Porter County, IN Environmental Rules: Erosion Control (2026)

The Plan Commission Office administers the erosion control program set out in Chapter 07, Section 7.15 (EC-01) of the Unified Development Ordinance, effective June 15, 2007. The rule applies to all land-disturbing activities in unincorporated Porter County, including grading, clearing, and construction. Projects disturbing less than 10,000 square feet are exempt unless the site sits next to a storm sewer inlet, a ditch or stream acting as a watercourse, or wetlands, or the slope is 6 percent or greater, per Section 7.15(B)(2)(a). Existing agricultural, nursery, and mineral-extraction operations and true emergency work are also exempt.

Before any covered land-disturbing activity starts, the developer must file for an Erosion Control Permit under Section 10.15, submitted to the Plan Commission Office with no filing deadline. Subdivisions submit a full Erosion and Sediment Control Plan with the Primary Plat; commercial and industrial applicants file it with their Improvement Location Permit or Building Permit; single- and two-family home builders instead submit a simpler Erosion and Sediment Control Sketch Plan showing surface-slope arrows, watercourses, and silt-fence placement as part of their Building Permit application. At minimum, those house lots must run silt fencing along the road frontage and around the perimeter of disturbed ground, and use a stone construction entrance pad. The Executive Director calculates the permit fee once the application is complete, and it is due before the permit issues. Once work begins, soil must be stabilized against wind and water erosion within 5 days of clearing, and sites disturbing more than 30 acres may be required to proceed in phases approved by the Plan Commission.