Allegany County, MD Environmental Rules: Erosion Control (2026)

Any grading or building permit in unincorporated Allegany County carries a right-of-entry condition under § 360-40: the County and the Soil Conservation District may inspect the site periodically for compliance with the erosion and sediment control chapter. Every site plan must be either a minor plan under § 360-45, prepared on a Planning Commission worksheet showing grading volume, cut and fill depth, slope steepness and drainage handling, or a major plan under § 360-46, sealed by a Maryland-licensed surveyor, landscape architect or engineer, drawn at 24 by 24 inches and covering topography, storm drainage and a construction sequence.

Section 360-44's numeric limits control the physical grading itself: finished slopes in unconsolidated soil cannot exceed 2:1, slopes cutting into exposed bedrock cannot exceed 1:1, and a building site's natural grade before grading must be under 25%, though the Zoning Administrator can vary that figure with the Soil Conservation District's consent depending on slope stability and rock type. Plans must otherwise track the state's Standards and Specifications for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control and COMAR 26.27.01. If an inspection turns up a violation, § 360-42 requires the County to act on a complaint within three days and notify the complainant within seven; § 360-43 lets inspectors order corrective action, and if the deadline passes without a fix, the County can stop work on the site, deny future permits to the applicant, and refer the matter for legal action.

Anyone grading without a permit faces an immediate stop-work order except for the erosion and sediment control work itself. Major modifications to an approved plan, such as adding or deleting a sediment basin, go back through the plan approval agency under § 360-41; inspectors can approve minor field modifications on the spot if documented in a field inspection report.