Colonie, NY Environmental Rules: Stormwater Management (2026)

Article XIV of the Town of Colonie Zoning Code sets the rules. Any land development activity under site plan or subdivision review must submit a SWPPP with the application; activities outside that review disturbing more than one acre must file a SWPPP directly with the Stormwater Management Office, and any project that increases impervious cover must submit plans for review. A grading permit will not issue until the Town approves the SWPPP in writing. Every plan needs, at minimum, an erosion and sediment control plan meeting the state Standards and Specifications for Erosion and Sediment Control and the Town's highway and drainage standards.

Projects disturbing one to five acres, disturbing five acres or more, or discharging to a DEC-listed impaired water or TMDL watershed must also submit a post-construction report on water quantity and quality controls, with a maintenance schedule and recorded easements; higher-risk projects require the SWPPP to be signed by a professional engineer, landscape architect, CPESC, or soil scientist. Ten activities are exempt from the permit step, including agricultural activity, routine maintenance disturbing under five acres, cemetery graves, and home gardening, though exempt work still must meet the article's design standards.

The Commissioner of Public Works enforces the article, requiring 48 hours' notice before key construction milestones and issuing written notices of violation, with 15 days to appeal. The Town can order a stop-work order, withhold a certificate of occupancy, and require a performance bond or letter of credit before construction begins.