GA Code § 12-7-7 (2021)
2021 Georgia Code|Title 12 - Conservation and Natural Resources|Chapter 7 - Control of Soil Erosion and Sedimentation|§ 12-7-7. Permit or Notice of Intent Required for Land-Disturbing Activities; Approval of Application and Issuance of Permit; Denial of Permit; Bond Requirement

  No land-disturbing activities shall be conducted in this state, except those land-disturbing activities provided for in Code Section 12-7-17, without the operator first securing a permit from a local issuing authority or providing notice of intent to the division as required by this Code section.   In those counties, municipalities, and service areas for water or water and sewer authorities which are certified as local issuing authorities pursuant to subsection (a) of Code Section 12-7-8:   The application for such permit shall be made to and the permit shall be issued by the governing authority of the county wherein such land-disturbing activities are to occur, in the event that such activities will occur outside the corporate limits of a municipality;   In those instances where such activities will occur within the corporate limits of any municipality, the application for such permit shall be made to and the permit shall be issued by the governing authority of the municipality in which such land-disturbing activities are to occur;   In those instances where such activities will occur within the service area of a water authority or water and sewer authority, the application of such permit shall be made to and the permit shall be issued by such authority in which such land-disturbing activities are to occur within the authority's service area; and   The local issuing authority shall conduct inspections and enforce the permits it issues.     In those counties, municipalities, and service areas for water or water and sewer authorities which are not certified pursuant to subsection (a) of Code Section 12-7-8, the terms of the state general permit shall apply, those terms shall be enforced by the division, and no individual land-disturbing activity permit under this Code section will be required; provided, however, that notice of intent shall be submitted to the division prior to commencement of any land-disturbing activities under the state general permit in any of such uncertified counties, municipalities, and service areas for water or water and sewer authorities.     Fees assessed pursuant to paragraph (5) of subsection (a) of Code Section 12-5-23 shall be calculated and paid by the primary permittee as defined in the state general permit for each acre of land-disturbing activity included in the planned development or each phase of development.   In a jurisdiction that is certified pursuant to subsection (a) of Code Section 12-7-8, half of any such fees levied shall be submitted by the applicant to the local issuing authority and half of such fees shall be submitted to the division; except that any and all fees due from an entity which is required to give notice pursuant to paragraph (9) or (10) of Code Section 12-7-17 shall be submitted in full to the division, regardless of the existence of a local issuing authority in the jurisdiction. In a jurisdiction where there is no local issuing authority, the full fee shall be submitted to the division.     Except as provided in this subsection, no permit shall be issued pursuant to subsection (b) of this Code section unless the erosion and sediment control plan has been approved by the appropriate district as is required by Code Section 12-7-10. When the jurisdiction or entity that is certified pursuant to subsection (a) of Code Section 12-7-8 lying within the boundaries of the district demonstrates capabilities to review and approve an erosion and sediment control plan and requests an agreement with the district to conduct such review and approval, the district, with the concurrence of the commission, shall enter into an agreement which allows the jurisdiction or entity that is certified pursuant to subsection (a) of Code Section 12-7-8 to conduct review and approval without referring the application and plan to the district, if such jurisdiction or entity that is certified pursuant to subsection (a) of Code Section 12-7-8 meets the conditions specified by the district as set forth in the agreement. A district may not enter into an agreement authorized in this Code section with any jurisdiction or entity that is not certified pursuant to subsection (a) of Code Section 12-7-8.     If a permit applicant has had two or more violations of previous permits or this Code section within three years prior to the date of filing of the application under consideration, the local issuing authority may deny the permit application.   The local issuing authority may require the permit applicant to post a bond in the form of government security, cash, irrevocable letter of credit, or any combination thereof up to, but not exceeding, $3,000.00 per acre of the proposed land-disturbing activity, prior to issuing the permit. If the applicant does not comply with this Code section or with the conditions of the permit after issuance, the local issuing authority may call the bond or any part thereof to be forfeited and may use the proceeds to hire a contractor to stabilize the site of the land-disturbing activity and bring it into compliance. This subsection shall not apply unless there is in effect an ordinance or statute specifically providing for hearing and judicial review of any determination or order of the local issuing authority with respect to alleged permit violations.      (Ga. L. 1975, p. 994, § 7; Ga. L. 1980, p. 942, § 5; Ga. L. 1988, p. 269, § 26; Ga. L. 1989, p. 1295, § 4; Ga. L. 1994, p. 1650, §§ 3, 4; Ga. L. 2003, p. 224, § 5; Ga. L. 2020, p. 488, § 2/SB 445.)    The 2020 amendment,  effective July 29, 2020, substituted "counties, municipalities, and service areas for water or water and sewer authorities" for "counties and municipalities" in subsection (b); deleted "and" at the end of paragraph (b)(2); added paragraph (b)(3) and redesignated former paragraph (b)(3) as present paragraph (b)(4); in subsection (c), substituted "counties, municipalities, and service areas for water or water and sewer authorities" for "counties and municipalities" and substituted "counties, municipalities, and service areas for water or water and sewer authorities" for "counties or municipalities" at the end; in subsection (e), substituted "jurisdiction or entity that is certified pursuant to subsection (a) of Code Section 12-7-8" for "governing authority of a county or municipality", substituted "jurisdiction or entity that is certified pursuant to subsection (a) of Code Section 12-7-8" for "governing authority" twice in the second sentence, and substituted "any jurisdiction or entity that" for "the governing authority of any county or municipality which" in the third sentence.   Cross references.   - Powers of the commission generally, § 2-6-27.    Powers of districts generally, § 2-6-33.   JUDICIAL DECISIONS   Grandfathering or non-conforming use.    - When a landowner made no effort to comply with the Georgia Erosion and Sedimentation Act, O.C.G.A. § 12-7-1 et seq., until the landowner covenanted to maintain the property in agricultural use for a period of ten years, and the record did not show that the landowner fulfilled the necessary regulatory requirements as was necessary for the landowner to have a valid permit under the rule, the trial court erred in granting summary judgment in the landowner's favor and ruling that the landowner's subsequent use of the property as a landfill was grandfathered as a non-conforming use under the applicable zoning ordinance. Flippen Alliance for Cmty. Empowerment, Inc. v. Brannan, 267 Ga. App. 134, 601 S.E.2d 106 (2004).