Onsite Sewage Handling and Disposal
Property that is not served by public sewer or a public water system requires permitting by the Virginia Department of Health. The property owner or agent must obtain a permit to construct a sewage disposal system and private well before the county will issue a building permit. If the property has an existing sewage disposal system the owner must obtain a certification from the health department that the existing system is adequate for the proposed construction or must obtain a construction permit to make any necessary upgrades.
Beginning August 11, 2019, all applications for onsite sewage systems and/or private wells must be accompanied by supporting work from a private sector consultant who is properly licensed to do such work through the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR). Only owners that submit a petition for services and meet the criteria will be eligible to receive evaluation and design services from the Virginia Department of Health. Owners must submit a petition for services and meet: means testing requirements OR a hardship outlined in the Virginia Department of Health’s Hardship Guidelines GMP-2019-01-Hardship-Guidelines.
Well and Septic Permit Application
Private Sector Applications that are conducted by Onsite Soil Evaluators (OSE) or Professional Engineers (PE), will include an OSE package to submit to the local health department accompanying the application. The OSE will use standard forms provided by VDH. These forms are available HERE. Applicants should ensure the OSE/PE uses the most recent, up-to-date forms to prevent a delay in processing their application. Other forms related to onsite services are available HERE.
Private Wells
The VDH permits all wells with the exception of monitoring wells. As part of the permitting process, we or a private practice OSE or licensed well driller locates the well site/area to assure proper set-backs from potential contaminant sources (drain fields, barns, graveyards, etc.) and determine the minimum construction requirements that must be used. Inspections are conducted during construction and/or after construction to assure the well was sited and constructed properly. Drinking water wells must be tested for bacterial contamination before the well can be approved as a drinking water supply. Permits are also required to abandon a well. Abandonment must be conducted by a licensed well driller and be witnessed by EHS or private practice OSE.
Beginning August 11, 2019, all applications for private wells must be accompanied by supporting work from a private sector consultant who is properly licensed to do such work through the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR). Only owners that submit a petition for services and meet the criteria will be eligible to receive evaluation and design services from the Virginia Department of Health. Owners must submit a petition for services and meet: means testing requirements OR a hardship outlined in the Virginia Department of Health’s Hardship Guidelines GMP-2019-01-Hardship-Guidelines-Updated-7-1-20.pdf.
Well and Septic Permit Application
Private Sector Applications that are conducted by Onsite Soil Evaluators (OSE), Professional Engineers (PE) or licensed Well Drillers, will include a package to submit to the local health department accompanying the application. The OSE will use standard forms provided by VDH. These forms are available HERE. Applicants should ensure the provider uses the most recent, up-to-date forms to prevent a delay in processing their application. Other forms related to onsite services are available HERE.
Want to learn more?
Watch the VDH video to learn about private wells at a residence.
Water Well Testing Result Interpretation Tool
If you have had your water well quality tested, you can use this tool to interpret what your results mean and receive guidance as to how to address any chemicals of concern identified in your sample.
Just click on the logo to go to the Interpretation Tool
Need to Test Your Well?
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Need to Shock a Well!?
Alternative Discharging Sewage Treatment
If no conventional onsite sewage disposal option can be found for a property, there may be an option for installing an alternative discharging sewage treatment system. The health department issues permits for single family homes discharging less than 1000 gallons/day jointly with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. If the discharging system serves anything other than a single-family home discharging less than 1000 gallons per day, the permit is issued solely by DEQ. Designs for these systems must be submitted by a Professional Engineer. VDH EHS review the designs, issue a permit based on an approved design, and, post-installation, conduct annual inspections of each discharging system. Owners of these systems are required to have them maintained and monitored by a licensed service provider.
To view the Discharging Regulations, please use the following link: Discharge Regulations
Operations & Maintenance (O&M)
The Division of Onsite Sewage and Water Services, Environmental Engineering, and Marina Programs has initiated and maintained a program that enables the sharing of data important to stakeholders about the VDH onsite sewage program. This effort began with the posting of operation and maintenance (O&M) data for alternative onsite sewage systems (AOSS) and alternative discharging sewage systems (ADSS) on the Division’s website. The source of these data are private sector operators who submit required reports to VDH.
VDH released a new portal to submit Operation and Maintenance (O&M) reports on May 6, 2020. To access the portal, visit https://myhealthdepartment.com/virginia/. The instructions for creating an account and navigating the system can be found HERE. Once a licensed operator has created an account and emailed their current license information to ehdministrators@vdh.virginia.gov as outlined in the instructions, VDH will finalize the account so the user can start submitting reports directly to the Environmental Health Database (EHD). We have also create an FAQ document to provide responses to common questions which you can view HERE.
To view the O&M portal training WebEx, CLICK HERE!
Are you curious if O&M applies to you? If you own, operate or maintain a discharge system or an alternative septic system, you should consult with the local health department or visit https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/environmental-health/onsite-sewage-water-services-updated/ for more information. You can also consult with your private sector providers or local maintenance providers for guidance.
Still curious? Read the regulations at https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/environmental-health/onsite-sewage-water-services-updated/regulations-and-current-regulatory-activity/.