Stormwater Quality Permit (SWQP)

As part of Boulder County’s water quality protection and municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4) construction program, a stormwater quality permit (SWQP) is required for construction projects that:

Disturb one acre or more in size;
Are less than one acre and construction activity is part of a larger common plan of development that will ultimately disturb one acre or more, even if multiple, separate, and distinct land development activities may take place at different times; or,
Disturb less than one acre and are within 100 horizontal feet of a watercourse.
- See Guidance for Small Construction Projects
- View the Boulder County Stormwater Map

Use the SWQP Application Flowchart to help understand the process of obtaining a permit.

All construction projects with soil disturbance require the use of control measures even if they do not require a permit.

County Engineer Determination

The County Engineer may require a SWQP regardless of the size of the total disturbed area, in conjunction with approval of a final subdivision plat, special use permit, or other site specific development plan under the Land Use Code, or if construction is adjacent to a watercourse or wetlands.
When a project’s construction activities are deemed to be low risk, less than an acre, or outside of the urbanized area, a determination can be made that a
SWQP is not required. The applicant is asked to provide a completed SWQP Exception Request Form.

Contact Information

For more information, please contact the Public Works Stormwater Permit Team:

- Alli Kelly – 720-237-2384
- stormwater@bouldercounty.gov

Submittal Requirements

For projects disturbing one-acre or more or are part of a larger common plan for development:

For projects disturbing less than one-acre within 100-feet of a waterway:

Stormwater Quality Permit Application
SWQP Checklist for Small Projects
Stormwater Management Site Plans
Control Measure Construction Details

Submit the information one of three ways:

1. Email (preferred method) – ezbp@bouldercounty.org
2. Deliver to – Community Planning & Permitting – Building Safety, 2045 13th St., Boulder, CO 80302
3. Mail – Community Planning & Permitting – Building Safety, P.O. Box 471, Boulder, CO 80306

NOTE – No clearing, grubbing, earthwork, or construction may occur prior to an initial inspection.

After initial inspection approval, the permit will be issued and emailed to the applicant.

Application Permit Fees

Fees can be paid two ways:

Through the online permitting system that can be found by visiting https://www.bouldercounty.gov/property-and-land/land-use/search-records/
By email to ezbp@bouldercounty.gov.

The SWQP fee is calculated based on the area of disturbance (see table below). The fee is waived for County Capital Improvement Program projects. A Compliance Re-inspection Fee ($125/inspection) is invoiced for each re-inspection due to non-compliance with SWQP requirements.

Total Site Disburbances in Acres	Permit & Plan Review Fee	Initial Inspection Fee	Routine Inspection Fee	Total Fee
<1.00	$116	$58	N/A	$174
1 - 1.5	$116	$58	$580	$754
1.51 - 2	$135.33	$77.33	$688.75	$901.41
2.01 - 2.5	$154.67	$96.67	$812	$1,063.33
2.51 - 3.0	$174	$116	$949.75	.$1,239.75
3.01 - 3.50	$193.33	$135.33	$1,102	$1,430.66
3.51 - 4	$212.67	$154.67	$1,268.75	$1,636.08
4.01 - 4.5	$232	$174	$1,450	$1,856
4.51 - 5	$251.33	$193.33	$1,645.75	$2,090.41
5.01+	$270.67	$212.67	$1,856	$2,339.33

When are permanent stromwater management facilities required?

Post-construction controls (also known as Permanent Stormwater Control Measures or SCM’s) are required for sites within Boulder County’s urbanized area disturbing one-acre or greater or are part of a larger common plan of development disturbing an acre or greater.

View Boulder County’s urbanized area on Boulder County Stormwater Map. Enter the address in the search field and select the “Urban Area” layer. The urban area will be shown in red if it is present on the selected parcel.

There are some types of development and redevelopment sites that may qualify for an exclusion from post-construction controls. For more information, view the Guidance for Post-Construction Stormwater Management and the Post-Construction Checklist for submittal requirements.

Requesting reduced inspection frequencies

If construction is completed and seeding and final stabilization practices have been implemented, a reduced inspection frequency may be requested by scheduling a site meeting with the designated MS4 Compliance Inspector. Contact the Public Works Department (info below) if you don’t know who is designated as your MS4 Compliance Inspector.

Requesting permit close-out

If construction is completed and the site meets the items listed below, a close out inspection may be scheduled with the designated MS4 Compliance Inspector:

All areas have achieved final stabilization (70% of pre-disturbance vegetation with uniform density on areas not stabilized with other non-erosive surfaces)
All work areas have been left free of sediment and construction debris/waste
No evidence of damage from the contractor to public infrastructure
Temporary control measures (BMPs) have been removed

If all of the above have been completed, contact the Stormwater Permit Team at stormwater@bouldercounty.gov.

Why stormwater management is important

Polluted stormwater runoff from construction sites often flows to storm drain systems and is ultimately discharged into local streams and rivers, destroying aquatic habitat. Sediment is usually the main pollutant of concern, but there are others:

Solid and sanitary wastes
Phosphorus and nitrogen from fertilizers
Concrete (uncured concrete is highly alkaline)
Construction chemicals, debris, and trash
Oil and grease
Pesticides

Sedimentation runoff from construction sites is typically 10 to 20 times greater than those from agricultural lands, and 1,000 to 2,000 times greater than those from forested lands.

While a SWQP may not be required, contractors must use appropriate control measures to contain pollutants at all times.

Questions, comments, and concerns

If you need to speak with a Stormwater Quality Permit team member, please contact:

Alli Kelly
- 720-237-2384
- Email – stormwater@bouldercounty.gov

Contact Us

SWQP Documents

You may need a State permit for stormwater discharges associated with construction activities

A new State of Colorado Discharge Permit System (CDPS) COR400000 was issued April 1, 2019. Depending on the size of your project, you may need CDPS certification. Learn more.