Old Bridge, NJ Environmental Rules: Erosion Control (2026)

Old Bridge Township Code § 250-91 bars clearing, grading, soil removal, excavating, landfilling, stripping, or altering natural or man-made drainageways on more than 5,000 square feet of land, or any amount in a critical or sensitive area, until the Director of the Department of Community Development issues a land disturbance permit or grants a waiver. In nonresidential zones, a permit is required for clearing regardless of size. Successive smaller disturbances that add up to more than 5,000 square feet within a two-year period are expressly prohibited unless each incident has its own permit.

Limited exemptions exist, including agricultural land under an approved farm conservation plan, lots of an acre or less with an existing residence (unless the disturbance is within 100 feet of a stream), and single-family construction not part of a larger development. Where a construction permit is also needed, the land disturbance permit application must be acted on first. To apply, an applicant must submit to the Department of Community Development four copies of soil erosion and sedimentation control plans identifying the property owner, a surveyed limit-of-disturbance line, and any trees of eight inches DBH or greater proposed for removal.

Before that application can be filed, the erosion and sedimentation control plan itself must already be certified as approved by the SCD, the Freehold Soil Conservation District, and proof of that certification must accompany the permit application. The Township reviews and must act within 30 days or the application is deemed approved, and a denial can be appealed to the approving board or Zoning Board of Adjustment within 10 days. The Director may issue a stop-construction order if work proceeds outside the approved plan.