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2025-01-09

Erosion Control Service Agreement: Engineering Solutions and Warranties

Miky Bayankin

Erosion control contract template with engineering solutions and warranties. Essential for slope stabilization contractors.

Erosion Control Service Agreement: Engineering Solutions and Warranties

Erosion control contractors and landscape engineers operate at the intersection of construction risk, environmental compliance, and real-world site conditions. Whether you’re installing temporary BMPs during grading or delivering long-term slope stabilization systems on a failing embankment, your contract needs to do more than “describe the work.” It must allocate risk properly, define engineering responsibilities, and set realistic warranties that reflect the uncertainty of soil, weather, and third-party actions.

This guide breaks down what to include in an erosion prevention service agreement (from the service provider’s perspective), with special focus on engineering solutions and warranties—two areas that frequently drive claims, rework, and payment disputes. Along the way, you’ll see how to structure exhibits and clauses you can adapt into an erosion control contract template, erosion repair agreement, or slope stabilization contract.

Why erosion control agreements require “engineering-grade” contract language

Erosion control projects aren’t like typical landscaping installs. They often involve:

  • Uncertain subsurface conditions (soil type, groundwater, buried debris)
  • Weather volatility (rainfall intensity, freeze-thaw cycles)
  • Regulatory constraints (SWPPP compliance, local stormwater ordinances, NPDES permits)
  • High-consequence failures (sediment discharge, slope failure, property damage, stop-work orders)

If your agreement doesn’t precisely define performance criteria and responsibilities, you can end up being treated as the insurer of the site rather than the contractor delivering a scope.

A well-written erosion prevention service agreement should clarify:

  1. What you are designing vs. installing (and to what standard)
  2. What you’re warranting (materials and workmanship) vs. what you’re not (acts of nature, owner neglect, upstream runoff)
  3. How changes are priced and approved (unknown conditions are the rule, not the exception)

Core sections of an erosion control service agreement (service provider-friendly)

Below are the clauses and exhibits that matter most for erosion control, slope stabilization, and erosion repair work.

1) Parties, project location, and site conditions baseline

Start with basics, then add a site conditions baseline to reduce disputes:

  • Address / legal description
  • Drawings referenced (dated plans, revision numbers)
  • Site access limitations (gates, hours, staging area)
  • Existing condition documentation: photos, drone images, topographic survey references

Why it matters: In an erosion repair agreement, failure to document pre-existing rills, seepage zones, or undercutting can make you the default party blamed for “not fixing everything.”

Best practice: Attach an exhibit titled “Existing Conditions Report” with dated photos and notes. Make it clear your pricing and approach assume those conditions and no undisclosed hazards.

2) Scope of work: separate “engineering,” “means and methods,” and “maintenance”

Erosion control scopes often blur into ongoing maintenance. Your contract should create clean boundaries:

  • Engineering/Design Services (if included):

    • Site assessment, hydrology assumptions, soil parameters used
    • Plans/specs delivered (IFC drawings vs. conceptual)
    • Design criteria references (e.g., local stormwater manual, ASTM standards, AASHTO references)

  • Construction/Installation Services:

    • Installation of BMPs (silt fence, wattles, check dams)
    • Permanent measures (riprap, TRM/ECB, geocells, retaining structures)
    • Soil amendments, grading, seeding/hydroseeding, erosion blankets

  • Maintenance and Monitoring:

    • Inspection frequency and triggers (after rain events exceeding X inches)
    • Sediment removal, repairs, re-seeding
    • Who provides logs/reports to the owner/GC for SWPPP documentation

Contract tip: In your erosion control contract template, write scope in a table with columns for Deliverable, Standard/Spec, Included/Excluded, and Owner Inputs.

3) Engineering solutions: how to contract for design without inheriting unlimited liability

If you provide engineering, be explicit about what “engineering solutions” means contractually. Common structures:

Option A: Design-Bid-Build support (limited design assistance)

You might provide:

  • Field recommendations
  • Shop drawing review
  • Product submittal packages

But you’re not the Engineer of Record (EOR).

Use language that your recommendations are non-stamped unless explicitly stated, and that the owner retains an EOR.

Option B: Design-build (you provide stamped design)

If your company employs/retains a PE, specify:

  • The EOR’s identity and licensing state(s)
  • Whether design is performance-based (meets stated criteria) or prescriptive
  • Any design assumptions provided by others (survey, geotech report, hydrology model)

Critical clause: A “Reliance on Information Provided by Others” provision stating you may rely on surveys, geotech reports, and as-builts furnished by the owner/GC, and that inaccuracies are a change order trigger.

Option C: Delegated design (common in slope stabilization contracts)

You may be responsible for designing a component (e.g., tieback layout, geogrid reinforcement, soil nail wall facing) based on performance criteria in the project specs.

Your contract should incorporate:

  • The delegated design performance criteria
  • Submittal and approval workflow
  • Limitations: approvals do not transfer design liability to the reviewer

4) Performance criteria: define what “success” looks like (and what it doesn’t)

Erosion control is often judged by outcomes like “no erosion” or “no sediment leaving the site,” which can be unrealistic without careful framing.

Instead, define measurable performance criteria such as:

  • Installation per manufacturer instructions and project specs
  • Temporary BMPs maintained to meet permit requirements when maintenance is included
  • Stabilization measures installed to achieve vegetative cover targets when seasonal conditions allow
  • Drainage conveyance sized to the specified design storm (e.g., 10-year, 24-hour event) if engineered

Avoid open-ended promises. In your erosion repair agreement, do not warrant that the slope will never move, or that erosion will never recur, especially if upstream drainage can change.

Add explicit exclusions for:

  • Extreme weather beyond design storm assumptions
  • Owner’s failure to maintain
  • Third-party disturbances (other trades, vehicles, utilities)
  • Changes in site grading/drainage after your completion

5) Materials and installation standards: attach specs, don’t bury them

Erosion control disputes often boil down to “you used the wrong product” or “you installed it wrong.”

Include:

  • Product list (brand/model acceptable substitutes)
  • Required installation methods (overlap lengths, anchoring patterns, trenching requirements)
  • Testing and acceptance (compaction standards, pullout testing for anchors when applicable)
  • Submittals: product data sheets, certifications, shop drawings

Exhibit idea: “Materials and Methods Schedule” that becomes part of the agreement.

6) Schedule and weather clauses: normalize delays and seasonality

Rain is both the problem and the delay driver. Address:

  • Mobilization window
  • Rain-day allowances
  • Winter shutdown terms (especially for seeding/hydroseeding)
  • Access delays and site readiness prerequisites (graded surfaces, utility locates)

Best practice: Add a “Site Readiness” clause: you are not responsible for schedule impacts if the site is not at specified grade, not accessible, or not cleared for your work.

7) Price, unit rates, and allowances: the best defense against unknown conditions

Erosion control work regularly expands when you uncover:

  • Longer slopes than shown
  • Unexpected concentrated flows
  • Saturated subgrades
  • Hidden voids or failed drainage structures

Protect your margin with:

  • Unit pricing for common add-ons (linear feet of wattle, square yards of blanket, cubic yards of riprap)
  • Allowances for dewatering, export soil, aggregate base
  • Clear markups for additional work

For a slope stabilization contract, consider:

  • A defined “design basis” and a change order trigger when field conditions differ
  • Additional geotechnical observation time billed hourly

8) Change orders and field directives: define authority and documentation

Your erosion prevention service agreement should state:

  • Who can authorize changes (GC PM, owner rep, engineer)
  • Whether email/text approvals count
  • Daily tickets and time-and-material sheets
  • How quickly change pricing must be presented/approved

Practical add-on: A clause allowing you to proceed on T&M when immediate stabilization is required to prevent imminent damage, with written notice to the owner/GC.

Engineering solutions: warranties vs. professional standard of care

This is where many service providers get burned: mixing construction warranties with engineering guarantees.

Construction warranty (typical and reasonable)

You can warrant:

  • Workmanship (installed per specs/manufacturer instructions)
  • Materials (manufacturer warranty passes through)
  • Defects for a defined period (e.g., 1 year)

Engineering services (not a “warranty”)

For professional services, the usual standard is:

  • Performed consistent with the professional standard of care ordinarily exercised by similar professionals under similar circumstances.

Avoid “guarantees” like:

  • “Engineering will prevent all erosion”
  • “Design will be perfect”
  • “Slope will be stable for X years regardless of conditions”

Contract structure suggestion:

  • Include a Workmanship Warranty section for installation
  • Include a separate Professional Services Standard of Care section for engineering
  • Clearly state that engineering is not a warranty of outcome, especially where natural forces and owner maintenance play major roles

Warranty clauses tailored for erosion control and slope stabilization

Here’s what erosion control contractors and landscape engineers typically need to address in warranty language.

1) Warranty duration and start date

Define when the warranty begins:

  • Substantial completion
  • Final acceptance
  • Or after a defined “stabilization complete” milestone

For vegetation-dependent stabilization, consider:

  • A seasonal warranty that begins once seeding is installed under acceptable growing conditions.

2) What is covered

Spell out the covered items:

  • Anchoring failure due to improper installation
  • Blanket displacement under normal conditions
  • Riprap placement defects (if not undermined by unaddressed drainage)
  • Geogrid installation deviations (spacing, embedment) if your scope includes it

3) What is excluded (must be explicit)

Common erosion warranty exclusions:

  • Rainfall events exceeding design criteria (if engineered)
  • Flooding, hurricanes, and “acts of God” (use carefully; better to tie to design storm)
  • Site misuse (traffic on protected slopes)
  • Lack of maintenance (clogged inlet protection, unremoved sediment)
  • Upstream runoff increases (new pavement, diverted flows, neighbor discharge)
  • Changes by others (grading, utilities trenching, landscaping changes)

4) Remedy limitation

Limit the remedy to:

  • Repair or replacement of defective work
  • Exclude consequential damages where permitted (e.g., lost profits, regulatory fines)
    Note: enforceability varies by state—have local counsel review.

5) Owner obligations as warranty conditions

Make warranty conditional on:

  • Access to the site
  • Proper maintenance (or maintenance purchased from you)
  • No alteration by others
  • Timely notice of defects

This is particularly important in an erosion repair agreement where ongoing drainage issues can re-trigger failures.

Maintenance obligations: make them contractual, not assumed

In erosion control, “maintenance” is often assumed, but not paid for. Your contract should clearly state one of the following:

  1. Maintenance excluded: Owner/GC responsible for all inspections, sediment removal, and repairs.
  2. Maintenance included: Define frequency, inspection triggers, and unit pricing for repairs beyond a threshold.
  3. Hybrid: Include a baseline number of visits plus unit rates for additional events.

For projects with SWPPP obligations, include:

  • Who keeps inspection logs
  • Who submits reports
  • Who installs and maintains perimeter controls versus inlet protection

Insurance, indemnity, and risk allocation (key for construction & renovation sites)

Erosion failures can cause third-party property damage or environmental claims. Your contract should align with your insurance:

  • General liability limits appropriate to slope risk
  • Professional liability if you provide engineering (or design delegation)
  • Additional insured requirements from the GC/owner and what you can reciprocate
  • Indemnity that’s not overly broad (avoid indemnifying for others’ negligence where prohibited)

Important: Many states limit or void certain construction indemnity clauses. Use jurisdiction-appropriate language.

Regulatory and permitting: clarify who owns compliance tasks

Your agreement should specify:

  • Whether you are responsible for permit acquisition (often not)
  • Whether you are responsible for meeting permit conditions (only for your scope)
  • Documentation deliverables: as-builts, BMP maps, inspection reports

If you’re a subcontractor, your scope should tie into the prime contract’s SWPPP requirements without making you responsible for the entire site.

Practical exhibit package for an erosion control contract template

To make your agreement easier to administer, use exhibits that reduce ambiguity:

  • Exhibit A: Scope of Work & Drawing List (with revision dates)
  • Exhibit B: Materials and Installation Standards (product data sheets, methods)
  • Exhibit C: Unit Prices & Allowances
  • Exhibit D: Maintenance Plan (if included)
  • Exhibit E: Warranty Terms (workmanship vs. standard of care)
  • Exhibit F: Site Conditions Report (baseline photos)
  • Exhibit G: Change Order Form / Field Directive Form

This structure works whether you label the document an erosion prevention service agreement, erosion repair agreement, or slope stabilization contract—the operational needs are the same: define, document, and control change.

Common negotiation flashpoints (and service-provider responses)

“We need you to guarantee no erosion.”

Response approach: Offer performance criteria and maintenance services, not a blanket guarantee. Tie expectations to design storms and proper maintenance.

“Warranty should cover washouts.”

Response approach: Cover defects in workmanship; washouts are typically driven by rainfall intensity, drainage changes, or lack of maintenance—address those with exclusions and optional monitoring.

“Engineering is included—so you’re responsible for any slope failure.”

Response approach: Separate engineering standard of care from construction warranty, clarify design assumptions and reliance on owner-provided information, and limit remedies.

“We’ll pay when the project is accepted by the city.”

Response approach: If you don’t control other trades or the whole SWPPP, avoid payment terms that hinge on third-party acceptance. Use milestones based on your deliverables.

Conclusion: build contracts that reflect real erosion risk, engineering boundaries, and enforceable warranties

A strong erosion control agreement protects your company while staying fair and professional: it defines scope precisely, captures engineering responsibilities without turning them into outcome guarantees, and uses warranties that match the realities of soil, hydrology, and weather. Whether you’re adapting an erosion control contract template, drafting an erosion repair agreement, or negotiating a slope stabilization contract, the goal is the same: clear performance criteria, controlled changes, and warranty terms grounded in workmanship and standard of care.

If you want a faster way to generate a tailored erosion prevention service agreement with the right exhibits and warranty language, you can build and customize one using Contractable, an AI-powered contract generator, at https://www.contractable.ai.

Other questions to keep learning

  • What’s the difference between a workmanship warranty and a professional standard of care in erosion control projects?
  • How do I set a “design storm” assumption in a slope stabilization contract without overpromising?
  • Should erosion control maintenance be a separate agreement or an exhibit to the main contract?
  • What unit rates are most useful to include in an erosion repair agreement for change orders?
  • How can I document existing site conditions to defend against pre-existing erosion claims?
  • When does delegated design require professional liability insurance?
  • How do I write enforceable warranty exclusions for extreme weather and upstream runoff changes?
  • What contract language helps prevent “scope creep” when inspectors request additional BMPs?