Sanitation of domestic wastewater

Verified 12 July 2022 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

The purpose of sanitation is to collect, discharge and treat waste water: sewage (water from the toilet) and gray water (water from the kitchen, washing machine...). It can be collective or all-sewer) or individual with a septic tank.

What is the role of the municipality in the management of the different types of sanitation? How is it funded? Who to contact in case of conflict?

We answer your questions.

Collective

Your house is connected to the communal network, the whole sewer. The sewer is connected to a collector which leads the waste water to the treatment plant. They are treated with stormwater, or separately.

The municipality is responsible for collecting domestic waste water and storing, purifying and discharging or re-using all the collected water.

The choice of setting up collective sanitation depends on the municipality.

You have the possibility to consult in town hall on drainage area which delineates areas of collective and non-collective sanitation.

Who shall I contact

In each municipality or group of municipalities there is a public sanitation service.

A public sewerage service regulation defines the services provided by the service and the obligations of the operator, users and owners. It is given to each user.

PSPC monitors the quality of the connection the municipal sewerage network. The check is carried out in the event of a new connection or a modification to an existing connection. He is valid for 10 years.

PSPC does not monitor the serviceability of the connection for which the owner is responsible.

If the dwelling is not connected or if the connection is not in conformity, the city hall can have the connection or the rehabilitation work carried out automatically at the owner's expense.

Dwellings which cannot be connected for technical reasons are controlled by the public non-collective sanitation service.

Since 1er january 2022, ec check is required in 71 communes of Île-de-France to improve water quality for freestyle and triathlon events 2024 olympic games. Owners are obliged to carry out the prescribed work within 2 years.

FYI  

since 1er july 2022, in case of sale of an item in one of these 71 municipalities, the document drawn up after the network connection check is attached to the technical diagnosis file (DDT) given to the purchaser.

Connection obligation

Connection is compulsory for buildings with access to the public sewage system. This access may be direct or via private roads or an easement under private land.

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New construction

If the dwelling is built after the commissioning of the communal sewerage network, the connection must be made during the construction works of the dwelling.

Existing construction

You're two years old to connect an existing building. This period starts when the public network is put into service.

With the agreement of the prefect, the mayor can grant you a extension of connection periods within 10 years if you are in any of the following situations:

  • Construction permit granted for less than 10 years with a regulatory facility in good working order
  • Compliant individual remediation settled pending collective network implementation

If you are not subject to the connection obligation, you have the possibility to ask the City Hall for permission to connect you. Public domain network extension work is at your expense.

You will pay the community remediation charge and you may be subject to the community remediation financing (CCAP or CAP) participation.

How is the connection made?

The connection to the public sewage collector (sewer) includes work in the public domain and in the field of the building to be connected.

Work on the public domain

The work on the public part are in principle carried out by the sanitation service of the municipality. It establishes the connecting structures located under the public highway that extend until connection sanitation at the edge of the public domain.

The City Council may decide to implement the participation in connection costs which corresponds to the expenditure incurred in carrying out the public part of the work. It is paid for by all owners of the connected buildings.

Work on private property

You must perform the work on your private property. You choose the company that installs the necessary piping to drain the wastewater from the building to the public part of the connection. All this work is at your expense.

You can also ask the municipality to ensure the work to bring the private part into conformity. In this case, you will have to reimburse all costs incurred.

Buildings which are technically unsuitable for connection may be exempted from connection on condition that they have self-contained sanitation equipment. . This may be the case, for example, for a building located below a sewer.

You must send, on free paper, a request for exemption from connection to your town hall.

Who shall I contact

Buildings shall also be exempt from connection if:

  • Declared irremediably unsanitary with a permanent ban on residence
  • Hit by a perilous order ordering their demolition

As part of its task of monitoring the sanitation, the municipality can punish you if you do not respect your obligations.

You're allowing harmful substances to flow on the street

You may be penalized if you allow substances to be released or spread on the public highway that could harm public health and safety or inconvenience the public. You will have to pay a fine for fifth-class tickets.

You refuse to connect to the public network

If you do not comply with the obligation to connect your building to the public network, the municipality may ask you to pay at least an amount equivalent to the sewerage fee. This penalty may be increased up to 400%. The level of the increase is set by the city council.

You will not pay if you agree within twelve months from the date of sending the notification of the penalty.

The municipality may, after giving notice to you, carry out the necessary works automatically and at your own expense.

Depending on the dispute between you and the public utility of the sanitation of your commune, you will have to bring the matter before the court or administrative court.

Judicial Tribunal

The Court of Justice shall have jurisdiction in the following cases:

  • Invoicing
  • Recovery of the fee
  • Damage caused in connection with the provision of the service (design defect, execution of public works or maintenance of public works)
  • Refusal of authorization for connection to the public network

First, you need to send a written complaint to the service to search for a solution.

You can then enter the water mediator to settle your dispute amicably.

If mediation fails, you can make a appeal to the court.

Administrative Tribunal

The administrative tribunal shall be competent for disputes concerning the regulation or supervision carried out by the public sewerage service.

Participation in the financing of collective remediation (CAP) does not apply everywhere. It shall be established by a decision of the municipal council or the legislative body of the local authority or the joint union responsible for collective reorganization.

The CAP is due from the date of connection to the network collective domestic waste water collection system.

She's paid by the owners of all the buildings subject to the obligation to connect to the public network provided that this connection generates additional waste water.

It shall apply in the following cases:

  • New construction
  • Connecting an existing building
  • Connection of an existing building not subject to the obligation to connect
  • Extension of an existing building
  • Redevelopment of part of an existing building

The CAP takes into account the savings that the owner makes by avoiding settling a regulatory individual system or by bringing its installation up to standard. The reimbursement of costs claimed from the owner for the public part of the connection shall be taken into account in the calculation of the participation.

The CAP amount is calculated based on the owner's actual savings. By connecting to the collective network, it avoids setting up an individual installation or bringing an existing installation up to standard.

The maximum amount of the CAP is 80% the cost of supplying and installing the installation which the connection avoids.

The Collective Sanitation Charge finance the treatment of waste water. It is established by the city council which sets the rate. It includes a variable part calculated according to your water consumption. It may also comprise a fixed part which covers all or part of the fixed charges of the sanitation service.

The charge shall be payable for any construction which is connectable or connected to the sewage system, whether or not that system is connected to a sewage treatment plant.

It is often charged with the drinking water charge.

FYI  

as soon as a dwelling is connectable the owner pays a fee equivalent to the sewage system fee.

Non-collective

If your home is not connected to the public sewage system, you must have a self-contained, individual sewage system. You will have the choice between different devices (all water pits and spreading, microstation for example).

Warning  

when a communal sewerage system is set up in your municipality, you have 2 years to connect an existing building.

The choice of setting up collective sanitation depends on the municipality.

You have the possibility to consult in town hall on drainage area which delineates areas of collective and non-collective sanitation.

Who shall I contact

In each municipality or group of municipalities there is a public sanitation service.

A public sewerage service regulation defines the services provided by the service and the obligations of the operator, users and owners. It is given to each user.

The service carries out compulsory inspection duties and provides optional maintenance, emptying or works. It checks the conformity of installations and connections. The user cannot choose another service provider to carry out the checks.

SPANC’s monitoring tasks shall consist of:

  • Review design proposals for new or rehabilitated facilities
  • Check job execution
  • Monitoring the proper operation and maintenance of existing installations

The frequency of monitoring visits to existing installations shall be defined by the municipality. It is specified in the service regulations and it cannot be longer than 10 years.

Buildings or houses not connected to the public sewage system must be connected to a public sewage system.

2 types of buildings are concerned:

  • Buildings located in non-collective sanitation areas
  • Buildings exempt from connection, in collective sanitation areas

You can do the work yourself. However, it is recommended to turn to a specialist company or to the municipality if it provides this service. They carry out all the work (earthmoving, digging, plumbing, connections...).

The municipality may lay down technical rules for the siting or refurbishment of installations. These rules concern in particular soil studies and the choice of the type of installation according to the permeability of the soil. Additional charges are the responsibility of the owner.

Before starting the work, you must submit your project to the public non-collective sanitation service (SPANC) of your commune. They can advise you on how to proceed and make recommendations for your project.

SPANC has the following missions:

  • Design Check of your future installation based on the study of your case
  • Write a regulatory compliance certificate that you will attach to your application for a building permit
  • Checks on proper implementation installation during a inspection of the site before filling.

You can rehabilitate your land after the SPANC's performance check.

The owner is responsible for the regular maintenance of his facility. The municipality may set up a service to ensure this maintenance. In this case, the owners choose to use a private company or the service set up by the municipality.

Draining shall be carried out by a company approved by the prefect. The frequency with which the all-water pit or the device to be emptied is emptied must be adjusted according to the height of the sludge, which in general must not exceed 50% of the useful volume.

The SPANC checks the proper operation and maintenance of the facility at least every 10 years. The frequency of the checks in your municipality is set out in the public sewerage service regulation.

Non-compliant installations must be subject to compliance work within 4 years, in case of proven health hazard or environmental risk.

FYI  

in case of sale, the owner is required to attach a visit report from the SPANC of less than 3 years to the file of real estate technical diagnosis. If the installation is non-compliant, work must be done within one year of sale.

The non-collective reorganization charge corresponds to a service rendered to the user who only pays for what concerns him. The fee shall include the costs of the SPANC's inspection missions and any costs of maintenance of the installation, which shall be charged according to the nature of the service.

As part of its task of monitoring the sanitation, the municipality can punish you if you do not respect your obligations.

You're refusing SPANC control

The municipality may ask you to pay a sum at least equivalent to the sewerage fee. This sum may be increased by a proportion fixed by the City Council up to 400%.

Harmful substances are flowing on the public highway

You may be penalized if you allow substances to be released or spread on the public highway that could harm public health and safety or inconvenience the public. You will have to pay a fine for fifth-class tickets.

You refuse to connect to the public network

If you do not comply with the obligation to connect your building to the public network, the municipality may ask you to pay at least an amount equivalent to the sewerage fee. This sum may be increased by a proportion fixed by the City Council up to 400%.

You will not pay it if you agree within twelve months from the date of sending the notification of the penalty.

The municipality may, after giving notice to you, carry out the necessary works automatically and at your own expense.

Depending on the dispute between you and the public utility of the sanitation of your commune, you will have to bring the matter before the court or administrative court.

Judicial Tribunal

The Court of Justice shall have jurisdiction in the following cases:

  • Invoicing
  • Recovery of the fee
  • Damage caused in connection with the provision of the service (design defect, execution of public works or maintenance of public works)
  • Refusal of authorization for connection to the public network

First, you need to send a written complaint to the service to search for a solution.

You can then enter the water mediator to settle your dispute amicably.

If mediation fails, you can make a appeal to the court.

Administrative Tribunal

The administrative tribunal shall be competent for disputes concerning the regulation or supervision carried out by the public sewerage service.

Who can help me?

Find who can answer your questions in your region

  • Town Hall

  • Telephone administrative information - Allo Public Service

    The informants who answer you belong to the ministry in charge of housing and city planning.

    Cost: free service

    Attention: the service does not have access to users' personal files and therefore cannot provide information on their progress.

    The service is available at the following times:

    • Monday: 8.30am to 5.30pm
    • Tuesday: 8:30 to 12:15
    • Wednesday: 8:30 to 12:15
    • Thursday: 8.30am to 5.30pm
    • Friday: 1 p.m. to 4:15 p.m
      • Lundi : de 08h30 à 16h15
      • Mardi : de 08h30 à 12h15
      • Mercredi : de 08h30 à 12h15
      • Jeudi : de 08h30 à 17h30
      • Vendredi : de 13h00 à 16h15

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