Hawaii County, HI Environmental Rules: Erosion Control (2026)

Chapter 10, Erosion and Sedimentation Control, governs any grading, grubbing, or stockpiling on the Big Island. Section 10-9 requires a grading permit for any cut or fill, a grubbing permit for clearing vegetation (except where the land already has a grading permit), and a stockpiling permit once material held for later use exceeds five hundred cubic yards. Section 10-10 spells out what the application must include: a vicinity sketch, boundary lines, the location of nearby structures and any designated historic or archaeological sites, contours, and the square footage and volume of the work.

Grading over fifteen thousand square feet needs a contour map prepared by an engineer or land surveyor, and any cut or fill over fifteen feet, or fill placed over a swamp, pond, gully, or lake, needs an engineer's soils report. Section 10-11 sets the permit fee by the volume of material moved, and section 10-10(e) deems an application approved if the director of public works takes no action within thirty days. Under section 10-26, every permitted operation must also conform to the erosion and sedimentation control standards the department has adopted under HRS chapter 180C.

Several categories are excluded outright under section 10-3, including agricultural operations following an approved soil conservation program, cuts or fills under five feet moving no more than one hundred cubic yards, and grubbing under one acre that does not alter drainage.