Campgrounds

Campers

Okay, You're Going to go Camping in Mingo County, WV.

Mingo County, West Virginia is a great place to camp and hike and canoe and fish and ride ATV’s and visit Hatfield & McCoy sites, mountain bike, visit historic sites and much more.  Mingo County, WV is blessed to have many accommodations available for those that visit our communities.  Not only are campgrounds available, our county has Bed & Breakfast Inns, Tourist Motels Rental cabins from very rustic to very nice, and we have resort accommodations all because of the Hatfield & McCoy ATV Trail System.  To make sure you are going to have fun, first make sure you are going to be safe and that is where the Mingo County Health Department is here to help.

Who permits and inspects my Campground for Safety?

Recreational Facilities, which are permitted in West Virginia under the Department of Health and Human Resources Bureau for Public Health General Sanitation with the regulatory authority being the Mingo County Health Department.  General Sanitation includes the following categories:

• Adult Day Care Center
• Bed & Breakfast Inns
• Body Piercing Studio
• Campgrounds
• Child Care and Family Care Centers
• Institutions and Schools
• Labor Camps
• Mass Gatherings, Fairs & Festivals
• Manufactured Home Community
• Motels and Tourist Cabins
• Organized Camps
• Parks and Playgrounds
• Producer Dairy Farm
• Recreational Water Facility
• Shelters and Group Home
• Tattoo Studio
• Other
• Public Restrooms (Nuisance Complaint Basis Only)

Campground Definitions:

• A campground, as one of the general sanitation categories, is defined as a tract of land established, maintained, and offered to the public for payment for the location or placement of two or more comping units.  
• A Camping Unit is any tent, camping vehicle, cabin, or similar vehicle or structure designed or intended to be used for camping purposes.  
• A “camping unit” means and includes, but is not limited to, tents, tent campers, fold down campers, pop up campers, travel trailers, camping vans, motor homes, pick up coach campers, or any other unit built or mounted on a vehicle or chassis and capable of being self-propelled or towed.  
• Campsites are any plot of land within a campground used or intended to be used for the location or placement of a comping unit.  
• Primitive Camping are campsites provide for temporary use by persons seeking a very basic outdoor experience, without amenities typically found in a campground. 
• Camping sites for primitive camping are not provided with water under pressure or electrical service. 
• The Operator is the person who has been granted a written permit, in accordance with this rule, to operate a facility governed by this rule.

Each of these General Sanitation categories are permitted and inspected by the Mingo County Health Department’s environmental Sanitarians.  General Sanitation.  The Mingo County Health Department issues permits and conducts general sanitation inspections according the Legislative Rule 64CSR18.  

These rules mandate that owners and operators of General Sanitation facilities have proper management of animals within permitted establishments; bedding & sleeping areas; prevention of communicable diseases; storage & disposal of garbage, refuse & solid waste; heating & ventilation; housekeeping & maintenance; laundry; lighting; noise; plumbing; establishment safety; sewage disposal; sizing & spacing; storage of toxins; structure & maintenance; establishment surroundings; toilet, hand washing & shower facilities; rodent & insect control; and sanitary water supply. 

Permits are issued on an annual basis for the period July 1 to June 30 following submission of an Application for a Permit to Operate and proper fees.  All General Sanitation permits expires at midnight on the 30th of June following the date of issuance.  Mass gathering permits are issued for the period of the event.  New general sanitation establishments must submit pre-operational plans and receive and submit for inspection to the Mingo County Health Department before issuance of initial permit.  General sanitation establishments are inspected annually except schools which are inspected bi-annually (see A-17 Frequency of Inspections and Sampling).

So, How does the Owner or Operator have their Campground Permitted?

In Mingo County, WV any person that owns or operates a campground or organized camp that has not yet been permitted, or is new, being renovated, or has a change of ownership must fill out an application: 

Campground/Organized Camp Application

All one-page Applications to Operate a Campground must be completed and submitted to the Mingo County Health Department with the appropriate fees for permit as set forth in Legislative Rule 64CSR30 at least fifteen (15) days before prior to the expiration date of the existing permit for all renewal permits.  

For new campground applications for permits they shall arrive at least fifteen (15) days before the actual or proposed operation of the facility is to be affected.  Applications for new campground permits will only be accepted after a proper Plan Review has been submitted and approved by the Mingo County Health Department.  Plan Reviews are addressed under General Sanitation. 

Mingo County Health Departments Fees for Campground Permit below:

Application fees for all fixed expiration date Permits will be calculated using the below formula from Legislative Rule 64CSR30H:

A late fee of 25 percent for all expired permits listed in this rule will be applied to the permit fee schedule.  Payment must be received within 10 days of the expiration date to avoid the late fee assessment.  All applications for permits that are received in less than 10 days from the expiration date must pay an additional 25% fee on top of the accessed normal fees for permit (see Legislative Rule 64CSR30I Late fee for Expired Permits).

Any application received without the appropriate fees for permit will be denied and the application will be either returned or placed on hold until the fees are received at the health department.  Applications may be mailed or hand delivered to the following address:

Mingo County Health Department
Permit Processing
101 Logan Street, Suite 201
Williamson, WV 25661

All campgrounds and organized camps must follow the West Virginia General Sanitation Regulations

64 CSR 18 General Sanitation Regulations

Once the application is properly received and approved, the operator must schedule an inspection day, time, and location with a Sanitarian.  This can be arranged by calling our Sanitarian at 304-235-3570 extension 103 and leave a name, a working phone number, and a brief description of the type of inspection that is needed.  The Sanitarian will call you to arrange a day, time, and location for inspecting your campground or organized camp to make sure that it meets the General Sanitation Regulations and that it can be operated in a safe and sanitary manner.

Campgrounds and Organized Camps that will have food service or a pool, hot tub, or bathing beach must fill out separate plan review applications for those items.

Food Establishments     Recreational Water Facilities

Do You Want to Know More about Staying Safe?

Here's some links to information that can help keep you safe while camping. Just click on a topic to see what you need to know:

• Food Safety
• Heat Stress Safety
• Mosquito Safety
• Tick Safety
• Water Safety
• Wildlife Safety