Training – Site and Soil Evaluation

The Site & Soils Evaluation Field Day is a great opportunity to get hands-on experience evaluating a site, as well as, practicing hand texturing and sampling. Installers who have recently completed the Onsite Wastewater Practitioner Training Program will be able to take their new knowledge and apply it on-site. Experienced designers and installers should also consider this opportunity to continue their education. The expected outcomes for this training are listed below:

Site & Soils Evaluation Workshop Outcomes

The instructor will demonstrate all required outcomes prior to participants demonstrating to the instructor the proper processes for site and soil evaluation.

Outcomes:
Use Soil evaluation to identify characteristics that affect sewage systems.
Understand the general method of how to evaluate soil characteristics that affect water movement:

• Excavate the soil pit – depth, location (don’t ruin site)
• Available tools – soil auger, probe
• Basic knowledge of how to examine the soil profile and identify:
• Major soil structure features (why it is important is covered in soil/water)
• Colour – mottles and gleyed soils (washed out gray) identified high water table or saturatedsoils (reason saturated/unsaturated flow in previous module)
• Soil texture, make up ofsand/silt/clay
• Effect of gravel component
• Where to take sample
• Basic hand texturing procedures
• Trial hand texturing
• Lab testing availability and basic knowledge of lab testing method
• Recognize changes in soil horizons and understanding effect on sewage systemdesign
• Soils logging using various soils logs
• Understanding and application of the soil texture triangle
• Ability to determine effluent-loading rate for a soil texture set in the Alberta Standard of Practice 2015
• Know what restricting/limiting layers are and able to recognize major characteristics
• Ability to recognize major soil characteristics and determine soil effluent loading rates or limitations

Please contact the AOWMA office with any questions you may have at 780-489-7471 or toll free at
1-877-489-7471. We look forward to seeing you out in the field.