Do I need coverage?
Many construction sites will need to apply for coverage under the CSWGP. Construction site operators are required to be covered if both of these apply:
- Your construction project disturbs land* through clearing, grading, excavating, or stockpiling of fill material.
- Sites that disturb one acre or more.
- Sites that are smaller than one acre that are part of a larger common plan of development that will ultimately disturb one acre or more and discharge stormwater to surface waters must apply for a permit.
- Sites of any size discharging stormwater to state waters (Waters of the State) that we determine to be a significant contributor of pollutants.
- Sites of any size that we reasonably expect to cause a violation of any water quality standard.
- There is any possibility that during construction, stormwater could run off your site or enter a conveyance system that leads to surface waters. In almost every case it does. If the location of your site poses no possibility that rainfall or snowmelt could leave the site or enter a waterway, you do not need a permit.
*Count the cumulative acreage of the whole project, whether it's single or multiphase. Include off-site disturbance acreage from support activities related to the construction site. This applies if your project is a portion (less than one acre) of a larger project planned over time.