Virginia
Virginia issues its own construction general permit. We have read General VPDES Permit for Discharges of Stormwater from Construction Activities (General Permit No. VAR10) 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
Conditional, depends on the siteVirginia gates plan preparation conditionally. The gate is triggered by plan scope rather than acreage: The SWM plan is gated; the erosion and sediment control plan is not. Confirm which case applies to your plan before relying on a generated document.
Qualifying routes
The Responsible Land Disturber role is on-site execution, not plan preparation.
Coverage trigger
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.
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.
A stormwater pollution prevention plan (SWPPP) shall be developed prior to the submission of a registration statement and implemented for the construction activity.
A stormwater pollution prevention plan (SWPPP) shall be developed prior to the submission of a registration statement and implemented for the construction activity
Registration statement must be submitted to the VESMP authority prior to the commencement of land disturbance. A limited exception applies to certain emergency-related activities, where the registration statement may instead be submitted no later than 30 days after commencement of land disturbance.
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.
Any operator proposing a new stormwater discharge from construction activities shall submit a complete and accurate registration statement to the VESMP authority prior to the commencement of land disturbance. ... The operator submits a complete and accurate registration statement to the VESMP authority no later than 30 days after the commencement of land disturbance
A Notice of Termination must be submitted no later than 30 days after a qualifying condition is met (e.g. permanent controls in place and functioning, final stabilization achieved, another operator assumes control, alternative VPDES coverage obtained).
The notice of termination shall be submitted no later than 30 days after one of the conditions in subdivision 1 of this subsection is met.
Operator may choose to inspect at least once every five business days, with no separate rain trigger required under this option.
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.
At least once every five business days
Alternative to the 5-business-day option: inspect at least once every 10 business days, and additionally no later than 24 hours following a measurable storm event (0.25 inches of rain or more within a 24-hour period).
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.
At least once every 10 business days and no later than 24 hours following a measurable storm event. ... A storm event that produces 0.25 inches or more of rain within a 24-hour period on the first day of the storm and continues to produce 0.25 inches or more of rain on subsequent days.
"Qualified personnel" means a person knowledgeable in the principles and practices of erosion and sediment and stormwater management controls who possesses the skills to assess conditions at the construction site for the operator that could impact stormwater quality and quantity and to assess the effectiveness of any sediment and erosion control measures or stormwater management facilities selected to control the quality and quantity of stormwater discharges from the construction activity. On or after July 1, 2025, qualified personnel must hold specified DEQ or EPA certifications.
Why this applies here: This is why Basinwise cannot perform your inspections. The permit requires a trained person physically on the site.
"Qualified personnel" means a person knowledgeable in the principles and practices of erosion and sediment and stormwater management controls...
Stabilization initiation must occur immediately whenever land-disturbing activities have permanently ceased on any portion of the site, or temporarily ceased and will not resume for more than 14 days.
Why this applies here: This applies at both land disturbance amounts.
Ensure the initiation of stabilization activities of disturbed areas occurs immediately whenever any clearing, grading, excavating, or other land-disturbing activities have permanently ceased on any portion of the construction site, or temporarily ceased on any portion of the construction site and will not resume for a period exceeding 14 days
Corrective actions identified as a result of an inspection, and routine maintenance of control measures, shall be implemented as soon as practicable but no later than five business days after discovery, or a longer period as approved by the VESMP authority.
the operator shall implement the corrective actions identified as a result of an inspection as soon as practicable but no later than five business days after discovery or a longer period as approved by the VESMP authority
Erosion and sediment control plans must provide and maintain natural buffers around surface waters, direct stormwater to vegetated areas to increase sediment removal, and maximize stormwater infiltration, unless infeasible due to site conditions or geology. No specific numeric buffer distance in feet is stated in the permit text.
Provide and maintain natural buffers around surface waters, direct stormwater to vegetated areas to increase sediment removal, and maximize stormwater infiltration, unless infiltration would be inadvisable due to the underlying geology (e.g., karst topography) and groundwater contamination concerns or infeasible due to site conditions.
The written inspection report must be incorporated into the SWPPP no later than four business days after the inspection is completed.
The inspection report shall be included into the SWPPP no later than four business days after the inspection is complete.
Inspection reports and any actions taken under Part II must be retained by the operator as part of the SWPPP for at least three years from the date general permit coverage expires or is terminated.
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.
The inspection report and any actions taken in accordance with Part II shall be retained by the operator as part of the SWPPP for at least three years from the date that general permit coverage expires or is terminated.
Your acreage, your receiving water, your answer. Runs in your browser, nothing is transmitted.
This is EPA's list, from the 2022 Construction General Permit. It does NOT govern in Virginia, 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.
Read the permit itself at the source document.
Virginia issues its own construction general permit, and we have read General VPDES Permit for Discharges of Stormwater from Construction Activities (General Permit No. VAR10). 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 Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (Virginia DEQ).
Virginia gates plan preparation conditionally. The gate is triggered by plan scope rather than acreage: The SWM plan is gated; the erosion and sediment control plan is not. Confirm which case applies to your plan before relying on a generated document.
The inspection frequency is set by the Virginia construction general permit, which we have not read. Confirm it with Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (Virginia DEQ).
Screening is free. Pro generates the site specific plan document and retains the inspection and corrective action log.