Skip to main content

Environmental Rules in Kansas (2026)

48 rules on the books across Kansas, 11 cities and counties. Select a rule to read the full details.

Severity: Few Restrictions · Light Restrictions · Some Restrictions · Significant Restrictions · Heavy Restrictions

Stormwater Management

Requirements for managing rainwater runoff on your property, including retention basins, permeable surfaces, and drainage plans.

Kansas: statewide

StatewideHeavy Restrictions

Kansas regulates stormwater discharges statewide through KDHE's NPDES program under K.S.A. 65-164 and 65-165, requiring…

Read full rule →

Overland Park

Heavy Restrictions

Overland Park holds its own NPDES MS4 permit from KDHE and runs two ordinances: 16.210 requires treatment of runoff…

Read full rule →

Shawnee County

Significant Restrictions

Shawnee County bans any discharge into its storm drainage system that isn't 'entirely of uncontaminated stormwater.'…

Read full rule →

Wichita

Significant Restrictions

Wichita Municipal Code Sec. 16.32.020 bars introducing anything but stormwater into the city's municipal separate storm…

Read full rule →

Wyandotte County

Significant Restrictions

New development and redevelopment in Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas must provide post-construction stormwater…

Read full rule →

Johnson County

Some Restrictions

Unincorporated Johnson County requires a land-disturbing (LD) permit before grading, clearing, or otherwise disturbing…

Read full rule →

Lawrence

Some Restrictions

In the City of Lawrence, releasing anything but uncontaminated stormwater into the storm drainage system is unlawful…

Read full rule →

Lenexa

Some Restrictions

In the City of Lenexa, Kansas, new development and redevelopment cannot increase the quantity and rate of stormwater…

Read full rule →

Louisburg

Some Restrictions

The City of Louisburg funds storm water management through a dedicated monthly utility charge rather than a standalone…

Read full rule →

Olathe

Some Restrictions

Roof drains, sump pump discharges and French drains on Olathe homes must end at least four feet inside the property…

Read full rule →

Topeka

Some Restrictions

Every developed property in Topeka pays a monthly stormwater drainage fee based on impervious area and dwelling units…

Read full rule →

Erosion Control

Rules to prevent soil erosion during construction and landscaping, including required sediment barriers and ground cover standards.

Kansas: statewide

StatewideHeavy Restrictions

Kansas requires statewide erosion and sediment controls on construction sites disturbing one or more acres under KDHE's…

Read full rule →

Johnson County

Significant Restrictions

Disturbing an acre or more of land in unincorporated Johnson County requires an LD permit and an approved stormwater…

Read full rule →

Lawrence

Significant Restrictions

In the City of Lawrence, any construction site or subdivision that disturbs one acre or more of soil must have a…

Read full rule →

Shawnee County

Significant Restrictions

Any construction site in unincorporated Shawnee County that disturbs soil or removes vegetation must implement an…

Read full rule →

Wyandotte County

Significant Restrictions

Anyone clearing, grading, or disturbing land in Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas needs a land disturbance permit…

Read full rule →

Lenexa

Some Restrictions

In the City of Lenexa, Kansas, no one can start land disturbance without a permit from the Community Development…

Read full rule →

Louisburg

Some Restrictions

City Code § 4-1001 adopts the 'City of Louisburg Erosion and Sediment Control Standards for Building Construction on…

Read full rule →

Olathe

Some Restrictions

Olathe requires a land disturbance permit before any grading begins; small projects disturbing under an acre, with…

Read full rule →

Overland Park

Some Restrictions

A land disturbance permit from Planning and Development Services precedes clearing, grading, filling or excavating. The…

Read full rule →

Sedgwick County

Some Restrictions

Unincorporated Sedgwick County requires erosion prevention and sediment control BMPs on every land-disturbing…

Read full rule →

Topeka

Some Restrictions

Any Topeka construction project disturbing an acre or more needs a state NPDES stormwater pollution prevention plan…

Read full rule →

Wichita

Some Restrictions

Wichita requires a grading permit and approved drainage plan for construction that disturbs one acre or more of land…

Read full rule →

Flood Zones

Building requirements for properties in FEMA flood zones, including elevation standards, flood insurance mandates, and construction limits.

Kansas: statewide

StatewideHeavy Restrictions

Kansas regulates floodplain development statewide under K.S.A. 12-766 and the NFIP, with the Division of Water…

Read full rule →

Lenexa

Significant Restrictions

In the City of Lenexa, Kansas, any development or substantial improvement in a Special Flood Hazard Area or Zone X…

Read full rule →

Olathe

Significant Restrictions

Any construction or substantial improvement inside Olathe's mapped Special Flood Hazard Areas, FEMA's A, AE, AO, and AH…

Read full rule →

Overland Park

Significant Restrictions

Overland Park requires a floodplain development permit for any construction, substantial improvement or…

Read full rule →

Wyandotte County

Significant Restrictions

Any development in a mapped A, AE, AO, or AH flood zone in Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas requires a floodplain…

Read full rule →

Johnson County

Some Restrictions

Johnson County bars new septic tanks, absorption fields and most onsite wastewater systems from FEMA's Special Flood…

Read full rule →

Lawrence

Some Restrictions

In the City of Lawrence, any building permit application must include a site plan marking flood hazard areas, floodways…

Read full rule →

Louisburg

Some Restrictions

In the City of Louisburg, flood hazard areas are established under Louisburg City Code § 4-102, which amends…

Read full rule →

Sedgwick County

Some Restrictions

Unincorporated Sedgwick County requires a floodplain development permit before any construction, fill, grading or…

Read full rule →

Topeka

Some Restrictions

Any construction, fill, or manufactured-home placement in Topeka's mapped flood hazard areas requires a floodplain…

Read full rule →

Wichita

Some Restrictions

Wichita requires a separate floodplain development permit before any construction, substantial improvement, or…

Read full rule →

Flood Elevation Requirements

FEMA NFIP minimum base flood elevation (BFE) construction standards for properties in mapped flood zones, including freeboard requirements above BFE.

Sedgwick County

Significant Restrictions

Unincorporated Sedgwick County requires new and substantially improved residential structures in mapped special flood…

Read full rule →

Johnson County

Some Restrictions

Johnson County's Environmental Sanitary Code sets a hard freeboard number for wastewater lagoons in the floodplain…

Read full rule →

Lawrence

Some Restrictions

In the City of Lawrence, once the lowest floor of a building in a flood hazard area, including the basement, is placed…

Read full rule →

Lenexa

Some Restrictions

In the City of Lenexa, Kansas, a new or substantially improved building in a Special Flood Hazard Area must put its…

Read full rule →

Louisburg

Some Restrictions

For any building going up in a mapped flood hazard area, the City of Louisburg requires two separate elevation checks…

Read full rule →

Olathe

Some Restrictions

Olathe requires new or substantially improved residential structures in the 100-year floodplain to elevate their lowest…

Read full rule →

Overland Park

Some Restrictions

New construction or substantial improvement in Overland Park's mapped Special Flood Hazard Areas must set the lowest…

Read full rule →

Topeka

Some Restrictions

Topeka requires new construction and substantial improvements in mapped A, AE, and AH flood zones to elevate the lowest…

Read full rule →

Wichita

Some Restrictions

Wichita requires new or substantially improved homes in the mapped floodplain to raise their lowest floor, including…

Read full rule →

Wyandotte County

Some Restrictions

New and substantially improved residential and non-residential structures in Wyandotte County's mapped flood zones must…

Read full rule →