Tonawanda, NY Environmental Rules: Stormwater Management (2026)

Adopted November 19, 2007 as Local Law No. 9-2007, Chapter 73 regulates construction activities across the Town of Tonawanda outside the Village of Kenmore, implementing the state's SPDES general permits for municipal separate storm sewer systems and construction activity. Section 73-4 requires every owner and occupant to keep natural drainage courses, meaning any stream, ditch, culvert or watercourse other than a sewer, clear and unobstructed, and bars altering or obstructing one without Town Board approval. The Town Board appoints a Stormwater Management Officer (SMO) to accept and review stormwater pollution prevention plans (SWPPPs) for any construction activity requiring one.

Under § 73-8, no application for a construction activity can be reviewed until the SMO receives a SWPPP that meets the chapter's specifications, and larger or more sensitive projects, such as those disturbing five or more acres or discharging to an impaired waterway, must also include postconstruction water quantity and quality controls. A handful of activities are exempt, including agriculture, routine maintenance disturbing under five acres, home gardening, and construction already approved before the chapter took effect. The SMO can inspect a site before, during and after construction, requiring 48 hours' notice for milestones like the start of construction or completion of grading, and can demand as-built plans certified by a licensed professional once a stormwater facility is finished.

Violations bring a written notice of violation, appealable within 15 days, and the Town of Tonawanda may withhold a certificate of occupancy or require restoration of disturbed land.