The purpose of the Agricultural/Woodland Conservation District is to discourage the scattering of commercial, industrial, residential, and other urban uses throughout predominantly agricultural and forested areas of the Township where public services are neither presently available nor anticipated in the immediate future; to provide for the regulation of housing density in such areas; to encourage the preservation of natural and historic amenities and to otherwise create conditions conducive to carrying out the purposes of this Chapter. The purpose of this district is also to provide standards for certain agricultural and residential uses in areas where public water and public sewerage are generally not available. In areas of highly productive farmland, prime agricultural soils, and where agricultural activity remains strong, this district is established to protect and stabilize agriculture as an ongoing economic activity and the primary use by generally permitting only those land uses and activities which are either agricultural in nature or act in direct support thereof. Owners, residents, and other users of property within this district may be subject to inconvenience, discomfort, and the possibility of injury to property and health arising from normal and accepted agricultural practices and operations.

The objectives for this zone are to protect and stabilize the essential characteristics of these areas, to minimize conflicting land uses detrimental to agricultural enterprises and forested areas, to limit development which requires highways and other public facilities in excess of those required by agricultural uses and to maintain agricultural parcels or farms in sizes which will permit the continued efficiency of agricultural operations.

(Ord. 2017-002, 4/25/2017)

A.

Single-family detached dwellings.

B.

Parks, playgrounds, and recreation areas when owned or operated by the Municipality.

C.

Fishing and hunting clubs.

D.

Individual mobile homes.

E.

Agriculture and agriculturally related operations including the following:

1.

Forest reserves, tree farming, production of forest products and forest industries, wildlife preserves, and crop farming to include forage, sod, grain and feed.

2.

Vineyards, orchards, greenhouses, nurseries, gardens, commercial production of fruits, vegetables, flowers, plants and similar products, and sale of these products in buildings with off-street parking provided.

3.

Animal husbandry, milk processing, livestock production including breeding of dairy and beef cattle, camelids, sheep, swine, horses, ponies, mules, goats, poultry, other birds, fowl, fish, fur animals, and associated farm animals. Buildings housing animals and storage areas for animal waste shall have a minimum setback distance of 100 feet from any non-agricultural property line or any occupied dwelling, public building, or commercial or industrial building, unless released by the owner thereof. Operations classified as a concentrated animal operation (CAO) as defined by this Chapter or otherwise requiring a nutrient management plan in accordance with applicable State and Federal regulations shall be a conditional use, provide a minimum area of 25 acres for housing of animals, and shall have a minimum setback distance of 200 feet for all buildings housing animals and animal waste storage areas.

4.

Granaries, sawmills, and similar agricultural activities.

5.

Accessory agriculturally related enterprises in accordance with the requirements of Section 39-317 of this Chapter.

F.

Churches or similar places of worship including parish houses and parsonages.

G.

Stables and riding academies.

H.

Cemeteries and related uses provided no grave or structure shall be located within 25 feet of any property line and provided that the facility is subject to an approved maintenance program.

I.

Kennels, animal hospitals not located within 100 feet of any property line.

J.

Non-commercial keeping of livestock in accordance with Section 39-320 of this Chapter.

K.

Accessory buildings and uses on the same lot with and customarily incidental to any of the above permitted uses and which may include a home occupation.

(Ord. 2017-002, 4/25/2017)

A.

Public utility facilities.

B.

Public, private and parochial schools, and daycare centers for the educational needs of the community provided all outside active play areas are screened from adjacent residential properties.

C.

Concentrated animal operations (CAOs) as specified in Section 39-701.E.3 above.

D.

Keeping of an inherently dangerous animal(s).

E.

Outdoor recreational facilities and organizations such as private playgrounds, swimming clubs, golf clubs, tennis courts and similar activities subject to the following conditions.

1.

All lighting, which is necessary and incidental to such use shall be shielded from adjacent properties.

2.

Along all property lines adjacent to a residential use, a 100-foot wide landscaped buffer strip shall be provided.

F.

Campgrounds, seasonal housing, travel trailer or recreational vehicle camps, not for year round permanent residential occupancy, subject to the following conditions.

1.

Any such facility shall occupy a lot area of not less than ten acres and no buildings shall be erected within 100 feet of a public road or lot line.

2.

The maximum length of any buildings shall not exceed 150 feet. Distance between buildings shall not be less than 25 feet.

3.

There shall be a minimum of two points of ingress and egress.

4.

All such facilities shall have a centralized sewage disposal system and water supply system approved by the State Department of Environmental Protection.

5.

Usable Open Space. All such facilities shall provide not less than 25 percent of the total land area for usable open space purposes. Usable open space shall be so located as to be free of traffic hazards and should, where the topography permits, be centrally located and easily accessible to all facility residents.

6.

Density. The density shall not exceed 15 sites per acre. Sections of a facility dedicated for seasonal trailer storage may exceed this density for purposes of storage only.

7.

Setback. No trailer, tent, building, etc., shall be located closer than 15 feet to any internal street.

G.

Commercial wireless telecommunications service facilities in accordance with Section 39-318 of this Chapter.

H.

Neighborhood outdoor recreational facilities and organizations when not operated for gain or profit.

I.

Federal, State and local municipal buildings and uses and essential services.

J.

Surface mining in accordance with Sections 39-404.A.5 and 39-1102.C of this Chapter.

K.

Open space cluster development in accordance with Section 39-316 of this Chapter.

L.

Small wind energy systems in accordance with the following standards:

1.

Tower Height. Tower height shall be limited to 80 feet unless otherwise restricted by Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations.

2.

Setback. The system shall be set back a distance equal to 110 percent of the height of the tower plus the blade length from all adjacent property lines. This setback may be reduced by notarized consent of the owner of the property on which the system is to be erected and the adjoining landowner whose property falls within the specified distance. Additionally, no portion of the system, including guy wire anchors, may extend closer than ten feet to any property line.

3.

Such systems shall be located on a parcel that is a minimum 30,000 square feet in area.

4.

Noise. Small wind energy systems shall not exceed 60 dBA, as measured at the closest neighboring inhabited dwelling. However, this level may be exceeded during short-term events such as utility outages and/or severe wind storms.

5.

Approved Turbines. Small wind turbines must have approval under a small wind certification program recognized by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).

6.

Lighting. Systems shall not be artificially lighted unless required by the FAA or other appropriate authority.

7.

No tower shall have any sign, writing or picture that may be construed as advertising.

8.

The applicant shall provide evidence that the proposed height of the small wind energy system does not exceed the height recommended by the manufacturer or distributor of the system.

9.

The minimum distance between the ground and any protruding blades shall be 20 feet as measured at the lowest point of the arc of the blades. The lowest point of the arc of the blades shall also be 10 feet above the height of any structure within 150 feet of the base. The base of the tower shall not be climbable for a vertical distance of 12 feet above grade of the fixed portion of the tower.

10.

No small wind energy system shall be installed until evidence has been provided that the utility company has been informed of the customer's intent to install an interconnected customer-owned generator. Off-grid systems shall be exempt from this requirement.

(Ord. 2017-002, 4/25/2017)

A.

All buildings including accessory buildings shall not cover more than ten percent of the area of the lot.

B.

Minimum required for all uses not otherwise listed:

** When on-lot sewer facilities are to be utilized, the minimum lot size may be increased by the Township Sewage Enforcement Officer or the Department of Environmental Protection for factors relating to health and sanitation.

C.

The supplementary regulations found in Part 3 of this Chapter may be applicable to certain development activities and shall be strictly adhered to in all such instances.

(Ord. 2017-002, 4/25/2017)