CHAPTER 11
EROSION CONTROL
EROSION CONTROL
10-11-1 Title | 10-11-7 Inspection and Enforcement |
10-11-2 Purpose | 10-11-8 Abatement of Soil Accumulation |
10-11-3 Definitions | 10-11-9 Cleanup by City; Assessment of Costs |
10-11-4 Warning | 10-11-10 Responsibility of Property Owners or Permittees |
10-11-5 Interpretation | 10-11-11 Violation; Penalty |
10-11-6 Grading Permit Requirements; Fee |
1. The U.S. EPA’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (“NPDES”) Permit Program (“program”) administered by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (“IDNR”) requires that cities meeting certain demographic and environmental impact criteria obtain from the IDNR an NPDES permit for the discharge of stormwater from a municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4) (MS4 permit). The City of Clive (“City”) is subject to the program and is required to obtain, and has obtained, an MS4 permit. The City’s MS4 permit is on file at the office of the Clerk and is available for public inspection during regular office hours. As a condition of the City’s MS4 permit, the City is obligated to undertake primary responsibility for administration and enforcement of the program by adopting regulations to effectively manage construction site erosion and sediment controls and to require compliance with the IDNR NPDES General Permit No. 2.
2. The purpose of this chapter is to comply with the MS4 permit requirements and care for and control the City streets, sidewalks, and sewers to prevent the despoliation of the environment and to promote and preserve the rights, privileges, property, safety, health, welfare, comfort, and convenience of the residents of, and visitors to, the City by regulating and controlling the design, construction, quality of material, and use and maintenance of any development or other activity which disturbs or breaks the topsoil or otherwise results in the movement of soil in the City, and by requiring property owners to abate certain accumulations of soil.
For purposes of this chapter the following terms are defined:
1. “Approval” means formal, written consent by the Council, or authorized representative of the City.
2. “Best Management Practices” (BMPs) means schedules of activities, prohibitions of practice, maintenance procedures, and other management practices to prevent or reduce pollution of waters of the United States. Common BMPs are described in the “Clive Stormwater Manual,” “Iowa Stormwater Management Manual,” and the “Statewide Urban Design And Specifications Manual” (“SUDAS.”) Those BMPs covered within those manuals are not meant to be a comprehensive list of acceptable BMPs.
3. “Construction activity” means any clearing, excavation, filling, or grading activity affecting more than 500 square feet of land.
4. “Erosion” means the wearing away of ground surface as a result of the movement of wind, water, or ice.
5. “Excavate” means the mechanical removal of soil or ground cover, by which organic matter, earth, sand, gravel, rock, trees, vegetation, or other ground cover is cleared, graded, cut into, dug, quarried, uncovered, removed, displaced, relocated, or moved, and shall include the conditions resulting therefrom.
6. “Fill” means the depositing of soil by artificial means.
7. “Final stabilization” means all construction activity at the site has been completed and a uniform perennial vegetative cover with a density of at least 70 percent has been established.
8. “Horticultural activity” means the cultivation of a garden, orchard, or nursery.
9. “National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System” (NPDES) means the program for issuing, modifying, revoking, terminating, monitoring, and enforcing permits under the Clean Water Act Sections 301, 318, 402, and 405 and United States Code of Federal Regulations Title 33, Sections 1317, 1328, 1342, and 1345.
10. “Permit holder” means a person holding a grading permit which has neither expired nor been revoked.
11. “Property” means land located in the City, whether or not improved, with buildings or other structures.
12. “Property owner” means a person who, alone or with another person or other persons, holds the legal title to property; except, however, where property has been sold on contract to a person who has the present right to possess the property and the contract has been filed for record in the office of the County Recorder, the person so purchasing the property, whether alone or with another person or other persons, is the “property owner” and the person retaining bare legal title to the property as security for the balance of the purchase price.
13. “Sediment control” means methods employed to prevent sediment from leaving the site. Sediment control practices include, but are not limited to: silt fences, sediment traps, earth dikes, drainage swales, check dams, subsurface drains, pipe slope drains, storm drain inlet protection and temporary/permanent sediment basins.
14. “Sewer” or “city sewer” means all pipes, culverts, channels, manholes, curb gutters, ditches, and other structures or courses, manmade or natural, forming a part of the storm sewer system of the City.
15. “Sidewalk” or “City sidewalk” means that portion of a public street or thoroughfare in the City intended for the use of pedestrians.
16. “Soil” means dirt, sand, loam, gravel, rock, and other naturally occurring surficial deposits overlying bedrock.
17. “Stormwater” means stormwater runoff, snowmelt runoff, and surface runoff and drainage.
18. “Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan” (SWPPP) means a plan as defined in the State NPDES stormwater general permit.
19. “Street” or “City street” means all of a public street or thoroughfare in the City, including the unpaved portions of a public right-of-way generally referred to as “public parking” but exclusive of sidewalks.
No person shall place reliance upon this chapter, any inspections performed, or certificates issued pursuant to this chapter, as indicating the safety of or quality of construction of any particular premises. Neither this chapter, nor inspections made pursuant thereto, nor certificates issued are intended to assume the duty of any person to adequately construct and maintain a premises or provide a safe premises or to, in any way, indicate a decrease in the risk associated with the use or occupancy of any premises. A certification that a premises has been inspected pursuant to this chapter shall not in any way constitute a warranty or guarantee of the safety or quality of that premises.
1. Permit Required. Unless permitted by Subsection 2 of this section, it is unlawful for any person to undertake any construction activity within any property in the City unless the owner of such property, or general contractor, if any, responsible for the work, holds for the property a current grading permit issued by the Community Development Department permitting such work to be done. If the construction activity requires an NPDES General Permit No. 2, the Community Development Department shall not issue the grading permit until such time as the NPDES General Permit No. 2 has been issued by the IDNR.
2. Exceptions. Any language in this chapter to the contrary notwithstanding, a grading permit is not necessary when excavating or filling is done:
A. To further a farming or horticultural activity;
B. By a public utility company for the purpose of installing underground utilities;
C. By City employees on City business or contractors under City’s hire;
D. By or under the direction of a soil engineer or engineering geologist to investigate, test, or evaluate earth materials in conjunction with the designing and engineering of buildings or other improvements; and
E. On property then occupied as the residence of the property owner and no more than 500 square feet of existing ground cover will be disturbed.
3. Permit Review. An SWPPP, prepared in accordance with all current NPDES General Permit No. 2 minimum requirements, shall be submitted for review prior to the issuance of a grading permit. The SWPPP shall be site specific and identify all construction site sources, including building materials, concrete washout, chemicals, solid waste, and sanitary waste, that may impact water quality. Additionally, the SWPPP shall identify all BMPs intended to be utilized to mitigate the potential adverse impacts to water quality from all construction site sources.
4. Issuance. After proper application on forms provided by the City Community Development Department, permits shall be issued in the name of a registered contractor or property owner. Permits are not transferable. No permits shall be issued to any person or company who has fees outstanding or who has outstanding violations of this Code or any other laws or ordinances of this City.
5. Fee. There shall be a fee paid for the issuance of permits. Permit fees shall be set forth in a fee schedule established and approved, from time to time, by the Council. Fees on all buildings or structures constructed by any unit of the government or nonprofit organization may be waived by the Council. No fees shall be collected on buildings or structures constructed by or for the City.
6. Expiration. Every permit issued under the provisions of this chapter shall expire by limitation and become null and void, if the work authorized by such permit is not commenced within 90 days from the date of issuance of such permit, or if the work authorized by such permit is suspended or abandoned at any time after the work is commenced for a period of 60 days. Before such work can be recommenced, a new permit shall be first obtained, and the fee therefor shall be one-half the amount required for a new permit for such work, provided that such suspension or abandonment has not exceeded 120 days.
7. Revocation. Any permit required by the provisions of this chapter may be summarily revoked by the Construction Services Administrator or Engineering Services Administrator upon the violation of any provision of this chapter.
1. Monitor Site for Compliance. It shall be the property owner or permit holder’s duty to monitor the site daily to assure compliance with the grading permit.
2. City Inspection. With the issuance of a grading permit, the permit holder acknowledges that the City may conduct site visits at any time to determine compliance with the grading permit. In the event that a site is found not to be in compliance with the grading permit, the City will communicate, verbally or in writing, with the property owner or permit holder as outlined in the City Erosion and Sediment Control Enforcement Response Plan chapter of the City Stormwater Management Manual.
3. Enforcement. Following notice from the City that the site is not in compliance with the grading permit, the property owner or permit holder shall immediately commence corrective action and shall complete corrective action within the timeframe identified by the City.
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