Ventura, CA Environmental Rules: Stormwater Management (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- SBMC § 8.600.210
- Administered by
- Director of Public Works
- NPDES permit
- No. CAS063339, Order No. 94-082
- Littering into storm drain
- Misdemeanor, § 8.600.250
- Construction plans required
- For projects needing a grading permit
Summary
Chapter 8.600 of the San Buenaventura Municipal Code bars discharging anything but stormwater into the city's storm drain system, backed by the city's Clean Water Act permit obligations. The director of public works enforces the rules with inspections, administrative citations, and nuisance abatement, and construction sites need an approved pollution control plan before grading begins.
Except as specified by this chapter, discharging any material other than stormwater to the storm drain system is prohibited. ... It is unlawful for any person to throw, deposit, leave, maintain, keep, or permit to be thrown, deposited, kept, or maintained, in or upon any public or private driveway, parking area, street, alley, sidewalk, or component of the storm drain system or watercourse, any refuse, rubbish, garbage, litter, or other discarded or abandoned objects, articles, accumulations, and/or pollutants so that the same may cause or contribute to pollution. ... Authorized inspectors may use all legal means, and take all legal remedies, to ensure compliance with, and enforce, this code.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 2026-008, passed May 12, 2026).
Full Breakdown
210 sets the baseline prohibition on discharging any material other than stormwater to the storm drain system, tied to the city's NPDES Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System permit (No. CAS063339, Order No. 110. 220 exempts specific low-risk flows such as potable water line flushing, landscape irrigation, rising groundwater, air conditioning condensation, dechlorinated pool discharges, and noncommercial vehicle washing, so long as they are properly managed. 250 makes it unlawful, and a misdemeanor, to throw or leave refuse, litter, or pollutants where they may reach a driveway, street, or storm drain component.
310 separately bans constructing, maintaining, or using any illicit physical connection to the storm drain system, including connections made in the past. 420, which the director can require recorded against the property. 510, and the director may issue city permits authorizing limited nonstormwater discharges for up to five years under Article 6.
Violations & Fines
Section 8.600.690 makes violating the terms of any stormwater permit unlawful, and Section 8.600.540 authorizes inspectors to use notices of violation, administrative citations, nuisance abatement, and infraction citations, with the city recovering its enforcement costs by council resolution. Littering into the storm drain system is specifically a misdemeanor under Section 8.600.250. Section 8.600.550 further allows the city to file a federal Clean Water Act citizen suit under 33 U.S.C. Section 1365(a) seeking penalties and compliance orders, and to notify the EPA or state and regional water boards of alleged violations.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I wash my car in the driveway in Ventura?
Do I need a stormwater plan to build a new home in Ventura?
What happens if I dump something into a Ventura storm drain?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Ventura
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Stormwater Management in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Ventura County handle stormwater management.