Excavation permits and rules in Hawaii

Anyone digging in Hawaii has to notify Hawaii 811 before work starts. Call 811 at least 5 working days, and no more than 28 calendar days, before digging.^1-2

Text of the law

The notice period under Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 269E (notice at 269E-7): At least five working days but not more than twenty-eight calendar days prior to commencing excavation.^1-2

Hawaii licenses contractors through the Contractors License Board, Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) Professional and Vocational Licensing Division. A license is needed for jobs over $1,500, counting labor and materials, and for any job that needs a building permit. C-17 excavating, grading, and trenching is a specialty classification, and an A general engineering contractor license covers earth-moving, excavating, grading and trenching and automatically includes C-17.^3-6

Text of the law

Projects with an aggregate contract price for labor and materials over $1,500, or any project needing a building permit regardless of price.^3-6

A stormwater permit is needed at 1 acre, or less if part of a larger common plan of development or sale that will ultimately disturb 1 acre or more. Coverage is under the NPDES general permit for storm water associated with construction activity, Hawaii Administrative Rules chapter 11-55 Appendix C (Department of Health, Clean Water Branch).^7-8