Pitt County, NC's soil, for a septic absorption field

Very limited

86% of Pitt County, NC's surveyed soil comes back "Very limited" in USDA's own SSURGO data, the county's dominant condition for a septic absorption field. Expect the ground itself to work against a plain gravity system; USDA's strictest bucket alone covers 86% of the county. Pitt County covers 652.366 square miles and counts 180,783 residents.

This is a county figure, not a parcel figure

Two lots a mile apart in Pitt 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 Pitt County.

System cost, conventional vs. engineered

Given Pitt 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.

Pitt County's rank among North Carolina counties

Nationally, Pitt County, NC is the 1,616-most-constrained of 3,058 rated counties for septic soil. Within North Carolina alone it ranks 31 of 97.

Before you act on this

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