Noblesville, IN Environmental Rules: Erosion Control (2026)
Key Facts
- Reviewing body
- Technical Advisory Committee
- Trigger
- any Improvement Location Permit
- Design standard
- Indiana Heartland Urban Development Planning Guide
- Manual
- Stormwater Technical Standards Manual Ch. 600
- Cross-reference
- stormwater ordinance §§ 52.30 et seq.
Summary
Any development in the City of Noblesville that needs an Improvement Location Permit must first have an Erosion Control Plan reviewed by the Technical Advisory Committee. The plan addresses soil types, grading limits and drainage before ground is disturbed, and no improvement location permit or building permit follows until the Planning Department confirms compliance, including a certified elevation certificate.
All proposed development that requires an Improvement Location Permit shall meet the applicable criteria set forth herein concerning types of soils involved and the conditions which are requisite to assure proper execution of erosion and sediment control and proper drainage. (A) General Requirements. (1) No changes shall be made in the contour of the land; nor shall grading, excavating, removal, or destruction of the topsoil, trees, or other vegetative cover of the land be commenced, until an Erosion Control Plan has been reviewed by the Technical Advisory Committee or there has been a determination by the Technical Advisory Committee that such plans are not necessary. ... (4) No improvement location permit shall be issued for grading, excavating, removal or destruction of topsoil, trees, or other vegetative cover of land until approval has been received from the Technical Advisory Committee. (5) No building permit shall be issued until the Planning Department has received and reviewed a certified elevation certificate regarding the parcels of land for which an improvement location permit was issued and a building permit is sought.
Full Breakdown
Noblesville Code of Ordinances § 159.084 bars any grading, excavating, or removal of topsoil, trees or vegetative cover on a development site until an Erosion Control Plan has been reviewed by the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), unless the TAC determines a plan is unnecessary. The Erosion Control Plan is reviewed alongside the development plan and becomes part of it, though an applicant may file and have the plan reviewed ahead of the rest of the development plan solely to obtain a Preliminary Grading Permit. The applicant bears the cost of any additional information, reports or plans the TAC needs, including pre- and post-development elevations.
No improvement location permit can be issued for grading, excavating or vegetation removal until the TAC signs off, and no building permit follows until the Planning Department has reviewed a certified elevation certificate for the parcel. Under § 159.084(B), the TAC measures control plans against the National Cooperative Soil Survey, the Indiana Heartland Urban Development Planning Guide, and Chapter 600 of the City of Noblesville Stormwater Technical Standards Manual, drawing on guidance from the USDA Soil Conservation Service, the Hamilton County Soil & Water Conservation District, the Hamilton County Drainage Board and the Indiana DNR Division of Water.
Design measures include minimizing disturbed area and exposure time, stabilizing soils quickly, using temporary vegetation and mulching, and trapping sediment in debris or sediment basins until the site is stabilized. The chapter also cross-references the separate stormwater ordinance, No. 24-4-05, codified at §§ 52.30 et seq., which regulates runoff during and after construction.
Violations & Fines
Erosion control violations fall under the Unified Development Ordinance's general penalty, § 159.999: any violation is a common nuisance, and a convicted violator may be fined per the fee schedule in Appendix A and must pay the city's and the Planning Department's attorneys' fees and costs of adjudication. Each day a violation continues after a notice of violation is a separate offense. In practice, the Technical Advisory Committee's refusal to clear a plan blocks the improvement location permit and building permit outright until the erosion measures are corrected.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does every construction project in Noblesville need an Erosion Control Plan?
Can I get a permit to grade my lot before the full development plan is approved?
What happens if I skip the erosion control review?
Sources & Official References
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