Environmental Rules in Somerville, MA (2026)
4 verified environmental rules for Somerville, Massachusetts, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Stormwater Management
Somerville is an EPA MS4 community. Projects disturbing 1 acre need NPDES permits; local review kicks in at 500 sq ft of new impervious surface.
Somerville Stormwater Management Rules
Heavy RestrictionsMass. Gen. Laws ch. 131, § 40 (Wetlands Protection Act — Stormwater Discharges Affecting Wetlands, Riverfront Areas, and Lands Subject to Flooding) (Massachusetts General Laws; applies to all cities/towns within the county)
Section 40. No person shall remove, fill, dredge or alter any bank, riverfront area, fresh water wetland, coastal wetland, beach, dune, flat, marsh, meadow or swamp bordering on the ocean or on any estuary, creek, river, stream, pond, or lake, or any land under said waters or any land subject to tidal action, coastal storm flowage, or flooding, other than in the course of maintaining, repairing...
Erosion Control
Somerville requires a site construction permit from the city engineer before any land-disturbing work, including clearing, grading, paving or excavation, that could increase stormwater runoff or introduce pollutants to the storm drainage system. The ordinance implements the city's federal NPDES stormwater permit and targets erosion and sedimentation from construction sites citywide.
Somerville Construction Erosion Control Rules
Some RestrictionsSomerville, MA Code of Ordinances § 11-146
No person may undertake a construction activity, including clearing, grading, paving, and excavation, that results in a land disturbance that could potentially increase runoff or introduce pollutants to the city's storm drainage system without a site construction permit from the city engineer... The city engineer shall enforce this section and any regulation, decision, permit or order issued un...
Flood Zones
Any development in Somerville's Zone AE floodplain, from a new structure to a fence or shed, needs a Special Permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals under the FP overlay district. Encroachments into a regulatory floodway are prohibited unless an engineering study shows no rise in flood levels.
Somerville Flood Zone Development Rules
Significant RestrictionsSomerville Zoning Ordinance §§ 8.3.3, 8.3.6(c), 8.3.8(a)
8.3.3 Applicability a. This section is applicable to real property located in the FP overlay district. i. The FP overlay district includes all special flood hazard areas within the City of Somerville designated as Zone AE on the Middlesex County Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) dated July 8, 2025... 8.3.6 Development Review c. All development within the FP overlay district including, but not lim...
Flood Elevation Requirements
Somerville regulates the FP overlay district covering all Zone AE special flood hazard areas on the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map. Any development there, including fences, sheds, additions or new construction, needs a Special Permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals and must meet the Massachusetts State Building Code's floodplain elevation standards.
Somerville Flood Elevation Rules
Significant RestrictionsSomerville Zoning Ordinance §§ 8.3.6(c), 8.3.7(a)(i)
All development within the FP overlay district including, but not limited to, new construction or modification of an existing structure, placement of a manufactured home, placement of an agricultural facility, fences, sheds, storage facilities or drilling, mining, paving and any other development that might increase flooding or adversely impact flood risks to other properties requires a Special...