Environmental Programs

Welcome to the Department of Environmental ProgramS

Our office is located in Snow Hill inside of the Government Center(Here is the Location). Hours of operation are Monday - Friday 8:00a.m. - 4:30p.m. If you need assistance please feel free to call (410) 632-1220.

The Department of Environmental Programs works in a regulatory and planning capacity to protect the health of the citizens of Worcester County from diseases and hazards found in the environment and to ensure sanitary construction and natural resource protection are provided in a way that protects public health and the environment.  The Department and its divisions have complimentary areas of focus and are responsible for implementing and enforcing a wide variety of regulations and programs primarily pertaining to environmental and natural resource management for land use activities.  

Environmental Programs staff manage delegated programs from both the Maryland Departments of the Environment, Natural Resources, and the Maryland Department of Health as well as County delegated Programs.  These programs include drinking water, sewage disposal, recreational water safety, air quality, sludge disposal, plumbing and gas inspections, water and sewer planning, Forest Conservation, the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Critical Area, farmland preservation, shoreline construction, stormwater and sediment and erosion control, and natural resource protection.  

The Department and its divisions have complimentary areas of focus, have responsibility for implementing and enforcing a wide variety of regulations and programs primarily pertaining to environmental and natural resource management for land use activities.  These programs include:

• Algae Growth in Canals
• Bay Restoration Fund grant program
• Beach monitoring
• Burn permits
• Campgrounds and mobile home parks
• Community hygiene
• EDU transfers
• Expanded Polystyrene Bill
• Food Residuals Division
• Gas and plumbing inspection and plan review
• MDE Appeal Process
• Radon
• Sanitary Area Expansions
• Sediment and erosion control
• Septic Maintenance
• Shared facilities
• Shoreline construction (see resources below for application)
• Sludge application
• Soil Evaluations
• Stormwater management
• Transient non-community water systems
• Wastewater haulers
• Well and septic

Additional programs for which the Department is responsible include:

• Forest Conservation
• The Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Critical Areas
• Land preservation
• Natural resource protection
• Water and Sewer planning  
• Watershed Planning

The Department is divided into a series of Divisions/Services:

• Environmental Programs
• Land Preservation and Environmental Planning
• Natural Resources
• Plumbing and Gas