·        All grading, erosion and sediment control plans are reviewed for conformance with the 1994 Maryland Standards and Specifications for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control as well as the 2005 Prince George's Soil Conservation District Soil Erosion and Sediment Control-Pond Safety Manual. (Revised 2007)

·        All pond plans and pond as-builts are reviewed for conformance with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service – Conservation Practice Pond Standard – Maryland Code 378 as well as the 2005 Prince George's Soil Conservation District Soil Erosion and Sediment Control – Pond Safety Manual.
(Revised 2007)

·        Grading, erosion and sediment control plans are reviewed and approved for residential, commercial, forest harvest, surface mining, fill sites, landfills and county or municipal projects. Other plans reviewed and approved by PGSCD include rough grading permits, subdivision plans, pond plans and pond as-builts.

·        Grading, erosion and sediment control plans and pond plans approved by PGSCD are used to obtain construction permits in the jurisdictions of Prince George's County, City of Bowie, City of Greenbelt, City of Laurel and for State surface mining. 70% of PGSCD plan workload is for Prince George's County permits.

·        The average turn-around time for plan review for FY2006 was 3 days and the number of reviews to obtain approval averages 3. The urban conservation staff has completed over 2500 plan reviews this past year.

·        The urban conservation staff has collectively over 110+ years of experience working with and/or for PGSCD. Staff includes 4 conservation engineers, a District engineer and a department head. PGSCD urban conservation engineers have a bachelor's degree with a background in agronomy, soils and/or engineering.

·        PGSCD urban staff provides training to the County for the delegated review of small ponds. Our current emphasis in training includes dam breach analysis, properties of soils and as-builts.

·        PGSCD urban staff assists MDE Water Management Administration for delegation of grading, erosion and sediment control enforcement authority for Prince George's County, City of Bowie, City of Greenbelt, City of Laurel, and WSSC.

 
            TOP TEN REQUIREMENTS FOR OBTAINING PLAN APPROVAL

1.       Design and submit all sediment and erosion control plans to be in conformance with the 1994 Maryland Standards and Specifications for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control as well as the 2005 Prince George's Soil Conservation District Soil Erosion and Sediment Control – Pond Safety Reference Manual. (Revised 2007)

2.       Submit plans allowing for enough lead time for your plan approval needs. PGSCD responds to submittals within 10 business days with an average of about three days overall.

3.       Provide completed PGSCD Transmittal Letter and PGSCD Site Analysis sheet for each plan review. Make all checks payable to: Prince George's Soil Conservation District.

4.       Always include signed certifications, proper approval stamp, completed standard notes, temporary and permanent vegetative specifications, landgrading, topsoiling and a standard detail for every sediment control device used in the plan. Include a detailed sequence of construction with appropriate time frames to complete each phase.

5.       When submitting to County for a rough grading permit be sure to apply to PGSCD for a rough grading and sediment control review. Obtain and submit any required soils reports early in the process.

6.       Design sediment and erosion control devices to function for both existing and proposed drainage areas and elevations.

7.       Check outfalls of traps and basins to insure non-erosive conditions (i.e. Not greater than 10% slopes).

8.       Stormwater management ponds temporarily used as sediment control devices must be modified to serve as sediment basins. Include all design data, profiles, cross-sections, and details for sediment basins on the sediment control plan.

9.       When responding to review comments or marked prints provide a complete and timely resubmittal to PGSCD. Always provide a separate a point by point response to previous review comments and return red-lined marked prints.

10.     Start the process early for projects involving pond construction as County recommended approval is required prior to PGSCD plan approval. Ponds required for purposes other than County stormwater management, (City of Bowie, surface mining, etc.) needs to be submitted directly to PGSCD for review and approval. Always provide sediment control sheets before the pond sheets for PGSCD approval. Dam safety "as-builts" are required within 30 calendar days of construction. Be sure to obtain "as-built" acceptance from the County before submitting for an update approval.