South Carolina's NPDES Stormwater Program requires that anyone engaged in clearing, grading, and/or excavating activities that disturb more than 1 acre, including smaller sites in a Larger Common Plan of development or sale whose combined total disturbed area is more than 1 acre, to submit a Notice of Intent for permit coverage approval prior to beginning any land disturbing activities.

In addition to the NOI, the request for permit coverage requires a Comprehensive Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (C-SWPPP) for all sites disturbing 2 acres of land or more, as well as sites of less than 2 acres which are part of a Larger Common Plan, must be prepared by a licensed South Carolina Professional Engineer, Landscape Architect, Tier B Land Surveyor, or a Federal Government Employee. The C-SWPPP must include the construction site plans and a SWPPP document that addresses all applicable requirements found in the Construction General Permit and SC Regulation 72.300.

A professional design checklist has been made available to help ensure that these permit requirements and regulations are met. Additionally, the SC DHEC BMP Handbook has been provided to aid in the selection of Best Management Practices (BMPs) that may address applicable requirements.

Construction Activities

Information and Requirements on land-disturbing activities for construction activities.

Less Than 1 Acre

Information and Requirements on land-disturbing activities that disturb less than 1 Acre.

Between 1-2 Acres

Information and Requirements on land-disturbing activities that disturb 1.0 to 2.0 Acres of land.

For those looking for additional information or help with acquiring NPDES Stormwater Coverage under the Construction General Permit, SCDES's Stormwater Staff is always available to answer questions about the implementation and the design of proper stormwater management plans. SCDES's website also provides numerous design aids, technical documents, and stormwater-associated links that may assist in the development of a site-specific C-SWPPP.

Coastal Counties

Requirements for projects located within the eight coastal counties are the same as the requirements for projects located outside of the coastal zone except for the inclusion of a Coastal Zone Consistency determination from DHEC's Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (DHEC-OCRM) . Heightened stormwater design requirements may also apply.

A Coastal Zone Consistency submittal package must be submitted with requests for permit coverage for review by SCDES. Contact SCDES regarding Coastal Zone Consistency submittal requirements.