on evidence presented by the applicant and that any approval and its conditions will be recorded on the property's deed;…