A.

It is essential that the quality of the city's public drinking water be insured. It is therefore necessary to protect the subsurface water resource of the city and surrounding communities that rely on it as sources of public water. Groundwater resources are contained within groundwater recharge areas, which are permeable, rock strata occupying vast regions of the subsurface. These groundwater recharge areas are replenished by infiltration of stormwater runoff in zones of the surface.

B.

Groundwaters are susceptible to contamination when unrestricted development occurs within significant groundwater recharge areas. It is therefore necessary to manage land use within groundwater recharge zones in order to ensure that pollution threats are minimized.

C.

The objectives of this chapter are to: (1) protect the groundwater by prohibiting land uses that generate dangerous pollutants in recharge areas; (2) protect the groundwater by limiting density of development; and, (3) protect the groundwater by ensuring that the development that occurs within the recharge area shall have no adverse effect on groundwater quality.

(Ord. 04-002 (part), 2004)

A groundwater recharge area district is established, which shall correspond to all lands within the city that are mapped as most significant recharge areas by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources in Georgia Pollution Susceptibility Map, Hydrologic Atlas 20, 1992 edition. This district shall be an overlay district.

(Ord. 04-002 (part), 2004)

Each recharge area shall be determined to have a pollution susceptibility of high, medium, or low based on the Georgia Pollution Susceptibility Map, Hydrologic Atlas 20. The map is adopted and made a part of this title.

(Ord. 04-002 (part), 2004)

Development of property within the groundwater recharge area district shall have the following groundwater protection standards:

A.

New waste disposal facilities of any type must have synthetic liners and leachate collection systems.

B.

No land disposal of hazardous waste shall be permitted within any significant groundwater recharge area.

C.

For all groundwater recharge areas, the handling, storage and disposal of hazardous materials shall take place on an impermeable surface having spill and leak protection approved by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Environmental Protection Division (EPD).

D.

For all significant groundwater recharge areas, new above ground chemical or petroleum storage tanks larger than six hundred fifty gallons must have secondary containment for one hundred ten percent of tank volume or one hundred ten percent of the largest tanks in a cluster of tanks. Tanks used for agricultural purposes are exempt if they comply with all federal regulations.

E.

New facilities that handle hazardous materials of the types listed in Section 312 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (excluding underground storage tanks) and in amounts of ten thousand pounds or more on any one day, shall perform their operations on impervious surfaces and in conformance with any applicable federal spill prevention requirements and local fire code requirements.

F.

New agricultural waste impoundment sites shall not be permitted.

(Ord. 04-002 (part), 2004)

No construction may proceed on a building or mobile home to be served by a septic tank unless Gwinnett County and/or Barrow County Health Department, Environmental Health Section, first approves the proposed septic tank installation as meeting the requirements of the State of Georgia Department of Human Resources DHR Manual for On-Site Sewerage Management Systems. The Gwinnett County Health Department has adhered to the manual since 1985.

New homes and mobile homes (including lots within a new mobile home park) served by a septic tank/drain field system shall be on lots having minimum size limitations as follows, based on application of Table MT-1 of the DHR Manual (hereinafter DHR Table MT-1). The minimum set forth in Table MT-1 may be increased further based on consideration of other factors (set forth in sections A-F) of the DHR Manual.

A.

One hundred ten percent of the subdivision minimum lot size, calculated based on application of DHR Table MT-1 if they are within a low pollution susceptibility area as defined by the Hydrologic Atlas Number 20;

B.

One hundred twenty-five percent of the subdivision minimum lot size, calculated based on application of DHR Table MT-1 if they are within a medium pollution susceptibility area as defined by the Hydrologic Atlas Number 20;

C.

One hundred fifty percent of the subdivision minimum lot size, calculated based on application of DHR Table MT-1 if they are within a high pollution susceptibility area as defined by the Hydrologic Atlas Number 20.

Table MT-1
Minimum Lot Sizes, Minimum Lot Widths and Maximum Allowable Sewage Flow for the Type of Water Supply System

Source: DHR Manual for On-Site Sewerage Management Systems

1.

"Non-public" means an individual water supply system or any other water supply system which is not a "public" water supply system.

2.

"gpad" means gallons per acre per day or gallons/acre/day.

(Ord. 04-002 (part), 2004)