Hendersonville, TN Environmental Rules: Erosion Control (2026)

Hendersonville Municipal Code Section 18-203 (Land Disturbance and Permanent Stormwater Standards) sets a sliding scale of requirements keyed to Table 18-1: any land use under one acre of disturbance needs a Land Disturbance Permit and Erosion Prevention and Sediment Control (EPSC) plan, commercial or industrial sites under one acre must add a Water Quality Riparian Buffer and Water Quality Design, and any project at or above one acre, or part of a larger common plan of development, must satisfy all four requirements. No building permit issues until the applicant has obtained a land disturbance permit where the same is required by this chapter.

The chapter exempts emergency work necessary to protect life or property, state-defined surface mining, and forestry or agricultural activity, though those actors still must control sediment, illicit discharges, and runoff. EPSC calculations and plans must be prepared by a registered engineer or landscape architect holding an active TDEC Level 2 certification; a permit expires after six months of no site activity, upon permanent stabilization, on issuance of a TDEC Notice of Termination, or three years after issuance, whichever comes first. The City Engineer can require a surety bond, in the form of a letter of credit or cashier's check, sized to the estimated cost of the required stormwater controls, released only after an as-built plan stamped by a registered engineer or landscape architect is approved. Applicants get a written decision within 30 days: approval, conditional approval with stated conditions, or denial with the reasons for denial.