California SWPPP & CGP: Avoid Penalties, Protect Waterways (Land Developers Guide) Does your land development project require a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP)? If your land development project proposes construction activities that result in 1 acre or more of land disturbance, your project will likely require a SWPPP in order to comply with California’s Construction General Permit (GCP). The primary intent of the CGP is to set forth pollutant discharge requirements and regulations to help minimize construction related pollutants from entering local waterbodies and watersheds ..read more

Temporary Housing Opportunities Recently the Sonoma County Planning Commission expanded the opportunities to provide temporary housing on most properties in the form of a RV, trailer, manufactured unit, or other movable housing. Previously, temporary housing was only allowed for care during illness/disability or to provide housing during major remodeling and rebuilding of housing. Now temporary housing is a possibility before even applying for a building permit for a potential housing unit.   An administrative permit will be required from the County with proof of access to utilities befo ..read more

Waste Discharge Requirements for Winery Process Water  The California State Water Resources Control Board adopted a general order for how wastewater is processed and discharged at winery locations in an ongoing effort to safeguard groundwater and surface water from wastewater discharges. The order is intended to protect groundwater and surface water quality, while giving wineries the flexibility to select compliance methods that best their site-specific situation(s), including tiering the compliance requirements to the winery size and associated threat to water quality.   The order ..read more

Calculations for Lateral Sizing in City of Santa Rosa  The City of Santa Rosa has recently been requesting hydraulic calculations to be performed by a licensed civil engineer to confirm that the velocity in service laterals and water meters will not exceed 15 feet per second. This will cause less wear and tear on the service lateral and meter, and limit the water loss due to small breaks and leaks. These calculations conform with American Water Works Association (AWWA) M22 Manual standards, which are the national standards for water systems. These standards combine best practices within the ..read more

Streamlining The Creation Of Rental Units On Existing Lots. Senate Bill 9 allows a streamlined process for homeowners to create a duplex or subdivide an existing lot. This bill builds on other successful legislation around ADUs and JADUs, to help address the challenges of affordable housing.   By subdividing or creating duplex’s families can provide affordable rental opportunities for others in their community. This is a bill that will benefit homeowners not investors as owner occupancy is a requirement and prohibits the lot splits on adjacent parcels by the same owner.    As p ..read more

What To Know About Senate Bills SB35 and SB330 With California having some of the highest housing and rent prices in the country, affordable housing is a top priority in the state. As recently as 2019 two State bills, SB35 and SB330 have created requirements and eased timeframes to help relieve the current housing situation. Senate Bill 330 “The Housing Crises Act of 2019” The purpose of SB330 is to streamline and reduce the time it takes to approve housing developments. The bill also redefined “Housing Developments” to include residential housing and mixed-use projects, with 2/3 of the squa ..read more

Septic “Perc”- aka Percolation Test, for septic development in Sonoma County Whether a lender, real estate agent, buyer, underwriter, or seller, the statement that a property has an existing “perc” is tossed around everywhere in Sonoma County’s real estate industry. This is a big misconception, and an alarming one.   The word “perc” is slang for a septic system development related Percolation Test. A percolation test does not guarantee septic development potential for a property. Rather, it indicates the permeability (ability for water to pass through) of the soil in the tested area. The ..read more

Northern California Water-Wise Landscapes Did you know that half of our drinking water is utilized for landscape irrigation? Many people would be shocked at this revelation, and perhaps even motivated to reconsider their residential landscaping and irrigation needs. Residential landscapes are most often a personal choice related to function, aesthetics, and preferred level of maintenance. For instance, homeowners often desire lawns for their children to play on, for their pets, or simply for their green color. However, there are other landscape possibilities to consider with significant benef ..read more

We're Hiring a Civil Design Engineer / Civil Designer About our firm: BC Engineering Group was founded by a group of highly talented key members to offer custom civil engineering and planning services to clients. The professionals at BC Engineering Group possess over 100 years of combined experience which is a key ingredient for a successful engineering partner. In 2019, BC Engineering Group acquired a local civil engineering and landscape architectural firm; strengthening the company’s position in the industry and adding landscape architecture consulting services. BC Engineering Group speci ..read more

Andrew Willis, Project Manager at BC Engineering Group recently became a California-Licensed Professional Engineer through the Board of Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists ..read more