TAKE ACTION: Vesting of SWM in Baltimore County

ATTENTION BUILDERS & DEVELOPERS

As you may know, the Maryland Stormwater Act of 2007 requires ESD to the MEP- environmental site design to the maximum extent practicable.

Many development projects received an administrative waiver and will be exempt from providing ESD to the MEP if the project:

Received preliminary project approval prior to May 4, 2010
Received final stormwater management approval prior to May 4, 2013
Construction is “completed” by May 4, 2017

The question, however, has been: what constitutes “completed”?

Last week, Baltimore County indicated that to be considered “completed” there must be actual construction of the stormwater management (SWM) facilities and a partial as-built must be filed prior to May 4, 2017. The as-built does not have to be County approved by the 2017 date and construction does not have to be finished (for instance, sediment basins do not need to be converted to SWM ponds).

Please also note that the County will no longer recertify stormwater plans which are not designed using ESD. This also applies to SWM plans approved prior to May 4, 2010, not just those which received an administrative waiver. SWM plans are typically valid for three years from the time of approval. If these older plans expire, the project is subject to ESD to the MEP. Therefore, a stormwater plan approved in 2012 will expire in 2015- not 2017- unless a permit has been obtained. Permits are valid for up to two years.

We recommend that developers pursue obtaining stormwater permits within the lifespan of the approved stormwater management plan and begin construction during the life of the permit. If you need further assistance, please contact us at D.S. Thaler & Associates, Inc.