Orangeburg County, SC Environmental Rules: Stormwater Management (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing sections
- Orangeburg County Code §§ 28-64, 28-65
- Off right-of-way work
- Limited to 4 listed reasons only
- Cost cap
- $1,000 labor or material without council OK
- Easement
- Required before any off right-of-way project
- Within right-of-way
- Owner pays for non-normal drainage work
Summary
Orangeburg County's public services department only performs drainage work off the road right-of-way for one of four reasons under Orangeburg County Code § 28-64: an immediate health hazard, a malfunctioning right-of-way drainage system, prior responsibility for building the facility, or a community drainage benefit, and any such project needs a signed easement first. Drainage work inside the right-of-way itself is covered separately in section 28-65, at the adjoining property owner's expense.
(a)Drainage work off of the right-of-way shall be performed for one of the following reasons only:(1)To correct an immediate or serious health hazard as designated by the county or state health officials;(2)To correct malfunctions of right-of-way drainage systems;(3)By having previous responsibility by having constructed the facility; or(4)To provide improved drainage for the benefit of the community.(b)Easements will be obtained before any work is done on any off right-of-way project. ... (c)Work off the right-of-way shall be limited to the cleaning of ditches and pipelines which is estimated not to exceed $1,000.00 in labor costs or $1,000.00 in material costs without the approval of the county council.
Full Breakdown
Section 28-64 limits when the county's public services department will do drainage work beyond the road right-of-way: to correct an immediate or serious health hazard designated by county or state health officials, to fix a malfunctioning right-of-way drainage system, because the county previously built the facility and retains responsibility for it, or to provide improved drainage for the benefit of the community. Before any such project starts, subsection (b) requires an easement, drawn up by the public services department on a prescribed form, and it is the property owner's job to obtain the signatures unless the county itself initiated the work.
00 in material costs without county council approval for anything larger. 00, the property owner buys all the piping material plus a delivery fee, and closing an entire section of open ditch requires that the work benefit four or more property owners and get county council approval. Section 28-65 covers drainage inside the right-of-way: routine work needed for normal drainage is done by the county, but anything beyond normal drainage is done at the adjoining property owner's expense, with that owner supplying all materials on site as directed by the public services director. C. Code §§ 4-9-30 and 4-9-610 through 4-9-670.
Violations & Fines
Chapter 28 does not set a separate fine for drainage disputes; work exceeding the $1,000.00 labor or material cap in section 28-64(c) requires county council approval before it can proceed, and off-right-of-way work done without the required easement in subsection (b) is not authorized. Requests are handled administratively through the public services department rather than through citation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the county fix drainage on my property in Orangeburg County?
Who pays for drainage work inside the road right-of-way?
Is there a cost limit on county ditch cleaning?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Orangeburg County
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