(a) No person may grade, fill, excavate or store or dispose of soil and earth materials or perform any other land-disturbing or land-filling activity without first obtaining a permit as set forth in this chapter. No permit shall be granted until the applicant has obtained approval of all his or her legislative requirements, such as, but not limited to, use permits, hillside planned development permit, tentative map, building permit or site plan review, where required. The environmental impact report shall be considered in the granting of a permit, and conditions may be imposed by the city to minimize or mitigate the negative environmental impacts of the proposed work. The City Engineer shall determine when appropriate approvals and conditions have been met.
(b) All land-disturbing or land-filling activities or soil storage shall be undertaken in a manner designed to minimize surface runoff, erosion and sedimentation. A person performing such activities need not apply for a permit pursuant to this chapter, if all the following criteria are met:
(1) The site upon which land area is disturbed or filled is 10,000 square feet or less;
(2) Finished slopes are less than one vertical to four horizontal;
(3) Volume of soil or earth materials disturbed or stored is 50 cubic yards or less;
(4) Rainwater runoff is diverted, either during or after construction, by the activities from an area smaller than 5,000 square feet;
(5) An impervious surface, if any, of less than 5,000 square feet is created;
(6) No drainageway is blocked or has its stormwater carrying capacities or characteristics modified; and
(7) The activity does not take place within 50 feet, by horizontal measurement, from the top of the bank of a watercourse, the mean high water mark (line of vegetation) of a body of water or within the wetlands associated with a watercourse or water body, whichever distance is greater.
(c) Subsections (a) and (b)(1) through (6) of this section notwithstanding, the following activities are always categorically exempt from the permit requirements:
(1) An excavation below finished grade for basements and footings if a building, retaining wall or other structure is authorized by a valid building permit. This shall not exempt any fill made with material from such excavation nor exempt any excavation having an unsupported height greater than five feet after the completion of the structure;
(2) Cemetery graves;
(3) Excavations for wells or tunnels;
(4) Exploratory excavations under the direction of geotechnical engineers;
(5) Agricultural use of land that is operated in accordance with a conservation plan approved by the Lake County Soil and Water District (LCSWD) or when it is determined by the LCSWD that such use will not cause excessive erosion or sediment losses, provided:
A. Cut or fills do not exceed three feet in depth; and
B. Cut or fill slopes are no steeper than two horizontal to one vertical.
(6) Subsection (b)(7) of this section notwithstanding, any activity where total volume of material disturbed, stored, disposed of or used as fill does not exceed 25 cubic yards is always categorically exempt from the permit requirements;
(7) Work conducted in any city street, public right-of-way or easement when the work is for a public facility, public utility or other public purpose and for which an encroachment permit has been issued;
(8) City public works projects; and
(9) Emergency work authorized by the city necessary to protect life, limb or property or to maintain the safety, use or stability of a public way or drainage.
(Ord. 07-O-36, passed 11-7-2007)