Carrollton, TX SWPPP & Stormwater Requirements

What does Carrollton require for SWPPP compliance?

Carrollton's stormwater ordinance requires all operators of construction sites, regardless of size or TPDES permit requirements, to use best management practices to control and reduce the discharge to the MS4 and to surface water of sediment, silt, earth, soil, and other material associated with clearing, grading, excavation, landfilling, and other construction activities to the maximum extent practicable.

The threshold table

Carrollton scales construction site requirements to the size of the disturbed area: under 1 acre the site plans must include an Erosion Control Plan, from 1 to 5 acres the site must create a SWPPP and post a Small Construction Site Notice, and over 5 acres the site must obtain a Notice of Intent through STEERS, create a SWPPP, and post a Large Construction Site Notice.

Three tiers, published plainly — find your acreage and you know your paperwork.

Paperwork lands before the dirt

In Carrollton, large construction sites must submit a signed copy of the NOI and CSN from all operators to the DCO seven days prior to the commencement of construction activities, and small construction sites must submit a signed copy of the CSN from all operators to the DCO at least two days prior to the commencement of construction activities. Carrollton requires the SWPPP to be completed and implemented prior to the beginning of construction activities and submitted, with any modifications, to the DCO for review prior to commencement of construction activity at the site — and the DCO may deny approval of any building permit, grading permit, or any other city approval necessary to commence or continue construction, or to assume occupancy, on the grounds that the SWPPP does not comply.

Days ahead, not the morning of — the city reads the plan before construction starts.

Demolition counts too

Carrollton demolition permit submittals must include a demolition phasing plan with a post-demolition plan delineating what will remain in place (such as seeding to prevent erosion and runoff), an executed SWPPP if the demolition disturbs greater than one acre of area, and a tree preservation plan if there is a protected tree within 50 feet of the demolition work being performed.

Taking a building down is a disturbance like any other, with its own submittal.

Trees on commercial sites

In Carrollton, tree removal permits are required on all commercial and multi-family properties whether or not the tree species is protected, and if the species is protected, the removal must be mitigated by planting replacement trees or paying into the Tree Reforestation Fund.

On commercial and multi-family ground the permit requirement is broad — check before anything comes down.

The program behind it

The City of Carrollton holds TCEQ MS4 authorization TXR040326 with authorization status ACTIVE and authorization type MS4 Level 4, with coverage dating from January 6, 2009.

An active state authorization is what puts the city's ordinance behind the review.

The state permit still applies

The city's rules sit on top of the state's, not in place of them. A stormwater pollution prevention plan (SWP3) must be prepared and implemented before construction activities begin. TXR150000's standard schedule requires construction site inspections at least once every 14 calendar days and within 24 hours of the end of a storm event of 0.5 inches or greater.

The city's ordinance and the state program run together for the life of the disturbance.

Inspections and the record

The operator owns the inspection record from first disturbance to final stabilization. Terradyne provides routine SWPPP inspection reports with cloud-based client access. See SWPPP Inspections for how the program works, and Silt Fence Installation for the perimeter the reviewers will look at first.

Check before you mobilize

Ordinances and city standards get revised; confirm the current documents with the city before you mobilize. For other North Texas cities, start at Local Compliance.