Calaveras County, CA Environmental Rules: Stormwater Management (2026)
Key Facts
- Enforcing agency
- Building Department director
- 1st offense penalty
- Up to $1,000 civil fine
- 2nd offense penalty
- Up to $2,000 civil fine
- 3rd+ offense penalty
- Up to $10,000 per offense
- Stop-work violation
- Misdemeanor, up to $10,000 / 6 months
- Appeal deadline
- 10 working days
- Program basis
- County's MS4 discharge permit
Summary
Calaveras County bans discharging anything but stormwater into its county-maintained storm drains and the channels feeding them, covering oil, hazardous waste, sediment, pesticides, sanitary wastewater, and wash-water from car washes and pressure-washing operations. The Building Department enforces the rule as the county's MS4 permit administrator, with stop-work orders and civil penalties that climb to $10,000 per repeat offense.
Except as provided for in paragraph C, below, it shall be unlawful for any person or business to discharge or to allow non-stormwater discharges into county-maintained stormwater drainage systems or into a drainage way which flows into the county-maintained stormwater drainage system. ... Prohibited discharges to county-maintained storm drain systems include, but are not limited to:1.Oil, grease, or other lubricants;2.Hazardous waste materials, including paints, petroleum-based solvents, varnishes, stains, and similar coating materials;3.Gasoline or diesel fuel;4.Sanitary wastewater;5.Sediment;6.Pesticides; including those that contain Pyrethroids;7.Solid waste;8.Discharges from organized car washes;9.Discharges from mobile cleaning and pressure wash operations.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 23 Update 2).
Full Breakdown
Chapter 13.01, Stormwater Quality, rewritten by Ord. No. 3121 in 2019 and amended through Ord. No. 3228 in 2026, exists so the county can meet its discharge-permit obligations as a regulated municipal small storm sewer system (MS4) operator under the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board (§ 13.01.010). The chief building official, called the "director," enforces it and may enter properties at reasonable times to inspect for illicit discharges, with authority to respond to spills and prohibit dumping (§ 13.01.020). Section 13.01.040 bans discharging or allowing any non-stormwater discharge into county-maintained storm drains, naming oil and lubricants, hazardous materials such as paints and solvents, gasoline or diesel fuel, sanitary wastewater, sediment, pesticides including pyrethroids, solid waste, and discharges from organized car washes and mobile pressure-washing operations.
A narrow list of exceptions covers things like water line flushing, incidental landscape runoff, uncontaminated groundwater, potable water sources, air conditioning condensate, individual residential car washing, and dechlorinated pool discharges, but the director can restrict any of these if they significantly contribute to a violation of the State Water Board's Order 2013-0001-DWQ. Discharges regulated directly by the regional or state water board require the discharger's own permit or waiver to be in place and honored (§ 13.01.040(D)). Enforcement runs through a written notice of violation or stop-work order specifying a compliance deadline (§ 13.01.070); the county can perform cleanup itself and bill the property owner, with unpaid costs becoming a lien under Government Code § 54988 (§ 13.01.080); other county permits are withheld while a violation is unabated (§ 13.01.090); and a recorded notice of noncompliance follows thirty days after certified-mail notice to the owner (§ 13.01.100). Decisions can be appealed to the board of supervisors within ten working days (§ 13.01.130).
Violations & Fines
Violating the stormwater discharge ban is declared a public nuisance under § 13.01.110, carrying civil penalties of up to $1,000 for a first offense, $2,000 for a second offense within a year, and up to $10,000 for each offense after that. Ignoring a stop-work order issued under § 13.01.070 is separately a misdemeanor punishable by up to $10,000 and six months in jail. Each day of continuing violation is a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I discharge water from washing my personal car into a Calaveras County storm drain?
What can the county do if I ignore a stormwater stop-work order?
Who enforces Calaveras County's stormwater rules?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Calaveras County
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