Stormwater Pollution Prevention - Inspection resources

As a condition of ESC Plan approval, you must complete a series of meetings and inspections.

It is the responsibility of the applicant to schedule a pre-construction meeting in accordance with Section 8 of the Code of Practice for Erosion and Sediment Control. The best time to hold this meeting is after controls have been put in place but prior to the start of construction.

A request for a pre-construction meeting must be submitted to ESC@calgary.ca with Pre-construction Meeting Request (File number and name) in the subject line, at least five business days prior to the commencement of construction. 

The City ESC Inspector will use this pre-construction form during the meeting.

If required, simple amendments to your plan (those that do not affect RUSLE) can be made at the pre-construction meeting.

ESC inspections must be completed by a qualified inspector. This is a person who has training in ESC inspections or is directly supervised by someone with ESC training.

Inspection of all ESC practices must be completed and documented at least every seven days and at critical times when erosion or sediment releases could occur, including:

• Windy weather;
• Significant precipitation events; and/or
• Melt events.

At a minimum, significant precipitation events are defined as greater than 12 millimetres (mm) of precipitation within any 24-hour period, or precipitation or snowmelt on wet or thawing soil. Shorter duration, but more intense, events may also be deemed “significant”.

Deficiencies documented during inspection of erosion controls and sediment practices must be corrected promptly, and the maintenance documented. Corrective actions, identified by the qualified inspector, must be taken as soon as possible and not longer than 72 hours after the identification of the deficiency, as long as the corrective timelines do not risk public health or safety.

All inspection forms must be available onsite for a City inspector to review. Download a fillable WORD form.

City inspectors schedule additional inspections based on site risk. Your site will be subject to a City ESC inspection at any point during the construction of the project to confirm compliance with the ESC Plan.

The length of time required to conduct an inspection will depend on the size and complexity of the construction site. For small sites, an inspection will take approximately one to two hours. Larger, more complex, sites may require up to three hours. A staff member must be present during this time to escort the City inspector around the site and answer ESC related questions.

• Ensure that the most recent copy of the approved ESC reports and drawings are available on site the day of the inspection.
• Have the site ESC inspection records present for review.
• Conduct a site inspection and confirm that best management practices have been installed and are operating as designed.
• Repair any structures that were noted as deficient during the last site inspection.

Winter is defined as the dates between November 1 and April 30 of each year.

A pre-winter inspection is required to note any deficiencies that do not comply with the winterization plan. This winter shutdown inspection must be documented and available upon request.

Inspection and maintenance of the site will be required throughout winter at the frequency defined in Section 100.13 of ESC Standard Specifications, regardless of whether a project site is subject to winter shutdown or if construction is continuing. Any change to inspection frequency during winter must be pre-approved via an amendment.

Implementation of winterization plans must be considered beginning September 15 and no later than November 1 of each year. Your winterization plan forms Section 6 of your ESC Plan.

Download a winterization plan schedule for ESC Plans submitted prior to the implementation of the 2022 ESC Plan updates.

You can request a reduction in ESC inspection frequency through the winter months (November 1 to April 30). You could get a reduction to once every 28 days and during precipitation and melt events.

Your site must meet the following requirements:

• There will be little to no activity on site throughout winter,
• Your site matches an approved ESC drawing, and
• There is no evidence of non-compliance (dirt ramp, release, socks and donuts, missing mandatory cover).

To apply:

• Implement your winterization plan onsite (Section 6 of your ESC plan),
• Download and fill out this request form , and
• Submit the last three ESC inspection reports along with the request form.
• Email your inspection reports and request form to ESC@calgary.ca.

No requests will be reviewed that are submitted after the deadline.

Written Permission must be obtained from The City ESC Inspector prior to stopping ESC inspections on the site. Requirements related to this can be found in Section 10 of the Code of Practice for Erosion and Sediment Control. 

To stop ESC inspections:

• The site must match the final approved ESC drawings.
• All temporary erosion and sediment control practices must be removed.
• For subdivisions, 80% of the site is stabilized with long-term cover. For all other sites, all seeding types are established with at least 80% growth.
• If sod was required as part of the plan, provide confirmation that it was inspected for at least two months after installation and it has fully rooted/established.

To request permission to stop inspections, fill out an Inspection Completion Request and submit it to ESC@calgary.ca  with Inspection Completion Request (File number and name) in the subject line. 

Written permission must be obtained from The City prior to stopping ESC Inspections.

To view resources like the ESC Standard Specifications and the Erosion and Sediment Control Field Manual go to the ESC Authorizations page.