This chapter shall not apply to the following land-disturbing activities:
(A) Activities, including the breeding and grazing of livestock, undertaken on agricultural land for the production of plants and animals useful to mankind, including but not limited to:
(1) Forages and sod crops, grains and feed crops, tobacco, cotton and peanuts;
(2) Dairy animals and dairy products;
(3) Poultry and poultry products;
(4) Livestock, including beef cattle, llamas, sheep, swine, horses, ponies, mules and goats;
(5) Bees and apiary products;
(6) Fur-producing animals; and
(7) Mulch, ornamental plants, and other horticultural products. For purposes of this section, "mulch" means substances composed primarily of plant remains or mixtures of such substances.
(B) Activities undertaken on forest land for the production and harvesting of timber and timber products and which are conducted in accordance with best management practices set out in Forest Practice Guidelines Related to Water Quality as adopted by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. If land-disturbing activity undertaken on forest land for the production and harvesting of timber and timber products is not conducted in accordance with Forest Practice Guidelines Related to Water Quality, the provisions of this chapter shall apply to such activity and any related land-disturbing activity on the tract.
(C) Activities for which a permit is required under the Mining Act of 1971, being G.S. Chapter 74, Article 7 of the General Statutes;
(D) Land-disturbing activity over which the state has exclusive regulatory jurisdiction as provided in G.S. 113A-56(a); and
(E) For the duration of an emergency, activities essential to protect human life.
(F) Activities undertaken to restore the wetland functions of converted wetlands to provide compensatory mitigation to offset impacts permitted under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act.
(G) Activities undertaken pursuant to Natural Resources Conservation Service standards to restore the wetlands functions of converted wetlands as defined in Title 7 Code of Federal Regulations § 12.2
(Ord. No. 98-7, passed 1-8-1998; Ord. No. 23-040, § 1, passed 5-11-2023)