(1) The board and/or the department shall have the following duties and responsibilities:

(a) To exercise general supervision over the design, installation, operation and maintenance of individual on-site wastewater disposal systems, decentralized wastewater treatment systems and cluster systems;

(b) To adopt, modify, repeal and promulgate rules and regulations, after due notice and hearing, and where not otherwise prohibited by federal or state law, to make exceptions to, to grant exemptions from and to enforce rules and regulations implementing or effectuating the duties of the board under this chapter to protect the public health. The board may grant variances from rules and regulations adopted under this chapter, including requirements for buffer zones, or from setbacks required under Section 41-67-7 where the granting of a variance shall not subject the public to unreasonable health risks or jeopardize environmental resources;

(c) To provide or deny certification for persons engaging in the business for hire of the installation, operation or maintenance of individual on-site wastewater disposal systems and persons engaging in the removal and disposal of the sludge and liquid waste from those systems;

(d) To suspend or revoke certifications issued to persons engaging in the business for hire of the installation, operation or maintenance of individual on-site wastewater disposal systems or persons engaging in the removal and disposal of the sludge and liquid waste from those systems, when it is determined the person has violated this chapter or applicable rules and regulations;

(e) To require the submission of information deemed necessary by the department to determine the suitability of individual lots for individual on-site wastewater disposal systems for the purpose of commercial or residential development; and

(f) To adopt, modify, repeal and promulgate rules and regulations, after due notice and hearing, and where not otherwise prohibited by federal or state law, as necessary to determine the suitability of individual on-site wastewater disposal systems in subdivisions.

(2) To assure the effective and efficient administration of this chapter, the board shall adopt rules governing the design, construction or installation, operation and maintenance of individual on-site wastewater disposal systems, including rules concerning the:

(a) Review and approval of individual on-site wastewater disposal systems in accordance with Section 41-67-6;

(b) Certification of installers;

(c) Certification of pumpers;

(d) Certification of manufacturers;

(e) Certification of professional evaluators; and

(f) Creation of regulations that authorize the original and any subsequent homeowner to be trained by certified installers as defined in Section 41-67-25(2) or other factory representatives in order to educate the homeowner with the necessary knowledge to provide maintenance to the homeowner’s system; no fees shall be charged to the homeowner for such training, thus allowing the homeowner to meet the requirements of Section 41-67-7(5).

(3) In addition, the board shall adopt rules establishing performance standards for individual on-site wastewater disposal systems for single family residential generators and rules concerning the operation and maintenance of individual on-site wastewater disposal systems designed to meet those standards. The performance standards shall be consistent with the federal Clean Water Act, maintaining the wastes on the property of the generator and protection of the public health. Rules for the operation and maintenance of individual on-site wastewater disposal systems designed to meet performance standards shall include rules concerning the following:

(a) A standard application form and requirements for supporting documentation;

(b) Application review;

(c) Approval or denial of authorization for proposed systems;

(d) Requirements, as deemed appropriate by the board, for annual renewal of authorization;

(e) Enforcement of the requirements and conditions of authorization; and

(f) Inspection, monitoring, sampling and reporting on the performance of the system.

(4) To the extent practicable, all rules and regulations adopted under this chapter shall give maximum flexibility to persons installing individual on-site wastewater disposal systems and all options consistent with the federal Clean Water Act, consistent with maintaining the wastes on the property of the generator and consistent with protection of the public health. In addition, all rules and regulations, to the extent practicable, shall encourage the use of economically feasible systems, including all techniques and technologies for individual on-site wastewater disposal.

(5) All regulations shall be applied uniformly in all areas of the state and shall take into consideration and make provision for different types of soil in the state when performing soil and site evaluations.