Davidson County, NC Environmental Rules: Stormwater Management (2026)

The ordinance, enacted December 14, 1993 under G.S. §§ 153A, 160A and Chapter 143, Article 21, applies only within areas the N.C. Environmental Management Commission has designated as a Public Water Supply Watershed on the county's official Watershed Protection Map (§ 152.02, § 152.03). Density and built-upon limits scale by watershed classification: in WS-III Critical Areas, single-family development is capped at one dwelling per acre and all other development at 12% built-upon area; in WS-III and WS-IV Balance-of-Watershed areas the cap rises to 24% built-upon area, with up to 10% of the balance eligible for a Special Nonresidential Intensity Allocation (SNIA) permitting 70% built-upon area on a project-by-project basis, approved by the Watershed Administrator (§ 152.26).

A minimum 50-foot vegetative buffer is required along all perennial waters shown on USGS 1:24,000 topographic maps, and no new development may occur in that buffer except water-dependent structures, flagpoles, signs, security lights or public road crossings and greenways with no practical alternative (§ 152.28). No building, built-upon area, or change of land use may proceed, and no building permit may be issued, until the Watershed Administrator issues a Watershed Protection Permit confirming conformity with the chapter; single-family homes on lots deeded before the ordinance's effective date are exempted (§ 152.32, § 152.33). No structure may be occupied until the Administrator also issues a Watershed Protection Occupancy Permit.