Carver County, MN Environmental Rules: Erosion Control (2026)
Key Facts
- Permit trigger
- 1 acre or more of disturbance
- Sensitive-area trigger
- any acreage in sensitive area
- Design standard
- MN General Permit R100001
- Financial security
- letter of credit or cash escrow
- Enforcement
- stop-work order, § 153.71
- Applies to
- unincorporated CCWMO area
Summary
Carver County requires an erosion control permit for any construction activity of one acre or more, or smaller projects within a sensitive area, before ground is disturbed anywhere in the unincorporated Carver County Water Management Organization (CCWMO) area. Control measures must go in before work starts and must stop sediment from reaching state waters or neighboring land.
(A) Carver County adopts and incorporates by reference the erosion and sediment control design and operational standards as set forth in Minnesota Permit R100001 (the general permit authorization to discharge storm water associated with construction activity under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System), as amended from time to time. (B) Land altering activity shall not result in the detrimental deposition of sediment or construction materials into the waters of the state or onto neighboring property. Erosion and sediment control facilities must be installed prior to commencing any construction activity.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2025 S-20: Supplement contains: Local legislation current through Ord. 111-2025, passed 7-25-25).
Full Breakdown
Carver County Code of Ordinances Chapter 153 (Water Resource Management) governs erosion and sediment control for all land-altering activity within the CCWMO, which covers the unincorporated county. 11(A)(1)(a), a permit is required for projects with one acre or more of construction activity outside a sensitive area, for smaller phases of a common plan of development that together reach one acre, for any project under one acre located in a sensitive area, for projects releasing material off-site or into state waters, and for projects creating concentrated discharges over 10 cubic feet per second.
10(C) exempts routine tilling, planting and harvesting, emergency work to protect life or property, fence and utility pole installation, and certain trail, overlay and pavement-reclamation projects from all or part of the chapter, but exemption from formal review does not excuse compliance with the underlying standards. 55 sets the design and operational standard: the county adopts by reference the erosion and sediment control standards of Minnesota's General Permit R100001 (the NPDES construction stormwater permit), and land-altering activity may not result in the detrimental deposition of sediment or construction materials into state waters or onto neighboring property.
Control facilities must be installed before construction activity begins and maintained throughout the project, drawing on best-management-practice guidance in the Minnesota Stormwater Manual and MnDOT's 2006 Erosion Control Handbook. 73 requires the responsible party to post financial security, in the amount set in the county fee schedule, in the form of an irrevocable letter of credit, cash escrow, or other assurance acceptable to the county; federal, state, county, city and township projects are exempt from that security requirement.
Violations & Fines
Under § 153.71, the county may issue stop-work orders, notices of violation, and orders for correction; withhold inspections or a certificate of occupancy; revoke a prior county approval; draw on the § 153.73 financial security; and pursue court action, including injunctive relief, to force compliance. The county may recover the cost of corrective action in a civil action or certify those costs to the County Auditor as a special tax against the property.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does every construction project in Carver County need an erosion control permit?
What standard do erosion control measures have to meet?
What happens if a site is not controlling erosion properly?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Carver County
Compare Carver County to another location·View the Minnesota environmental rules overview
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