Pierce County, Washington septic permits and requirements

Permitting authority

Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department — Environmental Health, On-Site Sewage

On-Site Sewage: 253-649-1925; [email protected]. Main office: 3629 S. D St., Tacoma, WA 98418.

Washington local-health-jurisdiction framework

Washington State Department of Health places property-level onsite sewage permitting and management with local health jurisdictions. Local agencies review and approve OSS siting, design, installation, repair, and operation under Chapter 246-272A WAC and may adopt local requirements that are more protective than the statewide minimums.

Local health department approves design, location, and installation

Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department states that its role includes working with septic professionals to approve onsite sewage system design, location, and installation. It regulates and enforces septic installation under local Environmental Health Code Chapter 2 together with Washington state OSS requirements.

Installation permit is released to a certified firm

The county application process states that the designer or engineer requests release of the installation permit after design approval. The installation permit is released to a certified installation firm after the applicable permit fee is paid, and the permit must be posted at the building site while the system is installed to the approved design.

Designer and county final inspections before cover

After installation, the designer or engineer inspects the system for compliance and notifies the Health Department that it is ready for final inspection. Current county process guidance gives the Health Department three business days to perform its inspection before final cover, so applicants should coordinate inspection timing before the system is buried.

Separate local categories for repairs, replacements, remodels and O&M

Pierce County publishes separate onsite-sewage application and permit categories for new designs, repairs, partial repairs, replacements, remodel reviews, installation permits, system-status reports, and O&M reporting. The Health Department also uses OnlineRME for septic pumping and operational-evaluation records.

Official sources

SepticScope summarizes public-agency information for planning purposes. The permitting agency's current instructions control if they differ from this guide.