Virginia Law

A. The process for obtaining a General Permit consists of (i) filing a Combined Application with fee to determine the suitability of a discharge point, (ii) obtaining confirmation of a suitable discharge point from the department, and (iii) obtaining coverage under the Department of Environmental Quality's General Permit. Once a General Permit registration has been received, the owner shall file an application for a construction permit as described in 12VAC5-640-240 and shall apply for an operation permit in accordance with 12VAC5-640-266 before a discharge is authorized.

B. All requests for review of a suitable discharge point for discharging systems shall be by written application on the Combined Application, signed by the owner or his agent, and shall be directed to the department.

C. An application shall be deemed complete upon receipt by the department of a signed and dated application and the appropriate fee, containing the following information:

1. The property owner's name, address, and telephone number;

2. The applicant's name, address, and phone number (if different from subdivision 1 of this subsection);

3. A statement signed by the property owner, or his agent, granting the department access to the site for the purposes of evaluating the suitability of the site for a discharging system and allowing the department access to inspect the construction, maintenance and operation of the discharging system after it is installed. The applicant must secure and produce written permission for the department to enter on any property necessary to evaluate the application;

4. A site sketch on a survey plat showing the locations of and setback distances from the proposed discharge point and discharging system components to the following:

a. Location of existing or proposed houses and other structures;

b. Property boundaries;

c. Location of proposed discharge point;

d. Existing and proposed wells, springs, cisterns, or other sources of potable water within 200 feet upslope or 1,600 feet downslope of the proposed discharge point;

e. Actual or proposed discharging systems within 600 feet of the proposed discharge point;

f. Recorded and proposed easements;

g. Existing and proposed overhead and buried utilities such as water lines, electrical lines, phone lines, gas lines, etc.;

h. Sink holes located within 1,600 feet downslope of the proposed discharge point;

i. Other topographical features such as wetlands, lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, drainage ways, and swales, within 200 feet upslope and 600 feet downslope of the proposed discharge point;

j. Slope and side slope of any proposed dry ditch channels;

k. Public water supply intakes; and

l. Swimming or recreational water use areas within one mile upstream or five miles downstream of the proposed discharge point shown on a United States Geological Survey 7.5 minute topographic map or surveyed plat.

The site sketch should be to scale and accompanied by a United States Geological Survey 7.5 minute topographic map to provide information relevant to offsite setbacks;

5. Copies of all easements required by subdivision 2 of 12VAC5-640-450; however, at the discretion of the department, the submission of easements may be postponed until submission of the construction plan if the property owner submits the name, address, and property location of each person that must grant an easement to the owner;

6. If the discharge is to a wetlands, the application must contain a wetland delineation map of the geographic area for wetlands, stream, and open water on site and any other correspondence, approval, or certifications from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers or the Department of Environmental Quality that wetlands were properly identified and delineated;

7. A letter of denial from the department or a certified site and soil evaluation report from a qualified person showing that the requirements of 12VAC5-640-30 D have been satisfied; and

8. Other information that the department deems necessary to comply with the intent of this chapter.

D. Upon receipt of a completed Combined Application the department will conduct a site review to determine if the site meets the minimum criteria contained in Part III (12VAC5-640-390 et seq.) of this chapter. The owner may opt to have a licensed professional engineer conduct the site review and submit appropriate documentation with the application for review by the department. The department may opt to conduct a site review to verify an application submitted by a licensed professional engineer. Upon conducting the site evaluation or upon reviewing the site evaluation conducted by a licensed professional engineer, the department will advise the owner in writing of the results of the evaluation.

1. When a satisfactory site is found for a discharging system, the written notice to the applicant shall include the type of discharge point found (i.e., wetland, all weather stream, intermittent stream, or dry ditch). The completed Combined Application and a copy of the documentation pursuant to 12VAC5-640-30 D shall be forwarded to the Department of Environmental Quality to complete the application process for a General Permit.

2. When no satisfactory discharge point site is found the department shall deny the application in accordance with 12VAC5-640-270. The department shall send a copy of the denial to the Department of Environmental Quality.