This chapter shall be known as the "Stormwater
Management and Erosion Control Law."
These regulations are to be applied to any development,
development expansion, site plan, or site plan expansion, with the
capacity to change the stormwater flow in any property affected by
the proposed development. The goal is to at least maintain the status
quo or improve the existing stormwater and erosion condition at the
time of the application. Proof shall be the responsibility of the
developer when required by the Town Planning Board.
The Town Planning Board of the Town of Bergen
finds that uncontrolled drainage and runoff associated with land development
has a significant impact upon the health, safety and welfare of the
community. Specifically:
A. Stormwater runoff can carry pollutants into receiving
water bodies, degrading water quality;
B. The increase in nutrients in stormwater runoff such
as phosphorus and nitrogen accelerates eutrophication of receiving
waters, adversely affecting flora and fauna;
C. Improper design and construction of drainage facilities
can increase the velocity of runoff, thereby increasing streambank
erosion and sedimentation;
D. Construction requiring land clearing and the alteration
of natural topography tends to increase erosion;
E. Siltation of water bodies resulting from increased
erosion decreases their capacity to hold and transport water, interferes
with navigation, and harms flora and fauna;
F. Impervious surfaces increase the volume and rate of
stormwater runoff and allow less water to percolate into the soil,
thereby decreasing groundwater recharge;
G. Improperly managed stormwater runoff can increase
the incidence of flooding and the level of floods which occur, endangering
property and human life;
H. Improperly managed stormwater runoff can interfere
with the maintenance of optimum salinity in estuarine areas, thereby
disrupting biological productivity;
I. Substantial economic losses result from these adverse
impacts on community waters;
J. Many future problems can be avoided if land is developed
in accordance with sound stormwater runoff management practices.
In accordance with Article 9 of the Town Law
of the State of New York, the Town Board of the Town of Bergen has
the authority to enact ordinances or laws for the purpose of promoting
the health, safety or general welfare of the Town of Bergen, including
the protection of the property of its inhabitants. By the same authority,
the Town Board of the Town of Bergen may include in any such ordinance
or law provision for the appointment of any municipal officer or employees
to effectuate and administer such ordinance or law.
Upon approval of this chapter by the Town Board,
all site preparation and construction activities requiring a permit
under this chapter shall be in conformance with the provisions set
forth herein.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
AGRICULTURAL OPERATIONS
All activities directly related to the growing or raising
of crops or livestock for the sale of agricultural produce, including
horticultural and fruit operations.
AUTHORIZED OFFICIAL
The person designated by the Town Board to administer and
maintain the provisions of this chapter.
BASEFLOW
The portion of stream flow that is not due to storm runoff;
is supported by groundwater discharge into a channel.
CONDITIONAL NEGATIVE DECLARATION
A negative declaration may be issued by a lead agency (under
SEQR), in which the action as initially proposed may result in one
or more significant adverse environmental effects; however, mitigation
measures will modify the proposed action so that no significant adverse
environmental impacts will result.
DRAINAGE
The gravitational movement of water or other liquids by surface
runoff or subsurface flow.
DRYWELL
Similar to infiltration trench but smaller with inflow from
pipe; commonly covered with soil and used for drainage areas of less
than one acre such as roadside inlets and rooftop runoff.
EIS
An Environmental Impact Statement.
EROSION
The wearing away of the land surface by action of wind, water,
gravity or other natural forces.
EXCAVATION
Any activity which removes or significantly disturbs rock,
gravel, sand, soil or other natural deposits.
EXTENDED DETENTION
A practice designed to store stormwater runoff by collection
as a temporary pool of water, usually having less than twenty-four-hour
residence time. A practice which is used to control peak discharge
rates, and which provides gravity settling of pollutants.
FILLING
Any activity which deposits natural or artificial material
so as to modify the surface or subsurface conditions of land, lakes,
ponds or watercourse.
FIRST FLUSH
The delivery of a disproportionately large load of pollutants
during the early part of storms due to the rapid runoff of accumulated
pollutants. The first flush in these guidelines is defined as 1/2
inch of runoff per acre of land which has been made more impervious
from predevelopment (natural) conditions through land clearing, land
grading and construction/development activities.
FLOODPLAIN
For a given flood event, that area of land adjoining a continuous
watercourse which has been covered temporarily by water.
FOREBAY
An extra storage area or treatment area, such as a sediment
pond or created wetland, near an inlet of a stormwater management
facility to trap incoming sediments or take up nutrients before they
reach a retention or extended detention pond.
GRADING
The alteration of the surface of subsurface conditions of
land, lakes, ponds or watercourses by excavation or filling.
HEC-2
U.S. Army Corp of Engineers Computer Program 723-X6L202A
intended for calculating water surface profiles for steady or gradually
varied flow in natural or man-made channels.
IMPERVIOUS AREA
Impermeable surfaces, such as pavement or rooftops, which
prevent the infiltration of water into the soil.
INFILTRATION
A practice designed to promote the recharge of groundwater
by containment and concentration of stormwater in porous soils.
INFILTRATION BASIN
An impoundment made by excavation or embarkment construction;
commonly serves a drainage area of five to 50 acres; usually closer
to 50.
MULCHING
The application of a layer of plant residue or other material
for the purpose of effectively controlling erosion.
OUTFALL
The terminus of a storm drain where the contents are released.
PEAK FLOW
The maximum instantaneous flow of water during a storm, usually
in reference to a specific design storm event.
PEAK FLOW ATTENUATION
The reduction of the peak discharge of storm runoff by storage
and gradual release of that storage.
RETENTION
A practice designed to store stormwater runoff by collection
as a permanent pool of water without release except by means of evaporation,
infiltration, or attenuated release when runoff volume exceeds the
permanent storage capacity of the permanent pool.
RIPARIAN AREA
A relatively narrow strip of land that borders a stream or
river.
RIPRAP
A combination of large stone, cobbles and boulders used to
line channels, stabilize stream banks, reduce runoff velocities, or
filter out sediment.
RISER
A vertical pipe extending from the bottom of a pond that
is used to control the discharge rate from the pond for a specified
design storm.
SAND ATTENUATING FILTER
A chamber open to the surface containing a surface layer
of sand over a high void aggregate base; these are innovative but
apparently effective practices for atypical situations such as where
a site is unsuitable for stormwater infiltration or retention.
SEDIMENT
Solid material, both mineral and organic, that is in suspension,
is being transported, has been deposited, or has been removed from
its site of origin by erosion.
SEQR
An acronym for the "State Environmental Quality Review Act";
Article 8 of the Environmental Conservation Law.
SHEETFLOW
Runoff which flows over the ground surface as a thin, even
layer, not concentrated in a channel.
SITE PREPARATION
The activities of stripping, excavation, filling, and grading,
no matter what the purpose of these activities.
SOIL
All unconsolidated mineral or nonliving organic material
of whatever origin which overlies bedrock.
SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD AREA
An area in a community that has been identified as susceptible
to a 1% or greater chance of flooding in any given year. A 1% probability
flood also is known as the "one-hundred-year flood."
SPDES
An acronym for "State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System."
A regulatory/permit program administered under Article 17 of the Environmental
Conservation Law by the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
to control point source discharge of water pollution.
STORM FREQUENCY
The average frequency of occurrence of events having a given
volume and duration. For example: a two-, ten-, or one-hundred-year
storm.
STORM DRAIN
Any open or closed conduit designed to convey stormwater.
STORM DURATION
The length of time which a precipitation event occurs (e.g.,
24 hours).
STORM VOLUME
The total amount of precipitation occurring over the storm
duration.
STRIPPING
Any activity which removes or significantly disturbs trees,
brush, grass or any other kind of vegetation.
SWALE
A natural depression or wide shallow ditch used to temporarily
route or filter runoff.
TOPSOIL
The natural surface layer of soil, usually darker than subsurface
layers, to a depth of at least six inches within an undisturbed area
of soils.
TR-20
A rainfall model developed by the USDA Soil Conservation
Service for hydrologic analyses of a watershed under present conditions
of land cover/use and structural or channel modifications using single-event
storm rainfall-frequency data. Output consists of peaks and/or flood
hydrographs, their time of occurrence and water surface elevations
at any desired cross section or structure.
TR-55
This program provides simplified procedures to calculate
storm runoff volume, peak rates of discharge, and storage volumes
required for stormwater detention basins. These procedures are applicable
in small watersheds, especially urbanizing watersheds. The program
provides for hydrologic analysis of a watershed under various combinations
of land uses using single-event storm rainfall frequency data. The
program can accommodate division of the watershed into subareas and
will estimate individual subareas as well as total area peak rates
of runoff.
WATERCOURSE
Any natural or artificial stream, river, creek, ditch, channel,
canal, conduit, culvert, drainageway, gully, ravine, or wash in which
water flows in a definite direction or course, either continuously
or intermittently, and which has a definite channel, bed, and banks,
and any area adjacent thereto subject to inundation by reason of overflow,
flood, or stormwater.
WETLANDS
Areas of aquatic or semiaquatic vegetation, or any areas
which have been mapped as such by the Town Planning Board, the Town
Conservation Council, the County Department of Planning, the County
Soil and Water Conservation District, or the New York State Department
of Environmental Conservation under the Freshwater Wetlands Act.
A property owner(s) or his agent(s) may initiate
a request for a permit or the modification of a permit by filing with
the Town Planning Board eight copies of an application who shall promptly
forward copies of the application to the Town Engineer, Town Zoning
Enforcement Officer, Superintendent of Highways and the Genesee County
Soil and Water Conservation District. Maps and plans accompanying
the application shall be prepared by a registered architect or licensed
engineer or by any other person approved by the Town Planning Board.
The Chairman of the Town Planning Board may require that additional
copies of the application be filed with the Secretary to the Planning
Board, and he may modify the requirements concerning materials to
accompany the application by waiving or adding such requirements as
he deems appropriate to the nature and scope of the proposed activities.
The Chairman of the Town Planning Board may require the applicant(s)
to reconstruct application materials if they are deemed to be of insufficient
scale or quality or do not meet the standards of this section. Excepting
for modifications authorized or required by the Chairman of the Town
Planning Board, each application shall contain the following material:
A. Existing features map(s), at a scale no smaller than
one inch equals 100 feet, indicating:
(1) The boundaries of all parcels on which site preparation
activities are proposed to be undertaken and boundaries of all parcels
adjacent to the subject site;
(2) All structures and roads within a distance of 500
feet of the parcel on which site preparation activities are proposed
to be undertaken, the structures identified by their uses and the
roads identified by their surface material and width of surface;
(3) All watercourses within a distance of 500 feet of
the parcels on which site preparation activities are proposed to be
undertaken;
(4) Existing topography at contour intervals of two feet
within a distance of 500 feet of the parcels on which site preparation
activities are proposed to be undertaken;
(5) All sewer, water, gas, and electric lines and all
other utilities within the parcels on which site preparation activities
are proposed to be undertaken;
(6) Major wooded areas and tree clusters within a distance
of 500 feet of the parcels on which site preparation activities are
proposed to be undertaken;
(7) All vegetation areas on the site proposed for site
preparation activities, including areas of grass, areas of brush,
and wooded areas and tree clusters;
(8) The depth to bedrock on the site proposed for site
preparation activities, if determined during site evaluation;
(9) The depth to permanent ground water aquifers on the
site proposed for site preparation activities, if such depth is determined
during site evaluation;
(10)
The boundary of the one-hundred-year floodplain
must be shown together with designated wetland boundaries where applicable;
and
(11)
Drainage computations prior to site preparation
and after site preparation may be required.
B. Development standards. All development, plus specifications
and timing schedules, including extensions of previously approved
plans, shall comply with provisions for erosion and sediment control
in accordance with standards and specifications contained in a manual
entitled "New York Guidelines for Urban Erosion and Sediment Control"
published by the Empire State Chapter of Soil and Water Conservation
Society, and the manual entitled "Stormwater Management Guidelines
for New Development" being published by the Department of Environment
Conservation, as it may be revised. In the event of conflict with
this chapter, the provisions herein shall prevail.
C. Operations map(s) at a scale no smaller than one inch
equals 100 feet, which present a complete erosion and sediment control
plan and which indicate:
(1) All excavation, filling, and grading proposed to be
undertaken, identified as to the depth, volume, and nature of the
materials involved;
(2) All stripping, identified as to the nature of vegetation
affected;
(3) All areas where topsoil is removed and stockpiled
and where topsoil is ultimately placed, identified as to the depth
of topsoil in each such area, topsoil to be replaced to at least predevelopment
depth;
(4) All temporary and permanent vegetation to be placed
on the site, identified as to planting type, size, and extent;
(5) All temporary and permanent drainage, erosion and
sediment control facilities, including such facilities as ponds and
sediment basins, identified as to the type of facility, the materials
from which it is constructed, its dimensions, and its capacity in
gallons;
(6) The anticipated pattern of surface drainage during
periods of peak runoff, upon completion of site preparation and construction
activities, identified as to rate and direction of flow at all major
points within the drainage system;
(7) The location of all roads, driveways, sidewalks, structures,
utilities, and other improvements; and
(8) The final contours of the site in intervals of no
greater than two feet.
D. A time schedule which is keyed to the operations map(s),
indicating:
(1) When major phases of the proposed project are to be
initiated and completed;
(2) When major site preparation activities are to be initiated
and completed;
(3) When the installation of temporary and permanent vegetation
and drainage, erosion and sediment control facilities is to be completed;
and
(4) The anticipated duration (in days) of exposure of
all major areas of site preparation before the installation of erosion
and sediment control measures.
E. An estimate of costs of providing temporary and permanent
vegetation and drainage, erosion, and sediment control facilities
shall be prepared by applicant's engineer and confirmed by the
Town Engineer.
The Planning Board shall refer all developments
requiring a permit to the Genesee County Soil and Water Conservation
District (SWCD) and/or the Town Engineer, for their review as to the
acceptability of proposed drainage, erosion and sediment control measures
both during construction phases and after completion. Such review
shall be based upon the U.S. Soil Conservation Service TR-55 system
or an acceptable equivalent. All easements deemed necessary to maintain
either natural, or man-made, stormwater drainage, erosion and/or sediment
control measures shall be provided and plotted accordingly on the
subdivision plat, or other appropriate documents as deemed necessary
by the Planning Board.
The Town Planning Board may allow stormwater
runoff that is otherwise of unacceptable quality or which would be
discharged in volumes or rates in excess of those otherwise allowed
by this chapter, to be discharged into stormwater management facilities
off the site of development if each of the following conditions is
met:
A. It is not practicable to completely manage runoff
on the site in a manner that meets the performance standards and design
criteria;
B. The off-site drainage facilities and channels leading
to them are designed, constructed and maintained in accordance with
the requirements of this chapter;
C. Adequate provision is made for the sharing of construction
and operating costs of the facilities. The developer may be required
to pay a portion of the cost of constructing the facilities as a condition
to receiving approval of the drainage plan;
D. Adverse environmental impacts on the site of development
will be minimized;
E. Use of regional off-site stormwater management facilities
does not eliminate the requirement that the first 1/2 inch of runoff
be captured and treated on-site;
F. A request to use off-site stormwater management facilities
and all information related to the proposed off-site facilities should
be made a part of the developer's stormwater management plan.
Stormwater management facilities shall be maintained
either by an owner(s) or the Town Board.
A. Stormwater management facilities maintained by an
owner(s) shall have adequate easements to permit the Town of Bergen
to inspect and, if necessary, to take corrective action should the
owner(s) fail to properly maintain the system. Before taking corrective
action, the Town of Bergen shall give the owner(s) written notice
of the nature of the existing defects. If the owner(s) fails within
30 days from the date of notice to commence corrective action or to
appeal the matter to the Bergen Town Board, the Town of Bergen may
take necessary corrective action, the cost of which shall become a
lien on the real property until paid.
B. Stormwater management facilities may be dedicated
to the Town of Bergen for purposes of maintenance by mutual consent
and agreement of the developer(s)/owner(s) and the Town Board of the
Town of Bergen; and shall be dedicated to the Town of Bergen when
said facilities are determined to be appropriately a part of the Stormwater
Management District, or a comparably maintained regional stormwater
management system, or are unlikely to be adequately maintained by
the owner(s) of the property.
Any person aggrieved by the action of any official charged with
the enforcement of this chapter, as the result of the disapproval
of a stormwater management and erosion control plan, issuance of a
written notice of violation, or an alleged failure to properly enforce
the law in regard to a specific application, shall have the right
to appeal the action to the Town Board, Town of Bergen. The appeal
shall be filed in writing within 20 days of the date of official transmittal
of the final decision or determination to the applicant, shall state
clearly the grounds on which the appeal is based, and shall be processed
in the manner prescribed for hearing administrative appeals following:
A. Hearing of and decision upon appeal. The Town Board
shall fix a reasonable time for the hearing of the appeal and give
due notice thereof to the parties, and not less than 10 days prior
to the hearing date shall publish such notice at least once in the
official newspaper of the Town and decide the same within 60 days
after the final hearing. Upon the hearing, any party may appeal in
person or by agent or by attorney. The Town Board may reverse or affirm,
wholly or partly, or may modify the order, requirement, decision or
determination appealed from and shall make such order, requirement,
decision or determination as in its opinion ought to be made in the
premises, and to that end shall have all the powers of the officer
from whom the appeal is taken. Where there are practical difficulties
or unnecessary hardship in the way of carrying out the strict letter
of any such law, the Town Board shall have the power in passing upon
appeals, to vary or modify the application of any of the regulations
or provisions of such ordinance relating to the use, construction,
structural changes in, equipment or alteration of buildings or structures,
or the use of land, so that the spirit of the law shall be observed,
public safety and welfare secured and substantial justice done.
The Town Planning Board may grant a written
variance from any requirements of this chapter using the following
criteria:
A. There are special circumstances applicable to the
subject property or its intended use; and
B. The granting of the variance will not:
(1) Measurably increase or decrease the rate or volume
of surface water runoff;
(2) Have a measurable adverse impact on a wetland, watercourse
or water body;
(3) Measurably contribute to the degradation of water
quality; and
(4) Otherwise measurably impair attainment of the objectives
of this chapter.
This chapter shall become effective on August
1, 1992.