Can I inspect my own site?

Federally the inspector has to be a qualified person and has to be trained, with the training records kept alongside the plan (Part 6.2–6.3). Several states go further and name a credential for the inspector. Check your own permit before you assume the answer is the same as for writing the plan.

How long do inspection reports have to be kept?

At least three years (Part 4.7.4). Each report is completed within 24 hours of the inspection itself (Part 4.7.1).

Which part of the permit is the log answering to?

Part 4.5 sets what each inspection has to look at, Part 4.6 sets what it records, and Part 4.7.1 governs the report that comes out of it — completed within 24 hours. The blank form in our forms pack is laid out against those clauses rather than against a house style.

What happens when an inspection finds a problem?

Part 5 requires the control to be fixed within the permit's deadline, and the finding, the fix and its date to be recorded. If the fix changes the plan, the plan is modified within seven days (Part 7.4.1). The corrective action log is kept for at least three years (Part 5.4.4).

Do the inspection records live in the SWPPP?

Yes — Part 7.2.11 makes the plan the folder that holds the inspection reports, the corrective action log and the training records for the team and the inspectors (Part 6.2–6.3) together. A log kept in a separate drawer is the one that goes missing.

Washington inspection log and inspection requirements (2026)

How often does a Washington construction site have to be inspected?

Washington accepts a SWPPP prepared by the operator — no professional licence is required to write it. Two separate questions get confused here. Who may *write* the plan is what we verified for Washington. Who may *inspect* the site is a different clause, and in several states it is the stricter of the two — a state that lets the operator write the plan can still require a credentialed inspector. SwpppDraft has not verified inspection frequency or inspector qualification state by state; read both off the permit linked below.

Source: Ecology CSWGP (2026-01-01 – 2030-12-31), S9 versus S4.BVerified 2026-08-03

What Washington's permit says about who may prepare the plan

The Permittee must prepare and properly implement an adequate Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP)…
Ecology CSWGP (2026-01-01 – 2030-12-31), S9 versus S4.B — verbatim permit text, read 2026-08-03

Our reading of Ecology CSWGP (2026-01-01 – 2030-12-31), S9 versus S4.B:Washington requires the permittee to prepare the SWPPP; the Certified Erosion and Sediment Control Lead requirement applies to site inspections.

The federal schedule

Under Part 4.2 the operator inspects on one of two federal schedules: at least once every seven calendar days, or once every 14 calendar days and within 24 hours of a storm event producing 0.25 inches or more of rain in a 24-hour period. You pick one and keep to it.

Discharging to an impaired water changes that. Part 4.3.1 requires the affected portion of the site to be inspected once every seven calendar days and within 24 hours of a qualifying storm event, where the water is impaired for sediment or nutrients, is identified as Tier 2, 2.5 or 3 for antidegradation purposes, or lies within Lands of Exclusive Federal Jurisdiction.

What an inspection covers and when it is written up

Part 4.5 sets what each inspection has to look at. Part 4.7.1 requires the report to be completed within 24 hours of the inspection, and Part 4.7.4 requires reports to be kept for at least three years.

When an inspection finds a control that is not working, Part 5 requires it to be fixed within the permit's deadline, the finding and the fix to be recorded, and the plan itself to be modified within seven days if the fix changes it (Part 7.4.1).

State permits often ask for more

State frequencies can be stricter than the federal schedule, and several states name a credential for the person doing the inspecting even where the plan may be self-written. This is the single most common place where "my state lets me write my own SWPPP" stops being the whole answer.

How Washington differs from the federal baseline

States with no NPDES authorisation of their own run on the EPA 2022 Construction General Permit, whose "qualified person" definition is a knowledge and skill threshold that the operator's own staff can meet — it names no licence. Washington's own permit adds no licence, exam or credential above that baseline, so there is nothing further to satisfy here.

Federal baseline: EPA 2022 CGP (no state NPDES authorisation), Appendix A definitions.

What SwpppDraft does for this document

Include a blank inspection log — date and time, inspector, weather and rainfall since the last inspection, findings, corrective action and the date it was completed (Part 4.6–4.7)
Write the federal schedule into the plan so the frequency you chose is on paper

What it does not do

Manage your inspection records. This is a blank form to print, not a log service, and nothing you write on it ever reaches us
Tell you this state's inspection frequency or whether it wants a credentialed inspector — neither was scanned

Washington Inspection log questions

How often does a Washington construction site have to be inspected?: Washington accepts a SWPPP prepared by the operator — no professional licence is required to write it. Two separate questions get confused here. Who may *write* the plan is what we verified for Washington. Who may *inspect* the site is a different clause, and in several states it is the stricter of the two — a state that lets the operator write the plan can still require a credentialed inspector. SwpppDraft has not verified inspection frequency or inspector qualification state by state; read both off the permit linked below.
Can I inspect my own site?: Federally the inspector has to be a qualified person and has to be trained, with the training records kept alongside the plan (Part 6.2–6.3). Several states go further and name a credential for the inspector. Check your own permit before you assume the answer is the same as for writing the plan.
How long do inspection reports have to be kept?: At least three years (Part 4.7.4). Each report is completed within 24 hours of the inspection itself (Part 4.7.1).
Which part of the permit is the log answering to?: Part 4.5 sets what each inspection has to look at, Part 4.6 sets what it records, and Part 4.7.1 governs the report that comes out of it — completed within 24 hours. The blank form in our forms pack is laid out against those clauses rather than against a house style.
What happens when an inspection finds a problem?: Part 5 requires the control to be fixed within the permit's deadline, and the finding, the fix and its date to be recorded. If the fix changes the plan, the plan is modified within seven days (Part 7.4.1). The corrective action log is kept for at least three years (Part 5.4.4).
Do the inspection records live in the SWPPP?: Yes — Part 7.2.11 makes the plan the folder that holds the inspection reports, the corrective action log and the training records for the team and the inspectors (Part 6.2–6.3) together. A log kept in a separate drawer is the one that goes missing.

Build a SWPPP for a site in Washington
The questionnaire and the generator run in your browser and produce a watermarked draft. Checkout is not open, so nothing can be charged.

The rest of the paperwork in Washington

Washington SWPPP requirements — who may prepare the plan, and the clause that decides it
Washington SWPPP (the plan itself)
Washington Notice of Intent (NOI)
Washington Notice of Termination (NOT)
Washington BMP selection and site map

Source and verification

Ecology CSWGP (2026-01-01 – 2030-12-31), S9 versus S4.B. Read the source document. State-law information on this page was verified on 2026-08-03; the federal clauses come from the EPA 2022 Construction General Permit (as modified), read 2026-08-04. County and city rules are not covered, and neither this state's filing route nor its deadlines were scanned.

What we are, and what stays your responsibility

SwpppDraft is a document generation tool. It does not provide engineering services, legal services, or compliance consulting, and no engineer or attorney reviews what it produces.
Everything in the document is built from the site facts you enter. Checking that those facts are right, and that the resulting plan fits your project, is yours to do.
We do not file anything on your behalf, we do not certify or endorse your compliance, and we accept no liability for what happens when you use the document.
State-level requirements carry the date we verified them. County and city rules are not covered — some local jurisdictions require a licensed preparer even where the state does not, and you have to check that yourself.
When the product opens, our total liability will be capped at the amount you paid us. Today that amount is zero, because nothing is for sale.