Rockingham County, VA Environmental Rules: Erosion Control (2026)

Rockingham County Code § 6B-4 bars any person from engaging in land-disturbing activity within the county, except as exempted under § 6B-5, until the person has submitted an erosion and sediment control plan and certification that it will be followed, the county's plan-approving authority has reviewed and approved that plan, and a land-disturbing permit has been issued. The plan must meet the standards and specifications in the Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control Regulations, incorporated by reference under § 6B-12. Section 6B-5 exempts minor activities such as home gardens, individual home landscaping, septic lines not tied to a construction project, agricultural tilling and harvesting, and disturbed areas under 10,000 square feet outside a larger development plan.

Under § 6B-6, the plan-approving authority must act on a submitted plan within sixty days, and a permittee must post a performance bond, cash escrow or letter of credit before the permit is issued to guarantee the required conservation measures. Section 6B-7 lets the plan-approving authority issue a notice to comply and, where noncompliance risks harmful erosion or sediment deposition, a stop-work order without prior notice. Appeals of the plan-approving authority's decisions go to the Rockingham County Board of Supervisors within thirty days under § 6B-8, then to the circuit court.