Before a commercial site in Georgia can be cleared or graded, two related systems apply. Local governments issue land disturbance permits under the Georgia Erosion and Sedimentation Act. Georgia EPD separately regulates construction stormwater discharges through its NPDES construction general permits. Both depend on the same core document, the erosion, sedimentation and pollution control plan, or ES&PC plan. They are not the same approval, and treating them as one is a common way to lose weeks at the start of construction.
This guide covers which general permit typically applies to a commercial project, what the ES&PC plan must be built from, who has to be certified, and how state stream buffers and local rules affect the site.
The three Georgia construction general permits
Georgia EPD issues three NPDES construction stormwater general permits. The current permits carry an effective date of August 1, 2023. They were stayed by an appeal, and EPD states they have been in effect since August 23, 2024. They authorize discharges through July 31, 2028.
- GAR100001, Stand Alone Construction: typically a single project on its own parcel, such as one commercial building that is not part of a larger plan.
- GAR100002, Infrastructure Construction: typically linear and infrastructure work such as roads and utilities.
- GAR100003, Common Development Construction: typically sites that are part of a larger common plan of development, such as an outparcel inside a planned retail center or a lot in a business park.
For the stand-alone and common development permits, EPD limits disturbance to 50 acres at any one time unless the EPD District Office gives prior written authorization. Coverage is requested electronically: EPD requires electronic submittals through its GEOS system. Choosing the permit is a definitions question, not a preference, so have the engineer confirm the category against the permit text for the actual project.
What the ES&PC plan is built from
The technical reference is the Manual for Erosion and Sediment Control in Georgia, 2016 edition, known as the Green Book, along with its companion field manual. The Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission (GSWCC) also publishes plan review checklists, and those checklists are revised over time. Use the checklist required for your actual submittal date and permit type rather than copying notes from a past project.
A workable commercial ES&PC plan usually shows the controls in phases, from initial perimeter controls and construction exits through mass grading to final stabilization. It addresses sediment storage for each common drainage location, stabilization of disturbed areas, protection of inlets and outfalls, and the inspection and monitoring obligations that apply under the permit. It must also agree with the grading and stormwater plans. A sediment basin that later becomes the permanent detention pond, for example, has to work for both purposes.
Who has to be certified
Georgia ties erosion control duties to GSWCC education and certification levels. The ones that matter most on a commercial job are:
- Level II, certified design professional: prepares the ES&PC plan. Eligibility requires a professional license in engineering, architecture, landscape architecture, forestry, geology or land surveying, or CPESC status, plus the Commission's design seminar and exam.
- Level IA, fundamentals: EPD guidance calls for each permittee to have at least one person with this certification on site during land disturbance.
- Level IB, certified inspector: the certification for people performing compliance inspections of disturbed areas.
A Level II design professional is not automatically qualified to perform Level IB inspector duties, and a contractor's awareness-level training does not qualify anyone to design the plan. At MASS, principals Nick Sawka and Jeffrey Masisak both hold GSWCC Level II design professional certification, and Jeffrey is also a Certified Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control (CPESC).
State waters and stream buffers
Georgia law requires an undisturbed 25-foot buffer along warm-water state waters and a 50-foot buffer along designated trout waters, both measured from the point of wrested vegetation. Encroachment generally requires a variance from the EPD Director, and EPD maintains separate application forms for the two buffer types. Local governments may protect wider stream buffers through their own ordinances, so the local number can be larger than the state minimum.
Buffers also change the local permit path. Cherokee County, for instance, requires a land disturbance permit for any soil disturbance within 200 feet of state waters, even on sites that would otherwise fall under its smaller erosion control permit. The A1 Contractors offices that MASS designed in Ball Ground, Cherokee County combined stream buffers and temporary erosion controls with a new roadway and deceleration lane, a force main and water connections, and an underground stormwater management system. On a site like that, the buffer line shapes the grading plan, the erosion control phasing and the stormwater outfall at the same time.
How erosion control fits the construction schedule
The usual sequence is: confirm the permit category, complete the ES&PC plan with the civil set, obtain local plan approval and the land disturbance permit, submit the notice of intent for NPDES coverage, hold any required preconstruction meeting, install the initial controls, and only then begin clearing and mass grading. Coverage ends with a notice of termination after final stabilization. Each jurisdiction has its own preconstruction and inspection steps, so put them on the schedule as separate milestones.
ES&PC and NPDES checklist
- Disturbed area calculated, including off-site work and staging areas.
- Stand-alone, infrastructure or common development permit category confirmed.
- Primary permittee identified and registered for GEOS.
- Current GSWCC checklist for the submittal date downloaded and followed.
- ES&PC plan prepared and certified by a Level II design professional.
- Phased controls shown from initial perimeter controls to final stabilization.
- Sediment storage provided for each common drainage location.
- State waters located and 25-foot or 50-foot buffers shown, plus any wider local buffers.
- Buffer variance need identified early, if any encroachment is unavoidable.
- Erosion control, grading and permanent stormwater plans checked against each other.
- Level IA certified person assigned for the site before disturbance begins.
- Inspection, monitoring and record-keeping responsibilities assigned in writing.
Frequently asked questions
Does a small outparcel need NPDES coverage?
Possibly, even under an acre. Coverage generally applies to disturbance of one acre or more, and to smaller sites that are part of a larger common plan of development. An outparcel inside a planned center is a typical common development case. Confirm against the permit definitions for the specific project.
Is the local land disturbance permit the same as NPDES coverage?
No. The local permit is issued by the city or county. NPDES coverage comes from the state general permit through EPD's notice of intent process. A project typically needs both, and they rely on the same ES&PC plan.
Can the grading contractor prepare the erosion control plan?
Only if the person preparing it holds the GSWCC Level II design professional certification, which requires a qualifying professional license or CPESC status. Contractor training at the awareness or fundamentals level does not qualify someone to design the plan.
This article is general information based on Georgia EPD and GSWCC sources reviewed in October 2026. Permits, checklists and certification rules change. Confirm current requirements for the exact project before submitting plans or disturbing land.