Land Use and Environmental Enforcement

The St. Louis County Planning Department, the St. Louis County Solid Waste Department and the St. Louis County Health Department serve many functions, one of which is to ensure the protection of the public’s health and welfare. These Departments do so through ordinances, or local laws of St. Louis County authorized by the St. Louis County Board of Commissioners. The St. Louis County Attorney’s Office enforces these ordinances.

Planning Department

The St. Louis County Planning Department regulates land use of St. Louis County excluding municipalities through St. Louis County Ordinance No. 46. Ordinance No. 46 is an extensive document. Some of its provisions include:
  • Establishing residential, commercial and industrial zoning districts.
  • Creating standards individuals must meet before performing specific land improvements.
  • Creating permit procedures.
  • Administering variance procedures in certain situations.
  • Allowing enforcement action against those in violation of Ordinance No. 46.


 Solid Waste Department

The purpose of St. Louis County Ordinance No. 45, St. Louis County’s Solid Waste ordinance, is to protect the health, welfare and safety of the public while protecting our environment. This document is one tool to rid the County of public nuisances. It applies to three groups: individuals, waste haulers and waste management facilities. Ordinance No. 45, as with Ordinance No. 46, has an enforcement provision.

Health Department

The St. Louis County Health Department protects the public’s health through a variety of ordinances. The two main ordinances are Ordinance No. 55, Individual Sewage Treatment System (ISTS) Standards (which applies to septic systems), and Ordinance No. 6, Sanitation Regulations for Food Establishments. Each ordinance contains enforcement provisions.

Land Use and Environment Enforcement

The St. Louis County Attorney’s Office is notified when an individual violates one of these ordinances. Violations may be handled in a variety of ways. A violator may be issued a misdemeanor citation for ongoing violations that carries a $700 fine for each day the violation exists. Because the misdemeanor citation is a criminal matter, the St. Louis County Attorney’s Office serves as prosecutor.

The St. Louis County Attorney’s Office has the option of handling the violations using the civil remedy of an injunction. Ordinance 45 has one provision the others do not have: it allows St. Louis County to enter the property, clean up the violation and assess the clean up costs as a special assessment. The St. Louis County Attorney’s Office can use any or all of these remedies, depending on the violation.

The St. Louis County Attorney’s Office investigates approximately 50 land use cases a year. Our office works in conjunction with the respective department to investigate the facts surrounding the nature and extent of the violation. The primary goal is to team the individual who knowingly or unknowingly violated an ordinance with the respective department to correct the violation.