Carmel Highlands Onsite Wastewater Management Plan

The Carmel Highlands Onsite Wastewater Management Plan (OWMP) was adopted by the Monterey County Board of Supervisors on December 15, 2009. On February 24, 2010, the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board approved the OWMP and its recommendations.  Eight years after the Carmel Highlands OWMP was adopted, Monterey County adopted a Local Agency Management Program for Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems (LAMP) that applies County-wide.  This program includes a discussion of the Carmel Highlands area (Section 6, Special Areas of Concern) and incorporated recommendations of the Carmel Highlands OWMP.  Additionally, the LAMP updated onsite wastewater evaluation, installation and operating requirements that apply throughout the County to increase protections of groundwater, surface water and public health.  In June 2023, local ordinance Monterey County Code (MCC), Chapter 15.20, Sewage Disposal, was amended to incorporate the LAMP.  All OWTS permits, new or replacement, must conform with the standards of the LAMP and MCC, Chapter 15.20.