Environmental Rules in Arkansas (2026)

Arkansas regulates stormwater discharges through the Department of Energy and Environment Division of Environmental…

Site work in unincorporated Benton County triggers a stormwater review: Sec. 38-1 has the planning office check every…

In the City of Conway, Arkansas, any clearing, grading, excavation or land-altering activity that disturbs bare soil…

Fort Smith requires written approval from the Department of Engineering before any storm drainage facility, pipe…

In unincorporated Garland County, no storm drainage facility, including pipes, channels or streams, can be built…

Jonesboro requires a Stormwater Management Plan (SWMP) reviewed by the city engineer before anyone develops…

Little Rock requires a city grading permit before major land disturbance, with drainage and erosion controls mandatory…

Pulaski County adopted an official Stormwater Management Policy by ordinance in 2007, governing drainage and runoff…

Sebastian County requires a floodplain development permit before any grading, filling, dredging, drainage improvement…

Springdale governs stormwater drainage design under a citywide Drainage Criteria Manual adopted by ordinance and…

Any construction disturbing one acre or more in Washington County needs coverage under Arkansas DEQ's construction…

White County Code § 1200.02 protects county road ditches and drainage systems from being blocked. It bars placing pipe…

Construction sites in unincorporated Garland County disturbing one acre or more, or any commercial site regardless of…

Any construction site in unincorporated Benton County that disturbs an acre or more of soil, including a single lot…

In the City of Conway, Arkansas, every permitted construction site, including single-family builds, must keep erosion…

Fort Smith requires a grading permit before altering one acre or more of land, or grading within 15 feet of a utility…

Jonesboro requires a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan and grading permit before disturbing one acre or more of land…

Little Rock requires a grading permit before clearing, filling, cutting, or construction disturbing land, and mandates…

Filling, grading, or altering drainage in a Pulaski County flood hazard area requires a floodplain development permit…

Springdale requires an approved development plan before the city will issue a grading permit or building permit for…

Construction sites in Washington County must control erosion and sediment under Arkansas DEQ permit ARR150000 once one…

Fayetteville protects streams with buffer zones under Section 168.12. A 25-foot waterside zone and 25-foot management…

Arkansas participates in the National Flood Insurance Program through the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission. State…

Any construction or land alteration in a Benton County special flood hazard area needs a development permit before work…

Fort Smith bars any development, building, filling, grading, or land alteration, inside a mapped floodplain or floodway…

Garland County adopted a Flood Damage Prevention Code covering every special flood hazard area on FEMA's Garland County…

Any grading, fill, construction or utility work in a Little Rock special flood hazard area needs a floodplain…

Pulaski County requires a floodplain development permit for any construction, fill, or land alteration in a special…

Any structural work, fill, grading, drilling, or utility installation in a special flood hazard area in unincorporated…

Springdale adopts a Flood Damage Prevention Code by reference and regulates all development in FEMA special flood…

In the City of Conway, Arkansas, land-altering work on any site inside a designated floodplain needs a Floodplain…

In unincorporated Craighead County, all development is governed by a flood damage prevention regulatory code the Quorum…

Faulkner County requires full compliance with its Flood Damage Prevention Code before anyone builds, alters or changes…

Jonesboro adopts FEMA's flood insurance study and rate maps, effective September 26, 2024, to define its special flood…

Pope County adopted its Flood Damage Prevention Code under § 285.00, using authority the state gives counties in A.C.A…

Saline County's Quorum Court adopted the Flood Damage Prevention Code by ordinance to regulate development inside…

Washington County regulates development in Special Flood Hazard Areas under its Flood Damage Prevention Program. The…

In unincorporated White County, any construction, fill, grading, or use change within a Special Flood Hazard Area shown…

In the City of Conway, Arkansas, private boat docks, boathouses, and piers at Beaverfork Lake need written City Council…

Sec. 34-67 of the Little Rock Code stops licensed tour service vehicles from sitting with the engine idling while…

New residential structures in Sebastian County's AE or A1-30 flood zones must have their lowest floor built one foot…

New and substantially improved buildings in Benton County's mapped flood hazard zones must have their lowest floor at…

For subdivision development in unincorporated Craighead County, § 1200.00(16) bars any plat with lots or building sites…

In special flood hazard areas, Fort Smith requires new and substantially improved residential structures to elevate…

Any lot in a local or FEMA-mapped special flood hazard area must show the effective base flood elevation on the record…

New and substantially improved residential structures in Little Rock's AE and A1-30 flood zones must sit at least one…

Pulaski County requires new or substantially improved homes in a mapped flood hazard area to elevate the lowest floor…