All Other State Permits

State Sanitary Permit & Procedures

When

A State sanitary permit is required for the proper siting, design and installation of a Private Onsite Wastewater Treatment System (POWTS) when a new structure, commercial or residential, is being proposed to be erected on a parcel of land that does not have municipal sewer service available.

Where there is an existing structure that has a failing Private Onsite Wastewater Treatment System (POWTS), a State sanitary permit is required prior to replacement of that existing failed POWTS.

You may also need a state sanitary permit for the following:

  • Proposed building addition(s) to an existing structure
  • Proposed plumbing installation in a new or existing outbuilding, other than water lines only
  • Property rezoning request
  • Conditional Use request
  • Proposed land division

Why

To ensure the new and/or existing Private Onsite Wastewater Treatment System (POWTS) will meet the minimum required setbacks and separation to stated limitations and any body of water, seasonal or otherwise, as specified in the State of Wisconsin Administrative Code Chapters 382-389 and the Kenosha County Sanitary Ordinance Chapter 15 (PDF).

How

You or your Wisconsin-licensed POWTS installer must submit the necessary sanitary permit application and required paperwork along with the appropriate sanitary permit fees (PDF).

Procedures

The following procedures are for obtaining a state sanitary permit for a new or replacement private onsite wastewater treatment system (POWTS):

  1. Contact a Wisconsin Certified Morphological Evaluator* (soil tester) to conduct a soil and site evaluation to determine site suitability for a POWTS.
  2. After the soil and site evaluation is completed, contact a Wisconsin-licensed POWTS installer* to design a proposed POWTS for the site.
  3. The POWTS design submittal will include:
    • A Sanitary Permit Application
    • Two complete sets of POWTS plans on paper no larger than 11 inches by 17 inches
    • An original signature soil test
    • A properly signed and notarized maintenance agreement
    • A service contract where required
    • Other documents as required
  4. Appropriate sanitary permit and maintenance agreement recording fees must be submitted for sanitary permit review and issuance.
  5. Before a sanitary permit application can be issued, the applicant must own the property for which they seek the permit. You will be considered the owner of the property when the permit applicant’s name appears on the recorded warranty deed or land contract. Either of these documents must be recorded with the Kenosha County Register of Deeds.
  6. The State of Wisconsin will review all pressurized POWTS prior to county receipt of plans. All pressurized plans will include mound, in-ground pressure, at-grade, all pretreatment systems. Holding tank systems with wastewater flows more than 3,000 gallons per day will also require state plan review. Typically, all plans for POWTS that will serve one and two-family dwellings and their accessory buildings are reviewed by the Kenosha County Department of Planning and Development, as well as holding tank sites with a proposed wastewater flow of less than 3,000 gallons.

See the forms page for the required documents for sanitary permit issuance.

*Download a list (PDF) of POWTS installers and soil testers that work in and around Kenosha County. This list is not all inclusive. It is not an endorsement of such contractors by Kenosha County.