[Added 3-15-1989 by Ord. No. 4-89]
A. 
Within the Borough of Kinnelon there exist certain environmentally sensitive areas which, because of soil conditions or the existence of streams, floodplains, ponds, lakes or wetlands, may be subject to periodic inundation or water infiltration and which may result in danger to life and property, health and safety hazards, disruption of commerce and government services, extraordinary public expenditure for flood protection and relief or for community facilities and impairment of the tax base, all of which adversely affect the public health, safety and general welfare. It is the purpose of this article to protect the health, safety and welfare of people and property within the Borough of Kinnelon from improper construction, building and development on steep slope and hillside areas in the Borough of Kinnelon and, more particularly, but without limitation, to reduce the peculiar hazards which exist in hillside areas by reason of erosion, siltation, flooding, soil slippage, surface water runoff, pollution of potable water supplies from nonpoint sources and the destruction of unique and predominant views. It is a further purpose of this article to encourage appropriate planning, design and development sites within hillside areas which preserve and maximize the best use of the natural terrain and maintain ridgelines and skylines intact.
B. 
In addition, within the Borough of Kinnelon such slopes are often associated with areas of exposed bedrock, shallow depth to bedrock, severe erosion potential, boulder-strewn shallow soils and perched water tables invariably involving severe limitations not only to development, but to road construction and maintenance and septic effluent disposal. Disturbance of these areas can lead to contamination and depletion of water supplies, increased runoff of stormwaters and contamination and siltation of surface water systems. Of special concern are bedrock cuts made where shallow depth to bedrock and shallow soils occur that may empty aquifers feeding nearby wells and the danger of septic and nonpoint source pollution of ground- and surface water supplies and systems. The Borough of Kinnelon, for the most part, relies on these wells and septic systems and is the source of surface water feeding many potable water supply reservoirs. Rivers, streams, ponds, lakes and wetlands, together with their adjacent upland areas, support protective bands of vegetation that line the water's edge. Under natural conditions, these areas maintain and enhance surface and ground water quality by filtering out sediments and associated nonpoint pollutants from adjacent land uses. They store water and thereby stabilize dry weather stream flows, groundwater levels and flood hazards.
C. 
It is therefore determined that the special and paramount public interest in these environmentally sensitive areas justifies the regulation of property located thereon as provided below, which is the exercise of the police power of the Borough for protection of persons and property of its inhabitants and for the preservation of the public health, safety and general welfare.
This article shall apply to all applications for minor or major subdivision or site plan approval in the Borough of Kinnelon.
Land or water falling in the following classifications is hereby designated as an environmentally sensitive area:
A. 
Flood hazard area. The stream channel and the relatively flat area adjoining the channel of a natural stream which has been inundated or covered by floodwaters, from a one-hundred-year storm frequency flood, as defined by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.
B. 
Wetlands area. Area saturated by surface or ground water and/or containing hydrophytic vegetation and as further defined in N.J.S.A. 13:9B-1 et seq., "Freshwater Wetlands Protection Act."
C. 
Stream. Any body of continuously or intermittently flowing water, whether designated as a stream, brook, river or otherwise, and consisting of a bed and banks.
D. 
Lake area. Any body of water with a mean depth of three feet or greater and a surface area greater than 1/2 acre, whether designated as a pond, lake or reservoir.
E. 
Slope area. Any slope having a grade of 15% or more.
[Amended 8-19-1993 by Ord. No. 11-93]
A. 
Applicants for site plan approval or subdivision approval shall submit to the Planning Board Secretary all information, documents and exhibits required by this article.
B. 
The Planning Board Secretary shall process all exhibits and documents submitted under this article in the same manner as applications for subdivision approval or site plan approval.
C. 
All environmentally sensitive areas as defined above shall be identified and delineated on the site plan or subdivision map by a professional with educational background and experience in the field of environmentally sensitive areas delineation.
A. 
Regulation for flood hazard areas. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, development in flood hazard areas shall be regulated as follows:
(1) 
In flood hazard areas having a drainage area of less than 50 acres, no building or structure shall be erected or constructed, either above or below ground level, within the flood hazard area or within a minimum of 50 feet from the center line of any stream.
(2) 
In a flood hazard area having a drainage area of 50 acres or greater, no building or structure shall be erected or constructed, either above or below ground level, except in accordance with a stream encroachment permit issued pursuant to the Flood Hazard Areas Act, N.J.S.A. 58:16A-50 et seq., and a minimum of 50 feet from the top of the stream embankment.
B. 
Regulations for wetlands. The extent of municipal regulation of wetlands is dependent upon whether or not the wetlands and proposed activity fall within the jurisdiction of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) pursuant to the New Jersey Freshwater Wetlands Act, N.J.S.A 13:9B-1 et seq. (Act). The NJDEP has exclusive control over regulated activities within freshwater wetlands as defined in the Act.
(1) 
The Planning Board shall, upon receipt of an application for development, initially determine whether all or part of each application falls within wetlands as defined in this article. If an affirmative determination is made, the applicant shall be instructed, in writing, to submit to the NJDEP a request for a freshwater wetlands letter of interpretation pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:7A-8 et seq. No such application for development shall be deemed complete unless and until a response from the NJDEP is received. The regulation of activities within such wetlands shall be within the exclusive jurisdiction of the NJDEP. Nothing contained herein shall, however, be construed so as to limit the power of the Borough or its agencies to submit comments upon such applications or request for a letter of determination.
(2) 
In lieu of the above, any applicant who acknowledges the need for a NJDEP freshwater wetlands permit may waive the initial municipal determination and NJDEP letter of interpretation and submit a direct application to the NJDEP for a freshwater wetlands permit.
(3) 
If the NJDEP determines a permit is necessary, no application for development shall be considered complete for the purpose of Borough review until such time as said permit is obtained. Nothing contained herein shall limit the authority of the reviewing board to conduct a review of any development application during the pendency of NJDEP review.
C. 
Regulations for lake areas. Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, no building or structure shall be erected or constructed, either above or below ground level, within 50 feet of the edge of any lake. Nothing herein contained, however, shall be construed to prohibit the construction and maintenance of dams or other structures for the impoundment or retention of water in any such stream or lake or of dug ponds or reservoirs, provided that all applicable requirements and approvals of any public authority having jurisdiction over such matters are met and obtained. The following shall be permitted uses or activities in lake environmentally sensitive areas, provided that they do not disturb the natural and indigenous character of the areas and provided that such use is permitted and in accordance with all other Borough ordinances:
(1) 
Conservation of soil, vegetation, water, fish and wildlife.
(2) 
Fishing, swimming, boating, waterskiing and hunting.
(3) 
Trails for nonmotorized uses.
(4) 
Grazing.
(5) 
Dispersal areas for surface water.
(6) 
Dock, pier and boathouse construction in accordance with other provisions of all Borough ordinances.
D. 
Slope regulations. To meet the purposes and goals set forth in this article, the applicable provisions of this Zoning Ordinance relating to minimum lot sizes and density of development shall be modified in areas of slopes greater than 15%. Slope calculations shall be based on elevation or contour intervals of 10 feet and shall be computed as follows:
[Amended 3-19-1992 by Ord. No. 2-92; 8-19-1993 by Ord. No. 11-93]
(1) 
Determine the area of each part of the proposed lot for each slope range in the Slope Factor Table below.
(2) 
Multiply each area determined in Subsection D(1) by the appropriate slope factor in the Slope Factor Table.
(3) 
Add the areas determined in Subsection D(2).
(4) 
Compare the results of Subsection D(3) with the minimum lot area requirement to determine the deficiency, if any.
(5) 
Increase the initial lot area by the deficient amount, repeating the above steps until the lot size conforms to the zoning requirements.
Slope Factor
(percent)
Table Slopes Factor
0 to 15
1.00
15.1 to 20
.60
20.1 to 25
.33
25.1 to 30
.20
30.1 to 35
.10
35.1 or greater
.05
E. 
The foregoing provisions shall not be construed to preclude the installation of underground utility lines through the above-designated areas.
F. 
Slope regulations in § 207-81D shall apply only to the 60,000 square feet of lot area nearest the street of a rear or back lot as defined in § 207-4B, "lot, rear or back," of this chapter. The sixty-thousand-square-foot contiguous area shall be measured by drawing a line parallel to the side line of the street giving access to the rear or back lot. The line shall be located at the least distance from the street side line as is necessary to enclose not less than 60,000 square feet of contiguous lot area.
[Added 3-19-1992 by Ord. No. 2-92]
Where the minimum required setbacks and/or actual front yard setbacks contain environmentally sensitive areas, driveways shall be permitted to be constructed and cross the minimum required and/or actual setbacks which contain environmentally sensitive areas.