For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
APPLICANT. Any person or entity that applies for a building permit, subdivision approval, or a permit to allow land disturbing activities. APPLICANT also means that person’s agents, employees, and others acting under this person’s direction.
BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES (BMP’S). Erosion and sediment control and water quality management practices that are the most effective and practicable means of controlling, preventing, and minimizing degradation of surface water, including construction-phasing, minimizing the length of time soil areas are exposed, prohibitions, and other management practices published by state or designated area-wide planning agencies. (Examples of BMP’s can be found in the current versions of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s publications, Protecting Water Quality in Urban Areas, and, Storm-Water and Wetlands: Planning and Evaluation Guidelines for Addressing Potential Impacts of Urban Storm- Water and Snow-Melt Runoff on Wetlands, the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s, Storm Water Management for Construction Activities: Developing Pollution Prevention Plans and Best Management Practices, (as a reference for BMP’s) and the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s, Erosion Control Design Manual.)
BUFFER. A protective vegetated zone located adjacent to a natural resource, such as a water of the state, that is subject to direct or indirect human alteration. The width of a buffer strip is the width along each bank of a stream. Therefore a 30-foot wide stream with 100-foot buffer strips has a total width of 230 feet. Acceptable buffer vegetation includes preserving existing pre-development vegetation and/or planting locally distributed native Minnesota trees, shrubs and grassy vegetation. Alteration of such areas is strictly limited. Buffer areas are designated with permanent signs. (Commentary: As a plant species selection guide of what species not to plant, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ Minn. Rules Ch. 6216, as it may be amended from time to time, contains a list of exotic prohibited, regulated, unlisted and unregulated plant species.)
DEVELOPER. A person, firm, corporation, sole proprietorship, partnership, state agency, or political subdivision thereof engaged in a land disturbance activity.
DISCHARGE. The conveyance, channeling, runoff, or drainage, of storm water, including snowmelt, from a construction site.
ENERGY DISSIPATION. This refers to methods employed at pipe outlets to prevent erosion. Examples include, but are not limited to; aprons, riprap, splash pads, and gabions that are designed to prevent erosion.
EROSION. Any process that wears away the surface of the land by the action of water, wind, ice, or gravity. Erosion can be accelerated by the activities of people and nature.
EROSION CONTROL. Refers to methods employed to prevent erosion. Examples include soil stabilization practices, horizontal slope grading, temporary or permanent cover, and construction phasing.
EROSION AND SEDIMENT PRACTICE SPECIFICATIONS or PRACTICE. The management procedures, techniques, and methods to control soil erosion and sedimentation as officially adopted by either the city, county or local watershed group, whichever is more stringent.
EXPOSED SOIL AREAS. All areas of the construction site where the vegetation (trees, shrubs, brush, and the like) has been removed. This includes topsoil stockpile areas, borrow areas and disposal areas within the construction site. It does not include stockpiles or surcharge areas of sand, gravel, concrete or bituminous.
FILTER STRIPS. A vegetated section of land designed to treat runoff as overland sheet flow. They may be designed in any natural vegetated form from a grassy meadow to a small forest. Their dense vegetated cover facilitates pollutant removal and infiltration.
FINAL STABILIZATION. All soil disturbing activities at the site have been completed, and that a uniform perennial vegetative cover with a density of 75% of the cover for unpaved areas and areas not covered by permanent structures has been established or equivalent permanent stabilization measures have been employed. (Examples of vegetative cover practices can be found in the current version of the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s publication, Supplemental Specifications to the (Year) Standard Specifications for Construction. (Simply sowing grass seed is not considered stabilization.)
HYDRIC SOILS. Soils that are saturated, flooded, or ponded long enough during the growing season to develop anaerobic conditions in the upper part.
HYDROPHYTIC VEGETATION. Macrophytic (large enough to be observed by the naked eye) plant life growing in water, soil or on a substrate that is at least periodically deficient in oxygen as a result of excessive water content.
IMPERVIOUS SURFACE. A constructed hard surface that either prevents or retards the entry of water into the soil, and causes water to run off the surface in greater quantities and at an increased rate of flow than existed prior to development. Examples include rooftops, sidewalks, patios, driveways, parking lots, storage areas, and concrete, asphalt, or gravel roads.
LAND DISTURBANCE ACTIVITY. Any land change that may result in soil erosion from water or wind and the movement of sediments into or upon waters or lands within this government’s jurisdiction, including clearing and grubbing, grading, excavating, transporting and filling of land. Within the context of this rule, LAND DISTURBANCE ACTIVITY does not mean:
(1) Minor land disturbance activities such as home gardens and an individual’s home landscaping, repairs, and maintenance work.
(2) Construction, installation, and maintenance of electric, telephone, and cable television, utility lines or individual service connection to these utilities, which result in creating under 5,000 square feet of exposed soil.
(3) Tilling, planting, or harvesting of agricultural, horticultural, or silvicultural crops.
(4) Installation of fence, sign, telephone, and electric poles and other kinds of posts or poles which result in creating under 5,000 square feet of exposed soil.
(5) Emergency work to protect life, limb, or property and emergency repairs, unless the land disturbing activity would have otherwise required an approved erosion and sediment control plan, except for the emergency. If such a plan would have been required, then the disturbed land area shall be shaped and stabilized in accordance with the city’s requirements as soon as possible.
ORDINARY HIGH WATER MARK.
(1) This is generally the boundary elevation where the vegetation changes from predominately aquatic (where “aquatic” broadly means that the vegetation can survive moist conditions) to terrestrial. This elevation delineates the highest water level, which has been maintained for a sufficient period of time to leave evidence upon the landscape, commonly that point where the natural vegetation changes from predominantly aquatic to predominantly terrestrial. Water often reaches this elevation in spring. For rivers and streams the
ORDINARY HIGH WATER MARK is usually the top of the bank. It is less well defined for lakes and wetlands. The definition in M.S. § 103G.005, Subdivision 14, as it may be amended from time to time, says that the “. . . ORDINARY HIGH WATER LEVEL means the boundary of waterbasins, watercourses, public waters, and public waters wetlands, and:
(a) The
ORDINARY HIGH WATER LEVEL is an elevation delineating the highest water level that has been maintained for a sufficient period of time to leave evidence upon the landscape, commonly the point where the natural vegetation changes from predominantly aquatic to predominantly terrestrial;
(b) For watercourses, the
ORDINARY HIGH WATER LEVEL is the elevation of the top of the bank of the channel; and
(c) For reservoirs and flowages, the
ORDINARY HIGH WATER LEVEL is the operating elevation of the normal summer pool.”
(2) The term
ORDINARY HIGH WATER MARK is further defined in Minn. Rules 6120.2500, Subpart 11, as it may be amended from time to time. ORDINARY HIGH WATER MARKS are determined by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ area hydrologist.
PAVED SURFACE. A constructed hard, smooth surface made of asphalt, concrete or other pavement material. Examples include, but are not limited to, roads, sidewalks, driveways and parking lots.
PERMANENT COVER. Means FINAL STABILIZATION. Examples include grass, gravel, asphalt, and concrete.
RUNOFF COEFFICIENT. The average annual fraction of total precipitation that is not infiltrated into or otherwise retained by the soil, concrete, asphalt or other surface upon which it falls that will appear at the conveyance as runoff.
SEDIMENT. The product of an erosion process; solid material both mineral and organic, that is in suspension, is being transported, or has been moved by water, air, or ice, and has come to rest on the earth’s surface either above or below water level.
SEDIMENT CONTROL. The methods employed to prevent sediment from leaving the development site. SEDIMENT CONTROL practices include silt fences, sediment traps, earth dikes, drainage swales, check dams, subsurface drains, pipe slope drains, storm drain inlet protection, and temporary or permanent sedimentation basins.
SEDIMENTATION. The process or action of depositing sediment caused by erosion.
SOIL. The unconsolidated mineral and organic material on the immediate surface of the earth. For the purposes of this document stockpiles of sand, gravel, aggregate, concrete or bituminous materials are not considered SOIL stockpiles.
STABILIZED. The exposed ground surface after it has been covered by sod, erosion control blanket, riprap, or other material that prevents erosion from occurring. Simply sowing grass seed is not considered stabilization.
STORM WATER. Under Minn. Rules 7077.0105, Subpart 41b, as it may be amended from time to time, STORM WATER “means precipitation runoff, storm water runoff, snow melt runoff, and any other surface runoff and drainage.” (According to the Federal Code of Regulations under 40 CFR 122.26 [b][13], “Storm water means storm water runoff, snow melt runoff and surface and drainage.”). STORM WATER does not include construction site dewatering.
STORM WATER POLLUTION CONTROL PLAN. A joint storm water and erosion and sediment control plan that is a document containing the requirements of § 53.04, that when implemented will decrease soil erosion on a parcel of land and off-site nonpoint pollution.
STRUCTURE. Anything manufactured, constructed or erected which is normally attached to or positioned on land, including portable structures, earthen structures, roads, parking lots, and paved storage areas.
SUBDIVISION. Any tract of land divided into building lots for private, public, commercial, industrial, and the like development. Minn. Rules 6120.2500, Subpart 17, as it may be amended from time to time, defines SUBDIVISION as, “. . . land that is divided for the purpose of sale, rent, or lease, including planned unit development.”
TEMPORARY PROTECTION. Short term methods employed to prevent erosion. Examples of such protection include; straw, mulch, erosion control blankets, wood chips, and erosion netting.
URBAN. Of, relating to, characteristic of, constituting a city.
VEGETATED or GRASSED SWALES. A vegetated earthen channel that conveys storm water, while treating the storm water by biofiltration. Such swales remove pollutants by both filtration and infiltration.
WATERS OF THE STATE. As defined in M.S. § 115.01, Subdivision 22, as it may be amended from time to time, the term “. . . WATERS OF THE STATE means all streams, lakes, ponds, marshes, watercourses, waterways, wells, springs, reservoirs, aquifers, irrigation systems, drainage systems and all other bodies or accumulations of water, surface or underground, natural or artificial, public or private, which are contained within, flow through, or border upon the state or any portion thereof.” (Commentary: According to Minn. Rules 7050.0130, Subpart A, as it may be amended from time to time, disposal systems or treatment works operated under either a Minnesota Pollution Control Agency permit or an agency certificate of compliance are not considered WATERS OF THE STATE. Under Minn. Rules 7050.0130, Subpart F, as it may be amended from time to time, constructed wetlands designed for wastewater treatment are not WATERS OF THE STATE. Also see the definition of WETLANDS.)
WET DETENTION FACILITY. A permanent man-made structure for the temporary storage of runoff that contains a permanent pool of water.
WETLANDS. As defined in Minn. Rules 7050.0130, Subpart F, as it may be amended from time to time, “. . . WETLANDS are those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface water or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. WETLANDS generally include swamps, marshes, bogs, and similar areas. Constructed wetlands designed for wastewater treatment are not waters of the state. WETLANDS must have the following attributes:
(1) A predominance of hydric soils;
(2) Inundated or saturated by surface water or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support a prevalence of hydrophytic vegetation typically adapted for life in a saturated soil condition; and
(3) Under normal circumstances support a prevalence of such vegetation.” (Commentary: Two quick references of what is an existing identified wetland are the National Wetlands Inventory maps distributed by the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Fish and Wildlife Service and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ maps of protected waters and wetlands.)
(Ord. 01-01, passed 4-10-01)