Septic services in St Austell & surrounding rural parishes
The china-clay villages and the coastal parishes around Mevagissey and the Roseland fringe include many properties off the mains network, served by private septic systems.
What we can arrange around St Austell
Kernow Septic is a local guide and enquiry service — we put you in touch with firms covering St Austell and handle the checking that comes first. How it works.
Emptying & servicing Most requested
Scheduled emptying and servicing for tanks and treatment plants near St Austell.
Repairs
Backups, blockages and failed soakaways put right.
Treatment plant upgrades
Upgrades where a septic tank no longer meets the rules.
Nearby areas
The local picture around St Austell
Since 1 January 2020 a septic tank must not discharge directly to a watercourse — around St Austell that means the St Austell River (the 'White River'), the Pentewan valley streams and the Par River. A tank that still does needs upgrading to a treatment plant or a drainage field, and it usually surfaces at the point of sale. How the discharge rules work →
The Environment Agency designates 7 bathing waters on this stretch of coast — Charlestown, Porthpean, Duporth, Crinnis Beach, Pentewan, Par Sands and Polkerris . Private drainage in these catchments is monitored accordingly, and siting near protected waters affects what you can install. Look any beach up on the EA's bathing water profiles .
The St Austell granite and its china-clay workings dominate the district: expect shallow soil over granite on the higher ground and made ground around the clay villages, both of which complicate soakaway design. The coastal slate fringe towards Mevagissey drains more conventionally. What a percolation test involves → · BGS geology viewer
Not sure if your system is compliant?
Since 2020 the Environment Agency's General Binding Rules ban septic tanks discharging straight to a watercourse. Run your setup through our free checker to see where you stand near St Austell.
Run the free compliance check