What Greenbrier County, WV's soil rates for a septic system

Very limited

In Greenbrier County, WV, 93% of the surveyed land carries a "Very limited" rating for a standard septic drain field. A standard gravity system routinely fails on ground like this; the same share of the county falls in USDA's worst absorption-field bucket outright. Greenbrier County covers 1,019.819 square miles and counts 31,851 residents.

This is a county figure, not a parcel figure

Two lots a mile apart in Greenbrier County can carry different soil, even though they share one countywide rating. A site-specific perc test, usually $750-$1,850, is what a health department will actually require before permitting a lot in Greenbrier County.

System cost, conventional vs. engineered

Given Greenbrier County's rating, plan for the engineered-system range rather than the conventional one. The engineered-system range, $10,000-$40,000 (mound or aerobic treatment), is the more realistic number to plan around, against $3,000-$8,000 for a conventional system on the rare lot that passes.

Greenbrier County's rank among West Virginia counties

Nationally, Greenbrier County, WV is the 928-most-constrained of 3,058 rated counties for septic soil. Within West Virginia alone it ranks 45 of 55.

Before you act on this

How this rating is built, and its real limits · Conventional vs. engineered septic systems