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County adopts SSTS amendment to allow administrative variances for existing small lots
Summary
Pine County approved Ordinance 2026-28 to amend subsurface sewage treatment rules (SSTS), permitting administrative variances for holding tanks on pre-existing small lots such as those in Pathfinder Village and requiring periodic tank integrity checks via certified pumpers.
The Pine County Board approved Ordinance 2026-28 amending the county's subsurface sewage treatment system (SSTS) ordinance to allow an administrative variance process for holding tanks on existing small, high-density seasonal lots.
County Administrator Kelly Schroeder, presenting the item, said the change addresses parcels that cannot meet Minnesota Rule setbacks for individual septic systems — the most notable example is Pathfinder Village, where staff estimated roughly 1,200 parcels. The amendment allows variances on existing lots only (not new lots), permits tanks to be placed up to the structure foundation (with clarifying language that structures will not sit on top of tanks) and allows a six-inch setback from property lines in qualifying developments.
Schroeder said the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) requested clarifying language to ensure tanks would not be placed under structures such as park-model campers and that the county had added text accordingly. Commissioners pressed staff on inspection and pump-out logistics; Schroeder said permitted tanks must have contracts with certified pumpers who can submit a tank-integrity form through the county's online system and that many pumpers already serve the area.
During the public hearing Glenn Sladek, who described having a new system, asked whether point-of-sale or periodic inspection requirements would change; staff said the ordinance does not impose county inspection duties but includes a requirement that systems be deemed compliant at five-year intervals, a practice pumpers can incorporate into their schedules.
The board moved, seconded and approved Ordinance 2026-28 and authorized the chair and county administrator to sign. Commissioners said the amendment is narrowly tailored to legacy lots and aims to get marginal systems into compliant, permitted status.
