Morgan County, IN Environmental Rules: Stormwater Management (2026)

Morgan County Code § 52.03 requires anyone who develops land or disturbs a half acre or more in unincorporated Morgan County, Indiana to get a Stormwater Management Plan Approval (SWMPA) from the County Surveyor's Office before starting. The application package must include a sealed engineering plan set with erosion-control details, at least one drainage narrative sealed by a professional engineer or licensed surveyor, and, for mineral extraction operations, a certified survey of nearby residents under 312 I.A.C. § 2-3-2 plus a reclamation plan. Projects disturbing more than an acre also need a draft IDEM Notice of Intent so the county can review project information before the applicant files with the state.

Applicants post a bond payable to the County Surveyor's Office equal to 100% of an engineer's itemized estimate for installing and permanently stabilizing the required infrastructure, covering ground roughening, seeding, and mulching. Detention is required at the same half-acre threshold under § 52.04, though the county can waive it for projects like single-family lots, four-lot-or-fewer developments with 10% or less impervious surface, and private ponds outside a larger development plan. Water quality rules in § 52.08 require pretreatment for stormwater practices and bar infiltration systems in contaminated areas, karst terrain, and wellhead protection zones.

Once a project holding a SWMPA finishes, the county inspects the site and requires a completed Notice of Termination form before signing off. Under § 52.10, the county or its designated representative may inspect any site for compliance and, for noncompliance with the subchapter or the county's Stormwater Design Manual, can issue abatement orders, stop-work orders, injunctions, revoke a SWMPA, or bill fees from the Drainage Board's uniform fee schedule referenced in Ordinance 7-3-6.