                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

DEFINITIONS (§ 62.1-44.15:51)

As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning:
		&#8220;Agreement in lieu of a plan&#8221; means a contract between the VESCP
authority and the owner that specifies conservation measures that must be
implemented in the construction of a (i) single-family detached residential
structure or (ii) farm building or structure on a parcel of land with a total
impervious cover percentage, including the impervious cover from the farm
building or structure to be constructed, of less than five percent; this
contract may be executed by the VESCP authority in lieu of a formal site plan.
		&#8220;Applicant&#8221; means any person submitting an erosion and sediment
control plan for approval in order to obtain authorization for land-disturbing
activities to commence.
		&#8220;Certified inspector&#8221; means an employee or agent of a VESCP
authority who (i) holds a certification from the Board in the area of project
inspection or (ii) is enrolled in the Board&#8217;s training program for project
inspection and successfully completes such program within one year after
enrollment.
		&#8220;Certified plan reviewer&#8221; means an employee or agent of a VESCP
authority who (i) holds a certification from the Board in the area of plan
review, (ii) is enrolled in the Board&#8217;s training program for plan review
and successfully completes such program within one year after enrollment, or
(iii) is licensed as a professional engineer, architect, landscape architect,
land surveyor pursuant to Article 1 (§ 54.1-400 et seq.) of Chapter 4 of Title
54.1, or professional soil scientist as defined in § 54.1-2200.
		&#8220;Certified program administrator&#8221; means an employee or agent of a
VESCP authority who (i) holds a certification from the Board in the area of
program administration or (ii) is enrolled in the Board&#8217;s training program
for program administration and successfully completes such program within one
year after enrollment.
		&#8220;Department&#8221; means the Department of Environmental Quality.
		&#8220;Director&#8221; means the Director of the Department of Environmental
Quality.
		&#8220;District&#8221; or &#8220;soil and water conservation district&#8221;
means a political subdivision of the Commonwealth organized in accordance with
the provisions of Article 3 (§ 10.1-506 et seq.) of Chapter 5 of Title 10.1.
		&#8220;Erosion and sediment control plan&#8221; or &#8220;plan&#8221; means a
document containing material for the conservation of soil and water resources of
a unit or group of units of land. It may include appropriate maps, an
appropriate soil and water plan inventory and management information with needed
interpretations, and a record of decisions contributing to conservation
treatment. The plan shall contain all major conservation decisions to ensure
that the entire unit or units of land will be so treated to achieve the
conservation objectives.
		&#8220;Erosion impact area&#8221; means an area of land that is not associated
with a current land-disturbing activity but is subject to persistent soil
erosion resulting in the delivery of sediment onto neighboring properties or
into state waters. This definition shall not apply to any lot or parcel of land
of 10,000 square feet or less used for residential purposes or to shorelines
where the erosion results from wave action or other coastal processes.
		&#8220;Farm building or structure&#8221; means the same as that term is
defined in § 36-97 and also includes any building or structure used for
agritourism activity, as defined in § 3.2-6400, and any related impervious
surfaces including roads, driveways, and parking areas.
		&#8220;Land disturbance&#8221; or &#8220;land-disturbing activity&#8221; means
any man-made change to the land surface that may result in soil erosion or has
the potential to change its runoff characteristics, including the clearing,
grading, excavating, transporting, and filling of land.
		&#8220;Natural channel design concepts&#8221; means the utilization of
engineering analysis and fluvial geomorphic processes to create, rehabilitate,
restore, or stabilize an open conveyance system for the purpose of creating or
recreating a stream that conveys its bankfull storm event within its banks and
allows larger flows to access its bankfull bench and its floodplain.
		&#8220;Owner&#8221; means the same as provided in § 62.1-44.3. For a
land-disturbing activity that is regulated under this article,
&#8220;owner&#8221; also includes the owner or owners of the freehold of the
premises or lesser estate therein, mortgagee or vendee in possession, assignee
of rents, receiver, executor, trustee, lessee, or other person, firm, or
corporation in control of a property.
		&#8220;Peak flow rate&#8221; means the maximum instantaneous flow from a given
storm condition at a particular location.
		&#8220;Person&#8221; means any individual, partnership, firm, association,
joint venture, public or private corporation, trust, estate, commission, board,
public or private institution, utility, cooperative, county, city, town, or
other political subdivision of the Commonwealth, governmental body, including a
federal or state entity as applicable, any interstate body, or any other legal
entity.
		&#8220;Runoff volume&#8221; means the volume of water that runs off the land
development project from a prescribed storm event.
		&#8220;Soil erosion&#8221; means the movement of soil by wind or water into
state waters or onto lands in the Commonwealth.
		&#8220;Town&#8221; means an incorporated town.
		&#8220;Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control Program&#8221; or
&#8220;VESCP&#8221; means a program approved by the Board that has been
established by a VESCP authority for the effective control of soil erosion,
sediment deposition, and nonagricultural runoff associated with a
land-disturbing activity to prevent the unreasonable degradation of properties,
stream channels, waters, and other natural resources and shall include such
items where applicable as local ordinances, rules, policies and guidelines,
technical materials, and requirements for plan review, inspection, and
evaluation consistent with the requirements of this article.
		&#8220;Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control Program authority&#8221; or
&#8220;VESCP authority&#8221; means a locality approved by the Board to operate
a Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control Program. A locality that has chosen not
to establish a Virginia Erosion and Stormwater Management Program pursuant to
subdivision B 3 of § 62.1-44.15:27 is required to become a VESCP authority in
accordance with this article.
		&#8220;Virginia Stormwater Management Program&#8221; or &#8220;VSMP&#8221;
means a program established by the Board pursuant to § 62.1-44.15:27.1 on
behalf of a locality on or after July 1, 2014, to manage the quality and
quantity of runoff resulting from any land-disturbing activity that (i) disturbs
one acre or more of land or (ii) disturbs less than one acre of land and is part
of a larger common plan of development or sale that results in one acre or
greater of land disturbance.

HISTORY: 1973, c. 486, § 21-89.3; 1974, c. 265; 1977, c. 149; 1980, c. 305;
1988, cc. 690, 732, 891, § 10.1-560; 1990, c. 491; 1991, c. 469; 1992, c. 184;
1993, c. 925; 1994, c. 703; 2003, c. 423; 2004, c. 476; 2005, c. 107; 2006, c.
21; 2009, c. 309; 2012, cc. 785, 819; 2013, cc. 756, 793; 2016, cc. 68, 758;
2023, cc. 48, 49.