Lloyd Harbor City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XXI
Excavation, Erosion and Sediment Control Law
§ 205-117.1 Title and purpose.
A.
Title. This article will be known as the "Excavation, Erosion and Sediment Control Law."
B.
Purpose.
(1)
Excessive quantities of soil are eroding within areas that are undergoing development for nonagricultural uses such as housing development, roads and recreation areas in the Village of Lloyd Harbor. This soil erosion makes necessary costly repairs to gullies, washed out fills, roads and embankments. The resulting sediment clogs storm sewers, muddies and silts streams, ponds and surrounding waterbodies. Sediment is expensive to remove and diminishes the use of water for its most beneficial purposes. Sediment filled waterways can result in damage to wildlife habitat and be a threat to the general health, welfare and safety.
(2)
The removal of protective topsoil, sod, earth and gravel from areas in the Village results in the washing of silt and mud into storm drains and catch basins thereby creating flooding conditions and unnecessary erosion, storm damage, flooding, pollution and other damage to the land so altered or to adjoining property and destroys the natural rural aspect of the community.
§ 205-118 Application procedure for excavation, erosion and sediment control for subdivisions, improved or unimproved lots.
A.
Application for excavation, erosion and sediment control approval. Except as provided in § 205-121, no stone, sand, gravel, topsoil, earth of any kind or other natural material shall be moved, removed or excavated in any way (including, without limitation, any such moving, removing or excavating in connection with the reduction or increase of any kind of grade) from or on any land in the Village, including land under water within the Village boundaries, unless approval shall first have been obtained as hereinafter provided.
B.
Compliance. No site plan for excavation on an improved or unimproved lot or subdivision plat shall be approved unless it includes soil erosion and sediment control measures as deemed necessary by the Site and Building Permit Review Board in accordance with the standards and specifications of this article. No approval for a certificate of occupancy for any building will be granted unless all needed erosion control measures have been completed or substantially provided for in accordance with this article. The applicant shall bear the final responsibility for the installation and construction of all required erosion control measures according to the provisions of this article and may be required, as a condition of approval, to post a performance bond, or cash deposit, in an amount necessary to ensure the proper construction and completion of the erosion control measures.
[Amended 12-18-2000 by L.L. No. 5-2000; 10-21-2002 by L.L. No. 3-2002]
C.
Data required from applicant. The applicant must submit the following information for the entire tract of land effected by the proposed project, whether or not the tract will be developed in stages:
(1)
A boundary line survey of the site on which the work is to be performed.
(2)
Description of the features, existing and proposed, surrounding the site of importance to the proposed development.
(3)
Description of general topographic and general soil conditions and contours on the site.
(4)
Location and description of existing and future man-made features of the proposed development.
(5)
Proposed new surface contours.
(6)
Plans and specifications of soil erosion and sedimentation control measures.
(7)
A construction schedule indicating the anticipated starting and completion dates of the development sequence and the time of exposure of each area prior to the completion of effective erosion and sediment control measures.
D.
Approval.
(1)
Application. A separate application shall be required for each excavation, erosion and sediment control request. Plans, specifications and timing schedules shall be submitted with each application. The plans shall be prepared or approved and signed by a professional engineer or architect.
(2)
Hearing. Upon receipt of any such application, the Board may, in its discretion, call a hearing for the consideration thereof and may at such hearing take testimony and receive exhibits from such witnesses it deems necessary or advisable to assist in its determination with respect to the application.
(3)
Requirement. Upon review of a completed application, the Site and Building Permit Review Board shall approve, approve with conditions, or disapprove the application. Except as exempted by § 205-121, no person shall do any grading, stripping, cutting, filling or other site preparation without an approval issued by the Village Site and Building Permit Review Board.
[Amended 12-18-2000 by L.L. No. 5-2000; 10-21-2002 by L.L. No. 3-2002]
(4)
Grant of approval; conditions. The Board shall grant approval to any applicant, either permanently or temporarily, with or without conditions, if it finds affirmatively that the proposed excavation is consistent with the health, safety, morals and general welfare of the inhabitants of the Village and the community, is consistent with all other ordinances and Articles of the Village and will not create harm or damage to adjacent property. The Board shall state in its approval such restrictions and conditions as it may deem necessary or desirable to protect and preserve the property of the Village and its inhabitants.
§ 205-119 Principles and standards for excavation, erosion and sediment control during construction.
A.
Implementation. Since considerable soil erosion can take place during construction, construction plans shall contain proposed erosion and sediment control measures. These measures shall be incorporated into the final plat and the final construction drawings and shall apply to all features of the construction site, including street and utility installations, as well as to the protection of individual lots. Measures shall also be instituted to prevent or control erosion and sedimentation during various stages of development.
B.
General design principles. Practical combinations of the following general principles will provide effective sediment control when properly planned and applied:
(1)
The subdivision and site plan shall be fitted to the topography and soils so as to create the least erosion potential.
(3)
Permanent vegetation and improvements such as streets, storm sewers or other features of the development, capable of carrying storm run-off in a safe manner, shall be scheduled for installation to the greatest extent possible before removing any existing vegetation cover from an area.
(4)
Wherever feasible, natural vegetation shall be retained and protected.
(5)
Where inadequate vegetation exists, temporary or permanent vegetation shall be established.
(6)
The smallest practical area of land shall be exposed at any one time during development.
(7)
When land is exposed during development, the exposure shall be kept to the shortest practical period of time.
(8)
Critical areas exposed during construction shall be protected with temporary vegetation and/or mulching.
(9)
Sediment basins (debris basin, desilting basins or silt traps) shall be installed and maintained to remove sediment from run-off waters from land undergoing development.
(10)
Provisions shall be made to effectively accommodate the increased run-off caused by changed soil and surface conditions during and after development.
(11)
The permanent final vegetation and structures shall be installed as soon as practical in the development.
C.
Maintenance. Applicants, successors or assigns carrying out excavation, soil erosion and sediment control measures under this chapter shall adequately maintain all permanent erosion control measures, devices and planting in effective working condition.
§ 205-120 Commercial activities prohibited.
Nothing in this chapter shall be deemed to allow or permit any commercial activity of any kind within the Village or any moving, removing or excavating (including, without limitation, any such moving, removing or excavating in connection with the reduction or increase of any kind in grade) of natural material for commercial purposes or for the sale thereof, and the same is prohibited, except as may be permitted by and approved pursuant to this chapter.
§ 205-121 Exceptions.
No approval shall be required:
A.
If the amount of such material to be moved, removed or excavated from any two-acre or larger parcel of land shall be less in aggregate than 50 cubic yards within any two-year period, provided that such work shall be done at least 100 feet distant from the mean high-water mark of all neighboring bodies of water, and further provided that such work shall be incident and necessary to the construction or alteration of a walk, driveway, building or other lawful structure on such land or to the landscaping thereof or planting therein.
B.
For the excavation for the basement of a building for which a building permit has been duly issued, provided that the plans submitted to the Building Inspector in the application for such permit shall include the dimensions and salient details of such excavation.
C.
For any work done by the Village for public purposes.
§ 205-122 Deposit of materials in watercourses.
Except as may be permitted by resolution of the Board, no stone, sand, gravel, topsoil, earth of any kind or other material shall be deposited in the bed of any watercourse within this Village or on any land lying within the Floodplain District as defined in Article VII of Chapter 205, Zoning. The term "watercourse," as used in this section, shall mean any waterway or other body of fresh, brackish or salt water having reasonably well-defined banks, including but not limited to harbors, sounds, bays, rivers, creeks, rivulets, lakes, ponds, vernal ponds and streams.
§ 205-123 Inspection and enforcement.
A.
Inspection. The requirements of this article shall be enforced by the Building Inspector who shall inspect or require adequate inspection of the work. If the Building Inspector finds any existing conditions not as stated in any application or approved plan, the Building Inspector shall refuse to approve further work and issue a cease and desist order.
B.
Violations. Whenever, by the provisions of the Article, the performance of any act is required or the performance of any act is prohibited, a failure to comply with such provisions shall constitute a violation of this article.
C.
Correction. All violations shall be corrected within 30 days following date of issuance of written notice to correct.
D.
Penalties. Any person, firm or corporation who violates, neglects, omits or refuses to comply with any provision of this article or any permit or exception granted hereunder or any lawful requirement of the Building Inspector shall be subject to violations and penalties set forth in § 205-72. To promote compliance with the provisions of this article, each day that a violation is maintained, following notification, it shall be deemed a separate offense. The imposition of any fine shall not exempt the offender from further compliance with the provisions of this article.
E.
Fees. A fee schedule for permits and inspections based upon relevant criteria shall be established by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees.
§ 205-124 Severance provisions.
All parts of this article shall be deemed severable. Should any section, paragraph or provisions be declared invalid or unconstitutional by the courts, such holdings shall not affect the validity of the Article as a whole or any part thereof, other than the part so declared. The Village Board hereby declares that it would have enacted this article and each part thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more parts, section, subsection, phrase, sentence or clauses be declared invalid.