Septic soil in Salem County, NJ, by the numbers

Very limited

In Salem County, NJ, 86.8% of the surveyed land carries a "Very limited" rating for a standard septic drain field. That reading means a conventional system is a poor bet here - 86.8% of Salem County lands in the strictest "very limited" bucket USDA uses. Salem County covers 331.861 square miles and counts 65,874 residents.

This is a county figure, not a parcel figure

USDA's survey covers the whole of Salem County, NJ at once, not any single address. A site-specific perc test, usually $750-$1,850, is what a health department will actually require before permitting a lot in Salem County.

System cost, conventional vs. engineered

Given Salem 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.

Salem County's rank among New Jersey counties

Nationally, Salem County, NJ is the 1,557-most-constrained of 3,058 rated counties for septic soil. Within New Jersey alone it ranks 6 of 21.

Related guides

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