In areas where public sewers are not available to carry human/household waste water to municipal wastewater treatment plants, individual sewage disposal systems (septic tank systems) provide the functions of both sewer collection and treatment plant.

It is the policy of the Southern Nevada Health District to eliminate and prevent health and safety hazards by regulating proper planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance of individual residential and commercial sewage disposal systems.

This is achieved through plan review issuance of permits and field surveillance as governed by regulations approved by the District Board of Health pursuant to its statutory authority as set forth in Nevada Revised Statutes 444.650.

If a property requires 5,000 or more gallons of septic tank capacity, the application review and permit approval must be by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP).