In Rhode Island septic systems (individual sewage disposal systems or ISDS) must be designed by a licensed designer and installed by a licensed installer. There are four "classes" of ISDS designer licenses issued by DEM; the license number denotes license class.
New systems must be designed by a class II or III designer; Class I designers may only design repairs to existing systems
License Number Denotes Design Class
Design class is indicated by license number; license numbers are four digit numbers preceded by an upper case letter D. Class I license numbers are indicated as D1###; Class II license numbers are indicated as D2### and so forth. Persons holding Class I, II and III licenses are designers of ISDS, Class I designers may design repairs only; Class II and III designers may design systems for new construction as well as repairs. Design authority specific to each class is described in greater detail below. Class IV licensees are soil evaluators. Soil evaluators conduct soil evaluations as part of the site evaluation process of determining suitability of a site for ISDS. As of January 31, 2001, soil evaluations conducted by DEM licensed soil evaluators will be required for new systems where the exemptions set forth in Sections SD 2.01(b)(1)(A) - (D), of the April 2001 Amendment to the ISDS Regulations are not met. Information explaining these exemptions is available on th DEM website with the ISDS Regulations. Directions to locate this information appear at the bottom of this page, beneath the heading "For Additional Information".
Design Authority
Class I Designer's License -- A Class I license authorizes the design of a repair to an existing ISDS, or any component thereof, provided that the repaired system meets one of the criteria below:
(1) Conventional ISDS for residential use with a design flow of less than or equal to 900 gallons per day; or
(2) Alternative system for residential use designated by the Director as suitable for a Class I designer with a design flow of less than or equal to 900 gallons per day.
Class II Designer's License -- A Class II license authorizes the design of the following:
(1) The design of a repair or alteration for an existing system, provided that the repaired or altered system meets one of the criteria below:
(A) Conventional ISDS for residential use with a design flow of less than or equal to 2000 gallons per day;
(B) Alternative system for residential use designated by the Director as suitable for a Class II designer with a design flow of less than or equal to 2000 gallons per day;
(C) Conventional ISDS for commercial use with a design flow of less than or equal to 900 gallons per day; or
(D) Alternative system for commercial use designated by the Director as suitable for a Class II designer with a design flow of less than or equal to 900 gallons per day.
(2) The design of a new system, provided that the system meets one of the criteria above in (1)(A)-(D) and the system is on a lot that does not require a variance from any of the following provisions of the regulations:
(A) SD 15.02 -- in regards to the prohibition of system installation in areas where there is a shallow depth to the groundwater table or to an impervious layer from the original ground surface;
(B) SD 3.05(6) and 3.05(10); or
C) In critical resource areas, as defined in SD 19.00, setbacks established in Table 19.1 and SD 3.05(1).
Class III Designer's License -- A Class III license authorizes the design of any ISDS provided for under the ISDS regulations.
Class IV Soil Evaluator's License -- A Class IV license authorizes the performance of soil evaluations described in SD 26.00.
License Status
Designer licenses require renewal in accordance with a two-year cycle, such that renewal is required January 1 of even numbered years(i.e. 2002, 2004, 2006, etc.).
License renewal requires submission to the Department of a completed renewal application form, with a $100 renewal fee and documentation of satisfactory completion of eight(8)
"classroom hours" of appropriate continuing education, as determined by the Department. License status is indicated on the list of designers and soil evaluators:
"A" indicates an active (valid) license, "E" indicates the license is expired, and "S" indicates the license is suspended.
License status may have changed since the update, contact Deb Knauss at deb.knauss@dem.ri.gov or call (401)222-4700 extension 7612 for current information concerning license status.
For Additional Information
ISDS Rules and Regulations and additional program information may be obtained:
