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Florida

SWPPP requirements in Florida

Florida issues its own construction general permit. We have read NPDES Generic Permit for Stormwater Discharge from Large and Small Construction Activities (Construction Generic Permit, CGP) and list below the requirements we could cite to it, with the scope limits stated plainly. Screen your own acreage further down.

Who may prepare the plan

No preparer credential found

No preparer credential was found for Florida. On what we have verified, a generated plan can be adopted by the operator without a credentialed signature. Local ordinances can still be stricter than state law.

No preparer credential found in the reviewed sources. Not exhaustively verified; confirm with the state agency and any local ordinance.

No permit section cited. Confirm this with your permitting authority.

Coverage trigger

Worked through at 3 acres

The project disturbs 3 acres, at or above the 1 acre threshold, so it needs permit coverage.

The trigger people miss is the second one. A half acre lot inside a 40 acre subdivision is covered, because the larger common plan of development or sale is what counts, not the lot.

Read these before you act on the answer

  • Requirements below are what we have read and cited directly from NPDES Generic Permit for Stormwater Discharge from Large and Small Construction Activities (Construction Generic Permit, CGP), not the federal CGP. A category we have not yet transcribed from this permit is omitted here rather than assumed to match EPA's rule.
  • Florida's construction stormwater program is administered as an incorporated-by-reference permit DOCUMENT (DEP Document No. 62-621.300(4)(a), F.A.C.) rather than a standalone PDF issued the way TCEQ issues TXR150000 — the operative text is the plain-English Q&A document fetched here, dated 'Effective Date: 02/2015' on its cover page (Cornell Law's codification of the rule independently cites this same incorporated form as 'effective February 10, 2015', giving the precise day used in permit.effectiveDate). DEP is actively drafting amendments to this Construction Generic Permit (a public workshop was held 11/19/2025, comments closed 12/30/2025, and DEP posted a revised draft on 7/22/2026 per floridadep.gov/water/stormwater/content/construction-generic-permit-rulemaking-drafts), but as of the retrieval date above no new rule/form had been adopted, so the 2015-dated document remains the current, currently-effective permit and is what this record describes. No numeric buffer/setback distance (in feet) from surface waters was found anywhere in the permit body — it lists 'vegetative buffer strips' only as one of several optional stabilization measures (Part 5.4) and separately requires structural BMPs to be placed on upland soils (Part 5.5.4), without ever stating a specific footage, so bufferRequirements is omitted rather than guessed. No numeric effluent limits or benchmark table (e.g., for concrete batch plants, as in Texas's permit) appears anywhere in this construction-specific generic permit, so numericLimitsAndBenchmarks is omitted. Florida's permit has no 'increased frequency near sensitive/outstanding waters' provision and no arid/semi-arid/drought reduced-frequency provision comparable to federal's — both are genuinely absent from this document, not merely unverified. Permit application/renewal fee amounts (Part 2.1.2, $400 large / $250 small) were located but not modeled since no schema slot was requested for fees. The rule 62-621.300 as a whole has a longer amendment history (footer citations found via secondary sources list amendments through 2-16-21, and a separate active 2025-2026 rulemaking effort was found for other CGP-related material), but the specific incorporated CGP document (4)(a) that this record is based on has not changed since 2-10-2015.
  • No preparer credential was found for Florida. On what we have verified, a generated plan can be adopted by the operator without a credentialed signature. Local ordinances can still be stricter than state law.
  • Basinwise does not perform the physical site inspections the permit requires. Those must be carried out on site by a qualified person.

What the permit requires of a Florida site

Worked for a three acre site with the receiving water unconfirmed. Each line says why it attached to this site rather than in general. Check the notes above for the site sizes this permit does not cover.

Filing

Plan before Notice of Intent

You must develop your SWPPP before you submit your NOI. You must start following your SWPPP when you receive coverage under this permit. If your SWPPP requires perimeter controls, they must be installed before the commencement of your construction activities.

You must develop your SWPPP before you submit your NOI. You must start following your SWPPP when you receive coverage under this permit. If your SWPPP requires perimeter controls, they must be installed before the commencement of your construction activities.
VerifiedPart 4.3Source
Notice of Intent deadline
2

at least 2 calendar days before commencement of construction by clearing, grading, excavating, demolition, or other construction activities disturbing soil

Why this applies here: This is the deadline for a new site. A transfer to a new operator or an emergency related project has a different deadline.

For a new project, you must submit a complete NOI and permit fee at least 2 calendar days before commencement of construction by clearing, grading, excavating, demolition, or other construction activities disturbing soil.
VerifiedPart 2.5.1Source
Notice of Termination deadline
14

Within 14 calendar days after the site has achieved final stabilization and all discharges authorized by the permit are eliminated (or are authorized under a separate NPDES permit), a completed Notice of Termination (NOT) must be submitted.

Within 14 calendar days after your site has achieved final stabilization and all discharges authorized by this permit are eliminated or are authorized under a separate NPDES permit, you must submit a completed Notice of Termination (NOT) form.
VerifiedPart 7.1Source

Inspections

Inspection frequency, option 1
7

Site must be inspected at least once every seven calendar days and within 24 hours of the end of a storm event of 0.50 inches or greater, even on weekends/holidays.

Why this applies here: You have not confirmed whether the site discharges to an impaired or high quality water. If it does, the increased frequency applies instead and this answer changes.

Your site must be inspected at least once every seven calendar days and within 24 hours of the end of a storm event that is 0.50 inches or greater (even if it rains on the weekend or a holiday). Your site must be inspected by a qualified inspector that you must provide.
VerifiedDEP Document No. 62-621.300(4)(a), Part 6.1Source
Who may inspect

A person that: (1) has successfully completed the DEP Stormwater, Erosion, and Sedimentation Control Inspector Training Program and received a certificate of completion; (2) has successfully completed an equivalent formal training program; or (3) is qualified by other training or practical experience in the field of stormwater pollution prevention and erosion and sedimentation control.

Why this applies here: This is why Basinwise cannot perform your inspections. The permit requires a trained person physically on the site.

"Qualified Inspector" A person that: 1. Has successfully completed the DEP Stormwater, Erosion, and Sedimentation Control Inspector Training Program and received a certificate of completion. 2. Has successfully completed an equivalent formal training program; 3. Is qualified by other training or practical experience in the field of stormwater pollution prevention and erosion and sedimentation control.
VerifiedPart 8.21 (Definitions)Source

Stabilisation

Initiate stabilisation

Within 7 calendar days.

Why this applies here: This applies at both land disturbance amounts.

You must initiate stabilization measures within 7 calendar days after construction activities have temporarily or permanently ceased for any portion of the site.
VerifiedPart 5.4Source

Corrective action

Corrective action, major fix
7

All corrective actions needed to assure proper operation of controls identified in the SWPPP, or to ensure permit requirements are met, must be done in a timely manner, but in no case later than 7 calendar days following the inspection or identification of the issue.

Based on the results of the inspection, all corrective actions needed to assure proper operation of all controls identified in your SWPPP or to ensure that the requirements of the permit are met must be done in a timely manner, but in no case later than 7 calendar days following the inspection or identification of the issue.
VerifiedPart 6.4Source

Records you must keep

Record retention
3

Retained from the date the site has reached final stabilization and the Notice of Termination (NOT) is submitted.

Why this applies here: The clock runs from permit expiry or termination, not from when the record was written, so on a multi year project every record stays live for the whole project plus three years.

Keep all of these records for three years from the date that the site has reached final stabilization and the Notice of Termination (NOT) is submitted.
VerifiedPart 4.4.3Source

Screen a Florida site now

Your acreage, your receiving water, your answer. Runs in your browser, nothing is transmitted.

Screen your site

Runs in your browser

Total land disturbance over the whole project, including staging and access. This decides whether you need a permit at all.

Optional. If you phase the work, the most that will be disturbed at once. Leave blank if the whole site is open together. The stabilisation deadline turns on this figure, not the total.

A half acre lot inside a 40 acre subdivision is covered even though the lot alone is under the threshold. This is the most commonly missed trigger in the permit.

Receiving water and site conditions(optional, but they change the inspection frequency)

May allow a reduced inspection frequency during the seasonally dry period.

EPA keeps permitting authority in Indian country even inside a state that runs its own programme.

No account, no card, nothing transmitted.

What a plan has to cover, under the federal permit

This is EPA's list, from the 2022 Construction General Permit. It does NOT govern in Florida, where the state issues its own permit and sets its own contents. It is here as a shape to expect, not as the requirement you will be held to.

General SWPPP requirementPart 7.1Verified
  • All operators associated with a construction site under this permit must develop a SWPPP consistent with Part 7 prior to their submittal of the NOI. The SWPPP must be kept up-to-date throughout coverage under this permit. If a SWPPP was prepared under a previous version of this permit, the operator must review and update it before submitting an NOI.
All Site OperatorsPart 7.2.1Verified
  • Include a list of all other operators who will be engaged in construction activities at the site, and the areas of the site over which each operator has control.
Stormwater TeamPart 7.2.2Verified
  • Identify the personnel (by name and position) on the stormwater team pursuant to Part 6.1, their individual responsibilities, and which members are responsible for conducting inspections. Include verification that each member has received the Part 6.2 training, and documentation that inspection personnel have received the Part 6.3 training (EPA inspector training certificates, or documentation of a current non-EPA program certification plus confirmation the program satisfies the Part 6.3b minimum elements).
Nature of Construction ActivitiesParts 7.2.3a - 7.2.3iVerified
  • A description of the nature of your construction activities, including the age or dates of past renovations for structures undergoing demolition
  • The size of the property (in acres, or length in miles if a linear construction site)
  • The total area expected to be disturbed by the construction activities (to the nearest quarter acre, or nearest quarter mile if a linear construction site)
  • A description of any on-site and off-site construction support activity areas covered by this permit
  • The maximum area expected to be disturbed at any one time, including on-site and off-site construction support activity areas
  • A description and projected schedule for: commencement of construction activities in each portion of the site (clearing and grubbing, mass grading, demolition, site preparation, final grading, and creation of soil and vegetation stockpiles requiring stabilization); temporary or permanent cessation of construction activities in each portion; temporary or final stabilization of exposed areas for each portion; and removal of temporary stormwater controls and construction equipment or vehicles and cessation of construction-related pollutant-generating activities
  • A list and description of all pollutant-generating activities on the site, with an inventory of pollutants or pollutant constituents associated with each, taking into account where potential spills and leaks could occur and any known hazardous or toxic substances such as PCBs and asbestos that will be disturbed or removed
  • Business days and hours for the project
  • If conducting construction activities in response to a public emergency, a description of the cause of the emergency, information substantiating its occurrence (e.g. a State disaster declaration), and a description of the construction necessary to reestablish affected public services
Site MapParts 7.2.4a - 7.2.4kVerified
  • Boundaries of the property
  • Locations where construction activities will occur, including: locations of earth-disturbing activities (noting any phasing) including demolition; approximate slopes before and after major grading (noting any steep slopes); locations where sediment, soil or other construction materials will be stockpiled; any receiving water crossings; designated points where vehicles will exit onto paved roads; locations of structures and other impervious surfaces upon completion; and locations of on-site and off-site construction support activity areas
  • Locations of any receiving waters within the site and all receiving waters within one mile downstream of the site's discharge point(s), identifying whether any are listed as impaired or identified as a Tier 2, Tier 2.5 or Tier 3 water
  • Any areas of Federally listed critical habitat within the action area of the site
  • Type and extent of pre-construction cover on the site (e.g. vegetative cover, forest, pasture, pavement, structures)
  • Drainage patterns of stormwater and authorized non-stormwater before and after major grading activities
  • Stormwater and authorized non-stormwater discharge locations, including discharges to storm drain inlets (noting whether the inlet conveys stormwater to a sediment basin, sediment trap or similarly effective control), discharges directly to receiving waters, and locations where turbidity benchmark monitoring will take place
  • Locations of all potential pollutant-generating activities identified in Part 7.2.3g
  • Designated areas where construction wastes covered by the Part 2.3.3e.ii exception will be stored
  • Locations of stormwater controls, including natural buffer areas and any shared controls utilized to comply with this permit
  • Locations where polymers, flocculants or other treatment chemicals will be used and stored
Non-Stormwater DischargesPart 7.2.5Verified
  • Identify all authorized non-stormwater discharges in Part 1.2.2 that will or may occur.
Procedures for Inspection, Maintenance, and Corrective ActionParts 7.2.7a - 7.2.7eVerified
  • The inspection schedule you will follow, based on whether your site is subject to Part 4.2 or Part 4.3, or whether it qualifies for any of the reduced inspection frequencies in Part 4.4
  • If conducting inspections under Part 4.2.2, Part 4.3 or Part 4.4.1b, the location of the rain gauge or the address of the weather station you will use to obtain rainfall data
  • If reducing your inspection frequency in accordance with Part 4.4.1b, the beginning and ending dates of the seasonally defined arid period for your area or the valid period of drought
  • If reducing your inspection frequency in accordance with Part 4.4.3, the beginning and ending dates of frozen conditions on your site
  • Any maintenance or inspection checklists or other forms that will be used
Procedures for Turbidity Benchmark Monitoring from Dewatering Discharges (if applicable)Part 7.2.8Verified
  • If required to comply with the Part 3.3 turbidity benchmark monitoring requirements, describe the procedures you will follow to collect and evaluate samples, report results to EPA, keep records of monitoring information, and take corrective action when necessary. Include the specific type of turbidity meter you will use and any manuals or manufacturer instructions on how to operate and calibrate it. Describe any coordinating arrangement with other permitted operators on the same site, including which parties are tasked with specific responsibilities. If EPA has approved an alternate turbidity benchmark, include the data and documentation relied on to request it.
Compliance with Other RequirementsParts 7.2.9a - 7.2.9cVerified
  • Threatened and Endangered Species Protection: include the documentation required in the Endangered Species Protection section of the NOI in NeT, or the ESA worksheet in Appendix D, supporting your eligibility
  • Historic Properties: include the documentation required in Appendix E supporting your eligibility with regard to the protection of historic properties
  • Safe Drinking Water Act Underground Injection Control (UIC) requirements: if using infiltration trenches, commercially manufactured pre-cast or pre-built proprietary subsurface detention vaults/chambers/devices designed to capture and infiltrate stormwater, or drywells, seepage pits or improved sinkholes, document any contact with the applicable State agency or EPA Regional Office responsible for underground injection wells. Such controls would generally be considered Class V UIC wells
SWPPP CertificationPart 7.2.10Verified
  • Your signatory must sign and date your SWPPP in accordance with Appendix G, Part G.11.
Post-Authorization Additions to the SWPPPParts 7.2.11a - 7.2.11cVerified
  • A copy of your NOI submitted to EPA along with any correspondence exchanged between you and EPA related to coverage under this permit
  • A copy of the acknowledgment letter you receive from NeT assigning your NPDES ID (i.e. permit tracking number)
  • A copy of this permit (an electronic copy easily available to the stormwater team is also acceptable)

Read the permit itself at the source document.

What people ask about SWPPP requirements in Florida

What are the SWPPP requirements in Florida?

Florida issues its own construction general permit, and we have read NPDES Generic Permit for Stormwater Discharge from Large and Small Construction Activities (Construction Generic Permit, CGP). The requirements listed on this page, such as inspection frequency, who may inspect, stabilisation, corrective action and record retention, are cited to that permit rather than to EPA's. Anything we have not transcribed is left out instead of assumed to match the federal rule, and the scope note on this page says which sites the permit does not cover. Confirm the current permit and any site-size variant with Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP).

Who may prepare a SWPPP in Florida?

No preparer credential was found for Florida. On what we have verified, a generated plan can be adopted by the operator without a credentialed signature. Local ordinances can still be stricter than state law.

How often must a Florida site be inspected?

The inspection frequency is set by the Florida construction general permit, which we have not read. Confirm it with Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP).

Who may prepare a stormwater plan in Florida

The permit makes you keep the record, not just know the answer

Screening is free. Pro generates the site specific plan document and retains the inspection and corrective action log.

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