What Mariposa County, CA's soil rates for a septic system
Very limited
95.3% of Mariposa County, CA's surveyed soil comes back "Very limited" in USDA's own SSURGO data, the county's dominant condition for a septic absorption field. Practically, that rules out a simple gravity system for most of the county - 95.3% of it sits in USDA's most-constrained bucket. Mariposa County, CA is 1,448.84 square miles with a population of 17,048.
What Mariposa County's reading doesn't cover
Two lots a mile apart in Mariposa County can carry different soil, even though they share one countywide rating. A local percolation test, typically $750-$1,850 (around $1,300 typical), is the only way to know what one lot in Mariposa County will actually do.
What a system would cost here
With 95.3% of Mariposa County rating "Very limited", a standard gravity system is not a safe assumption here. 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, Mariposa County, CA is the 639-most-constrained of 3,058 rated counties for septic soil. Within California alone it ranks 13 of 57.
Further reading
How this rating is built, and its real limits · Conventional vs. engineered septic systems