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Excavation, San Antonio

Excavation and gradingin San Antonio.

Excavation, grading and dozer work in San Antonio and its ETJ, mostly on the northwest side. Over the Edwards Aquifer, the paperwork comes before the dirt moves, so we start there.

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Excavation, San Antonio

Dirt work under San Antonio's rules

San Antonio sits on the Balcones Escarpment, and the Edwards Aquifer is its main water source (Wikipedia). That puts more rules on moving dirt here than almost anywhere else nearby.

Grading a homesite, cutting a pad, digging a basin or reshaping a lot can each touch the state's Edwards rules, the city's aquifer ordinance, the tree ordinance and the county floodplain review.

Highlander Construction is based next door in Helotes and serves San Antonio. Call and tell us about the job.

Local detail

What changes in San Antonio

01

TCEQ's plan before soil moves

In Bexar County, an Edwards Aquifer Protection Plan must be approved before soil is disturbed for a regulated activity such as construction or land clearing. TCEQ's San Antonio Regional Office handles it, (210) 490-3096 (TCEQ). Single-family homes on lots over five acres are an exclusion (30 TAC 213.3).

02

SAWS on the recharge zone

Inside the city and its ETJ over the recharge zone, SAWS requires its aquifer protection plan before development, limits impervious cover, and prohibits sealing significant recharge features (SAWS Ordinance 81491).

03

Floodplain review

Bexar County Public Works reviews construction near the 100-year floodplain, with a fee per activity filed online or at 1948 Probandt St., and may ask for an engineer's flood study (Bexar County).

04

Trees on the site

The city tree ordinance applies to construction in the city and ETJ, so protected trees on a grading site need a permit or affidavit first (City of San Antonio).

Questions

Excavation questions: San Antonio

Not sure if we handle it? Call and ask.

(830) 328-3684mullins840@gmail.com
Do I need TCEQ approval to grade my lot?

If the lot is on a regulated Edwards zone and the work is a regulated activity, an approved plan is needed first. There are exclusions. TCEQ's San Antonio office can confirm.

What does SAWS have to do with excavation?

Over the recharge zone, SAWS's aquifer ordinance sets impervious cover limits and requires its plan before development.

Can you work near a creek or floodplain?

Yes, after the floodplain question is answered. Bexar County reviews construction near the 100-year floodplain.

On the job

Photos from our work

Real photos from Highlander Construction jobs. Captions say what each shows. More in recent work.

Backhoe loader parked in a wide pale rock and caliche dig, with spoil piles and green brush behind
Backhoe in a caliche dig
Panorama of a dozer working the floor of a large graded basin
Dozer working a basin floor
Freshly cut ditch running beside a fence line, with the grader's tire and blade in the corner
Ditch cut along a fence line
Dozer working inside a freshly graded earthwork basin under a clear blue sky
Dozer working a graded site

Keep reading

The service

Excavation & Grading

Digging, cutting and moving dirt on rural ground, from stock tank basins to building sites.

The full service Area

All our work in San Antonio

Land clearing, dirt work, millings drives and demolition in San Antonio, with a focus on the northwest side: the Loop 1604 corridor, Scenic...

The area page Land Clearing

Land clearing in San Antonio, permits sorted first.

Land and lot clearing across San Antonio and its ETJ, with a focus on the northwest side. The city's tree ordinance,...

Read the page Driveways: Millings, Caliche & Gravel

Asphalt millings driveways in San Antonio.

Asphalt millings driveways for San Antonio homes, ranchettes and long rural drives, laid on a graded base, rolled tight...

Read the page

Excavation & Grading in other areas

Helotes

Guides

Guide

Edwards Aquifer rules for land work.

Which counties, when a TCEQ plan is needed, what is excluded and what it means for each kind of job.

Read the guide
Guide

Do you need a permit to clear land here?

Tree ordinances, the Helotes survey, Edwards Aquifer plans, floodplains and who to call.

Read the guide
Guide

Ranch road drainage: crowns, culverts, crossings.

Crowns, ditches, turnouts, culverts and low-water crossings, plus floodplain review and flood safety.

Read the guide

Sources

  1. Wikipedia, San Antonio
  2. TCEQ, Edwards Aquifer Protection Program: applications and the San Antonio Regional Office
  3. 30 Texas Administrative Code 213.3, definitions (Cornell LII)
  4. San Antonio Water System, Aquifer Protection Ordinance No. 81491
  5. Bexar County Public Works, Floodplain Development Permits
  6. City of San Antonio, Tree Preservation Ordinance FAQ

Free estimates

Excavation in
San Antonio?

Call (830) 328-3684 or send a few details. Estimates are free.

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