[E/H HOME PAGE] [FEE SCHEDULE]
[FORMS/APPLICATIONS] [QUESTIONS-ANSWERS]
Bite, where do I report an animal bite? Please call the rabies hot line at 410/479-2232 to report an animal bite or to find out when the next rabies clinic will be. Note: when reporting an animal bite, the animal must reside in Caroline County, Maryland. If you are a resident of Caroline County, and you were bitten by an animal NOT in our county, then the bite should be reported to the health department of the county where the bite took place in and/or where the animal owner resides.
Building permit, where do I get one? Building permits are required but not limited to: new and replacement houses, new and replacement mobile homes, decks, pools, sheds, chicken houses, etc., and are issued by the Caroline County Planning and Codes Department for properties outside an incorporated town and by the individual towns for properties located within town limits.
Regardless of where the property is located, before the permit can be processed, health department approval is required. The issues the health department addresses is what effect the building proposal will have on existing well(s) and septic system(s), or if a septic permit can be issued for new home (if vacant lot). In cases of building a new home in an incorporated town with public water and/or sewer, the town will secure health department approval. In cases when building inside an incorporated town and the property has private well and/or septic, the property owner will be responsible to get health department approval. Click here for list of applications.
Checklist for Building Permit:Burn permits, where do I get them? The health department stopped issuing burning permits in 1992. Presently people should contact Fire Control at 410/479-2223 before burning to make sure there is no BURNING BAN and also, so they don't send a fire truck to the burn site. It is recommended to practice “common sense” and not burn to create a nuisance and/or hazard to the neighborhood. Also, do not burn too close to trees, other homes, roads, and over head elecric lines; do not burn anything that would create a lot of smoke (like tires, shingles, etc).
Copies of permits or perc test results, how do I get them? Copies of existing permits and perc test results can be obtained by faxing a request for records search. Allow 20 days processing time for walk-ins and 5 business days for faxes. A fee is assessed for walk-ins, faxes are free.
Food permits, food complaints? Businesses selling food in Caroline County are required to have a food permit. An application and fee is required, and the permit is renewed yearly. Fund raising events are also required to get a food permit—at no fee, special event applications should be submitted 30 days before the event.
Complaints regarding food service facilities (restaurants or stores) can be called to 410/479-8045.
The website mentioned above is an excellent source to obtain current Map, Block, Parcel numbers in cases where there is an existing 911 address, or if you have the tax ID #.
Sometimes, the 911 address posted on the property is not the 911 address in the website or on the tax records. In cases like these, recommend you look up the closest property that has a 911 address and search the Tax Assessment's website with that address. That will at least give you the map that the parcel in located. If the property you are interested in is in a subdivision, make sure you know which lot number is yours.
Mold, who do I contact about mold? www.//cdc.gov/az.do is an excellent web site that addresses many health questions, including mold. If you want your home checked for mold or have concerns about mold in your home, check under "MOLD" in the yellow pages of the phone book. The local health departments do not inspect or remove mold from homes.
The Yellow Pages in the local phone books have a "MOLD" section that may provide you phone numbers of businesses that perform mold inspections and remediation.Mosquito spraying, who does it? Spraying for mosquitoes are managed thru the town if the property is in the limits of an incorporated town ; or by County Roads at 410/479-0520 for property outside of town limits.
Checklist for perc test (and subdividing):
Scaled Site Plan, what is it and how do I get one? Most of the time you will have a scaled site plan in your settlement papers; especially if the home had been occupied before and the home was financed thru a bank or mortgage company. Recommend you search your settlement papers for something called a “Location Survey” or it may have been called an “Improvements Sketch” or may have some other “title”. Regardless of the title, what you will see is lines on a piece of paper that represent property lines and existing buildings—some times these surveys will even show the driveway. They rarely show the well and septic system.
In cases where the lot is vacant, and you are applying for health department approval (via a septic permit or a Water
Sewer Verification), it is highly recommended that a surveyor stake property lines, existing and/or proposed buildings,
well(s) and septic system(s) and prepare a scaled site plan to submit to the health department with the appropriate application.
Septic permits, how do I get one? Septic permits are also known as On-Site Sanitary Construction Permits. There are three different types of septic permits:
Also, in cases when the vacant lot has a sand mound approval, the mound specifications designed by a private consultant must also accompany the application with current fee.
An application is considered "filed" when the completed application, fee, site plan (and mound specifications, if applicable) are received at the Environmental Health office.
Specifications are sent to the applicant. These "specifications" will have a signature sheet for the homeowner and sewage contractor to sign. Additional pages will accompany the signature sheet. These pages will have information about the size and location of tank and drainfields. It will also indicate where the proposed well should go (or if an existing well is on the property). There will be a place for the owner to sign and a sewage contactor to sign.
Once the specifications (with appropriate signatures) are received at the Environmental Health office, the septic permit will be issued to the sewage contractor. An "owner's letter" will be sent to the owner. If this septic system is for a proposed new home, recommend owner taking the letter with them when applying for the building permit.
Set backs, what are they? When planning to build, keep in mind that your building must meet certain setbacks from the existing well and septic system. When planning to build a new home on a vacant lot, this is the best time to take a few extra minutes and decide where to put the house, AND future decks, pools, sheds, garage or any other buildings; keep in mind that all construction must be 30 feet from wells and septic tanks and cannot go into the sewage reserve areas at all. Preparing a scaled site plan can make planning for a new home and future projects much easier. Other setbacks to property lines are monitored by Planning and Codes. Call them at 410/479-8100 to get set backs from roads and property lines; this is also a good time to ask if special set backs apply to rivers, ditches, and ponds.
Transfer Development Rights, what are they? Transfer Development Rights are managed through the Panning and Codes Department. Call them at 410/479-8100 for a better explanation and if your property has this potential. After you ascertain if your property has this potential, a wet season test will be required if you wish to pursue a Transfer Development Right.
Water Sewer Verification, what are they? When a property owner (or buyer) is in the planning stages to do something with their property and if the property has an existing well and septic system, they will need health department approval. A Water Sewer Verification (WSV) application is required.
Some examples requiring this application would be the following:
The application must be received with a scaled site plan and the current fee. Please allow 30 days processing time.