Every person owning property through which a watercourse passes or the person's lessee, shall keep and maintain that part of the watercourse within the property reasonably free of trash, debris, excessive vegetation and other obstacles that would pollute, contaminate or significantly retard the flow of water through the watercourse. In addition, the owner or lessee shall maintain existing privately owned structures within or adjacent to a watercourse, so that the structures will not become a hazard to the use, function or physical integrity of the watercourse. The owner or lessee shall not remove healthy bank vegetation beyond that actually necessary for maintenance, nor remove the vegetation in the manner as to increase the vulnerability of the watercourse to erosion. The property owner shall be responsible for maintaining and stabilizing that portion of the watercourse that is within their property lines in order to protect against erosion and degradation of the watercourse originating or contributed from their property. Any disturbance or modification of a watercourse must be conducted in a manner consistent with and, where required, under a valid permit issued by the state and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
(Ord. passed 7-15-2008)