The licence that allows pumping
Maine requires a DEP non-hazardous waste transporter licence in Category C — septage and holding tank waste, including waste from septic tanks and cesspools — to transport septage on the state's roads. Category A is special waste and Category B is municipal solid waste; those do not authorise household tank pumping. If the company that arrives is not on the Category C list, that is a reason to stop the job.
The published list is from September 1, 2026
DEP publishes the register as a PDF of active non-haz transporters. The copy linked from the official program page is dated September 1, 2026. Businesses close, change hands and let licences lapse in that time, so a name on these pages is a starting point, not proof the licence is still current. Ask whether Category C is still in force and check DEP's current file.
Verification steps
- Ask for the business name and whether it holds a current DEP Category C licence.
- Open the DEP non-hazardous transporter program page and download the current Active Non-Haz Transporters PDF.
- Confirm the company is still on the list with a C in the Category column.
- Confirm the business pumps household tanks at your address, then get a written quote.
Reading the county
DEP publishes a base city, not a county. The county on a card is where that city (or named village) sits. It is not a service area — a Category C licence is a Maine licence, so a business in the next county may well cover your address.
18 businesses hold a Maine Category C licence from a city in another state and are counted here rather than placed on a Maine county page.
What we publish
122 businesses across all 16 Maine counties, drawn from the 140 Category C rows on the September 1, 2026 PDF (389 active non-haz transporters in all). Nothing is filtered out by name: Category C is Maine's septage pumping credential. Because portable-toilet, construction and municipal crews hold it too, the 67 businesses whose name does not say septic or cesspool carry a note asking you to confirm household work first. DEP does not print a licence number on this roster; each card shows the published expiry instead.
Start with the Maine county directory, then confirm the licence on DEP's own list.