Septic soil in Hancock County, WV, by the numbers

Very limited

Soil across 67.5% of Hancock County, WV rates "Very limited" in USDA's septic-absorption-field interpretation. 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. Hancock County covers 82.61 square miles and counts 28,054 residents.

This is a county figure, not a parcel figure

Two lots a mile apart in Hancock 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 Hancock County.

System cost, conventional vs. engineered

Given Hancock 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.

Where this sits nationally

Nationally, Hancock County, WV is the 2,547-most-constrained of 3,058 rated counties for septic soil. Within West Virginia alone it ranks 54 of 55.

Related guides

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