Culvert cleaning needs no North Coast Water Board permit this El Niño winter

By The Downspout · Posted Nov 7, 2026 · 5 min read

The North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board says it does not require a permit, a fee or a notice to clean sediment, leaves and wood out of an existing culvert, as long as no water is flowing. Bank repair, removing debris from the creek itself and culvert replacement are different. For those, the first step is an email, with photos, to the Board and the Army Corps of Engineers.

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What the rule is and who it covers

The North Coast Water Board does not require a permit, a fee or a notice to clean a culvert, as long as no water is flowing in it. Work such as bank repair or replacing a pipe starts with an email to the Board and the Army Corps of Engineers.

A culvert is a pipe that carries a creek or ditch under a road or driveway.

The North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board is the state agency that issues permits for digging, filling and dredging in creeks, rivers and wetlands in this part of California. We call it the North Coast Water Board, or the Board. Its staff for Sonoma and Mendocino counties handle these requests. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, called the Corps below, is the federal agency whose authorization may also be needed.

Because of this year's El Niño, Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency on September 21, 2026. El Niño is a warm-ocean pattern that can bring more rain and higher tides. On October 1, 2026, the Board published guidance for creek and culvert work.

What happened

The guidance says the Board does not require a permit application, a fee or a notification for routine culvert maintenance. This applies when no water is flowing in the culvert.

The work that needs no permit is listed below.

Removing sand, silt, gravel, cobble or boulders that have built up in the culvert, including at the inlet and the outlet.
Removing leaves and wood that block, or could block, the culvert inlet, the outlet or the inside of the pipe.

You can use hand tools or machines. If you use heavy equipment, you must stabilize bare soil when you finish, so sediment does not wash into the creek. You must move what you remove to stable ground away from the creek, where it cannot wash back in.

Other work is different. The guidance gives these examples: replacing culverts and stream crossings, repairing creek banks, removing debris from the creek itself, beyond the culvert cleaning above, and erosion control. For that work, send one email to both agencies. Include photos of how things look now, and a description of the work, materials and methods.

The Corps: CESPN-RG-Info@usace.army.mil, or (415) 503-6795. The Corps tells you whether you need its authorization.
The Board: Northcoast@waterboards.ca.gov. Staff will help you get the right authorization.

After you email, you can start work right away if your project qualifies for emergency permitting. The Corps may tell you your project qualifies for its Regional General Permit 5, which covers emergency projects. If it does, send the Board an Emergency Notice of Intent form, which gives the Board the project details, within three business days of your first email. Email it to northcoast@waterboards.ca.gov. The Board reviews projects in the order it receives them.

The guidance's FAQ says emergency projects send in an application fee under the Board's current fee schedule, so ask the Board about costs.

Emergency repairs must be the minimum needed. They are limited to replacing or fixing what is already there.

For creek bank repairs, the guidance says every emergency permit first requires considering bioengineering where it applies. That means living willow and other plants and natural materials that strengthen a creek bank.

For creek bank repairs, the guidance says permanent hardening such as gabion baskets (wire cages filled with rock), concrete, sacrete and gunite is not allowed. Projects are reviewed case by case.

Rock placed on the bank, called riprap, may be allowed if it is the only way to deal with the emergency. The Board may later require you to remove it, plant the bank or offset the damage.

You can also call Gil Falcone at the Board, (707) 576-2830. He is the permit program manager for Sonoma and Mendocino counties.

A separate item: the City of Petaluma's November 6 community update says the state clarified on October 27 that some flood prevention work may qualify for faster emergency permits. The city is working with the Sonoma Resource Conservation District to help people who own land along a creek in Petaluma with guidance and permits. The update says the district will contact them in the coming weeks. The update does not mention the Board's guidance, so ask the Board whether it applies to your creek.

What it means for you

If a culvert under your driveway or road is clogged with leaves, wood or silt, the Board's guidance says you do not need to ask it first. Do it when no water is flowing through it. If water is flowing through the culvert, this no-permit rule does not apply.

Put what you remove on stable ground away from the creek. If you use heavy equipment, stabilize any bare soil when you finish.

If your project involves the creek bank, the creek channel or replacing a pipe, the guidance says the first step is to email both agencies, with photos. If you are unsure which kind of project you have, email the Board and ask. This is not legal advice. For your own site, ask the Board or the Corps.

If you own land along a creek in Petaluma, you can call the Sonoma Resource Conservation District at (707) 569-1448 or email info@sonomarcd.org before any work that could disturb a creek bed or bank.

Timing matters. King tides are the highest tides of the year. The Petaluma update lists them for November 24 to 26 and December 22 to 25, 2026, and January 20 to 23, 2027. It says heavy rain during a king tide raises flood risk much more. For the rain outlook, see our post on the first rain forecast. For tides, see our post on king tides and El Niño.

Our view: we favor the Board's push to consider living plants before concrete on creek banks, because healthy creek banks matter for creeks and the wildlife that use them. That is our view, not the Board's finding.

What happens next

The guidance does not state an end date. It is titled for the 2026/27 El Niño season. Before you start work, check the North Coast Water Board's website for changes. The guidance PDF is linked in our sources.

Where this came from

The North Coast Water Board's Emergency Permitting Guidance for Fill/Excavation Projects within Waters of the State, 2026/27 El Niño, dated October 1, 2026, and the City of Petaluma's Community Update for November 6, 2026.

Sources

Checked 2026-11-07. Rules and programs change. If something here is out of date, the source above wins. Spot an error? See our corrections policy.