Hammond, IN Environmental Rules: Erosion Control (2026)

Hammond Code of Ordinances Sec. C. 5-5, so the operator must develop a construction plan with a stormwater pollution prevention plan (SWPPP) before the city will issue a land disturbance permit. Sec. 016 extends that duty to any project in the Hammond Stormwater Management District where clearing, grading, excavation or filling disturbs 1 acre or more, or where a smaller disturbance is part of a larger common plan that will eventually reach 1 acre, and the SWPPP must be approved by the Division of Stormwater Management (DSM) before any land disturbing work starts.

Agricultural land disturbance and forest harvesting are exempt, as are closed landfills, permitted coal mining, permitted municipal solid waste landfills and INDOT roadway projects, provided their own permits already require immediate erosion control. Sec. 020's general requirements spell out the actual fieldwork: design to fit the site's existing topography and soils rather than cutting and filling steep slopes, keep natural vegetation in place near watercourses and lakes, and stabilize any area with less than 70% cover that will sit inactive for 15 days or more.

Site work must proceed in a sequence that exposes the smallest practical area for the shortest practical time, drainage channels and swales must be designed so their velocities will not erode the receiving channel, and a stable construction entrance is required at every point where traffic enters or leaves the site. Concrete truck washout areas must be clearly posted, and public or private roadways must be kept clear of tracked-out sediment without hosing it into the storm system.