Mission
The Onsite Wastewater Management Division provides program management through DHEC’s eight regions and forty-six county health offices to deliver services to South Carolinians who rely on onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems. From their headquarters in Columbia, SC, division staff travel throughout the state to provide assistance to the region and county offices, the general public health, regulated communities, industries and businesses. It is the mission of the division to protect public health and the environment by employing methods that are scientifically based, efficient, and cost effective.
Program Focus on Prevention
To prevent the spread of disease, to protect surface water and ground water quality, and to protect the environment from sewage pollution, the division carries out a multi-targeted approach to onsite wastewater management:
- More than 25,000 permits for the construction of onsite systems are issued annually. The division develops regulations that establish minimum site and soil conditions and system design and construction standards. Each permit represents the result of a thorough onsite evaluation of soil and topographical conditions, system design, and inspection of the constructed system. Eighty-seven thousand inspections and site evaluations are conducted annually through state, region, and county offices.
- More than eleven hundred septic system contractors and septage haulers are required to maintain valid licenses. The division administers the licensing program and also develops regulations and standards that govern these activities. Strong emphasis is placed on mutual assistance and cooperation in an effort to provide the best possible services for customers.
- To ensure system quality, longevity and performance, the division establishes standards that manufacturers of septic tanks and other system components must meet for their products to be installed in South Carolina.
- The division oversees investigations of nuisances and public health threats caused by improper sewage discharges. Assistance is provided to homeowners and businesses in repairing older and failing systems.
- The division provides staff training programs and certification, and monitors program quality through region and couty program surveys. Under development is a Standardization Procedure to ensure that staff expertise is maintained at a high level.
- Through a program of community assessment and priority ranking, the division provides assistance to environmentally distressed communities seeking grants and loans for improvements in water and sewer resources.
Program Focus on Service
In most cases, property owners and developers are under time constraints and are eager to obtain building permits and other necessary permits as quickly as possible. Onsite Wastewater Management staff, through the state, region and county offices, provide site evalutions, system designs and construction permits I a very timely manner, usually within five to ten days after the permit application is received. Inspections of constructed systems are typically conducted within one business day so that systems can be promptly backfilled and protected from damage. When homeowners experience problems with onsite system failures, they face not only the inconvenience caused by inoperable plumbing and the hardships that may result from repair costs, but also from the health threat of improper sewage discharges, Onsite program staff are available to provide technical assessment and diagnosis of the problems and to offer site-specific recommendations for the best methods to repair failing systems.
Program Focus on Effectiveness
Each year in South Carolina, an additional three billion gallons of sewage are generated requiring treatment and disposal by wastewater systems. Onsite systems are generally less expensive than public sewer systems in temrs of both initial construction and maintenance costs. The division’s public education initiative emphasizes the importance of routine system maintance, which contributes to the economical and long-term performance of systems. The Onsite Wastewater program staff, as a result of the Bureau of Environmental Health’s commitment to cross training, provides mutiple services to the public, commerce and industry, and the region and county health offices.
Through the regulation and quality control of onsite wastewater system design, siting and construction, and the regulation of system contractors and septage haulers, the division provides aprogram for pollution prevention that saves the cost of billions of dollars needed to clean a contaminated environment. Protecting a clean environment promotes and supports economic growth by providing a desired quality of life not available in areas which have been polluted.
Staff and Contact Information
Telephone: (803) 896-0641
Fax: (803) 896-0645
Leonard A. Gordon, Director
gordonla@dhec.sc.gov
Carol S. Gaskins, Administrative Specialist
gaskincs@dhec.sc.gov
Bill Burris, Environmental Health Manager
burriswh@dhec.sc.gov
Brett Fowler, Environmental Health Manager
fowlerba@dhec.sc.gov
M. Reid Houston, Environmental Health Manager
houstomr@dhec.sc.gov
Mark S. Marriner, Environmental Health Manager
marrinms@dhec.sc.gov
Christopher Fincham, Environmental Health Manager
FINCHACJ@dhec.sc.gov
Larry Thompson, Environmental Health Manager
THOMPSLK@dhec.sc.gov