It is hereby determined that:
A.
Land development activities and associated increases in site impervious
cover often alter the hydrologic response of local watersheds and
increase stormwater runoff rates and volumes, flooding, stream channel
erosion, or sediment transport and deposition;
B.
Stormwater runoff contributes to increased flooding and quantities
of waterborne pollutants, including siltation of aquatic habitat for
fish and other desirable species;
C.
Clearing and grading during construction tends to increase soil erosion;
D.
Improper design and construction of stormwater management practices
can increase the velocity of stormwater runoff, thereby increasing
streambank erosion and sedimentation;
E.
Impervious surfaces allow less water to percolate into the soil,
thereby decreasing groundwater recharge and stream base flow;
F.
Substantial economic losses can result from these adverse impacts
on the waters of the municipality;
G.
Stormwater runoff, soil erosion and nonpoint source pollution can
be controlled and minimized through the regulation of stormwater runoff
and sediment and erosion control from land development activities;
H.
The regulation of stormwater runoff is in the public interest and
will minimize threats to public health and safety;
I.
Regulation of land development activities can mitigate the adverse
effects of erosion and sedimentation from development.
The purpose of this Part 1 is to establish minimum stormwater management requirements and controls to protect and safeguard the general health, safety, and welfare of the public residing within this jurisdiction and to address the findings of fact in § 249-1 hereof. This Part 1 seeks to meet those purposes by achieving the following objectives:
A.
Meet the requirements of minimum measures 4 and 5 of the current
SPDES General Permit for Stormwater Discharges from Municipal Separate
Stormwater Sewer Systems (MS4s), as amended or revised;
[Amended 8-6-2012 by L.L. No. 4-2012]
B.
Require land development activities to conform to the substantive
requirements of the current NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (SPDES) General Permit
for Construction Activities, as amended or revised;
[Amended 8-6-2012 by L.L. No. 4-2012]
C.
Control increases in stormwater runoff from land development activities
in order to reduce flooding, turbidity, siltation, increases in stream
temperature, and streambank erosion and maintain the integrity of
stream channels;
D.
Minimize increases in pollution caused by stormwater runoff from
land development activities which would otherwise degrade local water
quality;
E.
Minimize the volume of stormwater runoff which flows from any specific
site during and following development to the maximum extent practicable;
and
F.
Regulate stormwater runoff rates and volumes, soil erosion and nonpoint
source pollution, wherever possible, through stormwater management
practices to ensure that these management practices are properly designed,
maintained and eliminate threats to public safety.
In accordance with § 10 of the Municipal Home Rule
Law of the State of New York, the Town Board of the Town of Onondaga
has the authority to enact local laws and amend local laws and for
the purpose of promoting the health, safety or general welfare of
the Town of Onondaga and for the protection and enhancement of its
physical environment. The Town Board of the Town of Onondaga may include
in any such local law provisions for the appointment of any municipal
officer, employees, or independent contractor to effectuate, administer
and enforce such local law.
The terms used in this Part 1 or in documents prepared or reviewed under this Part 1 shall have the meaning as set forth in this section.
Not less than five acres of land used as a single operation
in the preceding two years for the production for sale of crops, livestock,
or livestock products or the construction of new structures associated
with agricultural activities.
A property owner or agent of a property owner who has filed
an application for a land development activity.
Any structure, either temporary or permanent, having walls
and a roof, designed for the shelter of any person, animal, or property,
and occupying more than 100 square feet of area.
A natural or artificial watercourse with a definite bed and
banks that conducts continuously or substantially recurring flowing
water.
Any activity that removes the vegetative surface cover, changes
original grade of the site and/or its hydraulic capacity. The cutting
of trees or brush hogging, with no stump removal, does not constitute
"clearing."
The deliberate appropriation of property by its owner for
general public use.
The New York State Stormwater Management Design Manual, most
recent version including applicable updates, that serves as the official
guide for stormwater management principles, methods and practices
(a sample of which is attached hereto as Schedule A[1]).
A person who undertakes a land development activity.
A measure that prevents sediment from being transported from
a site.
The most recent version of the New York Standards and Specifications
for Erosion and Sediment Control manual, commonly known as the "Blue
Book."
Excavation or fill of material, including the resulting conditions
thereof.
Impermeable surfaces such as pavement or roof tops which
prevents the percolation of water into the soil.
A State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit issued
to a commercial industry or group of industries which regulates the
pollutant levels associated with industrial stormwater discharges
or specifies on-site pollution control strategies.
The process of percolating stormwater into the porous soils.
An area that is inundated or saturated by surface water or
groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support a prevalence
of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions,
commonly known as "hydrophytic vegetation," which is subject to applicable
state or federal regulations.
Construction activity to make a site or area available for
use by physical alterations. This includes but is not limited to clearing,
grading, excavating, soil disturbance or placement of fill that results
in land disturbance of equal to or greater than one acre, or activities
disturbing less than one acre of total land area that is part of a
larger common plan of development or sale, even though multiple separate
and distinct land development activities may take place at different
times on different schedules.
The legal or beneficial owner of land, including those holding
the right to purchase or lease the land, or any other person holding
proprietary rights in the land.
A legally recorded document that acts as a property deed
restriction, and which provides for long-term maintenance of stormwater
management practices.
Pollution from any source other than from any discernible,
confined, and discrete conveyances, and shall include, but not be
limited to, pollutants from agricultural, silvicultural, mining, construction,
subsurface disposal and urban runoff sources.
Clearing of a parcel of land in distinct pieces or parts,
with the stabilization of each piece completed before the disturbance
of the next.
Sediment or a water quality measurement that addresses sediment
(such as total suspended solids, turbidity or siltation) and any other
pollutant that has been identified as a cause of impairment of any
water body that will receive a discharge from the land development
activity.
Land development activity.
A person that is knowledgeable in the principles and practices
of stormwater management and treatment, such as a licensed professional
engineer, registered landscape architect or other Department-endorsed
individual(s). Individuals preparing SWPPPs that require the postconstruction
stormwater management practice component must have an understanding
of the principles of hydrology, water quality management practice
design, water quantity control design, and, in many cases, the principles
of hydraulics in order to prepare a SWPPP that conforms to the Department's
technical standard. All components of the SWPPP that involve the practice
or engineering, as defined by the NYS Education Law (see Article 145),
shall be prepared by, or under the direct supervision of, a professional
engineer licensed to practice in the State of New York.
[Added 8-6-2012 by L.L. No. 4-2012]
The replenishment of underground water reserves.
Measures that prevent eroded sediment from leaving the site.
A specific geographic area designated by a federal, state
or local agency having exceptional or unique characteristics that
make the area environmentally important.
An ongoing practice involving the dedicated and cyclic use
of land expressly for the periodic production of timber. The mere
harvesting of timber does not constitute silviculture. For example,
clear-cutting and the harvesting of timber as a one-time, nonrecurring
practice is not considered an exempt silvicultural activity. The cutting
of trees or brush hogging, with no stump removal, does not constitute
a land disturbance.
A permit under the New York State Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System (SPDES) issued to developers of construction activities to
regulate disturbance of one or more acres of land.
A permit under the New York State Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System (SPDES) issued to municipalities to regulate discharges from
municipal separate storm sewers for compliance with EPA established
water quality standards and/or to specify stormwater control standards.
The use of practices that prevent exposed soil from eroding.
Commencement of the initial phase of the land development
activity.
An order issued which requires that all construction activity
on a site be stopped.
Water from rain or melting snow that drains off land caring
litter, soil, bacteria and other pollutants.
A land use or activity that generates higher concentrations
of hydrocarbons, trace metals or toxicants than are found in typical
stormwater runoff, based on monitoring studies.
The use of structural or nonstructural practices that are
designed to reduce stormwater runoff and mitigate its adverse impacts
on property, natural resources and the environment.
One or a series of stormwater management practices installed,
stabilized and operating for the purpose of controlling stormwater
runoff.
An employee or officer designated by the municipality to
accept and review stormwater pollution prevention plans, forward the
plans to the applicable municipal board and inspect stormwater management
practices.
Measures, either structural or nonstructural, that are determined
to be the most effective, practical means of preventing flood damage
and preventing or reducing point source or nonpoint source pollution
inputs to stormwater runoff and water bodies.
A plan for controlling stormwater runoff and pollutants from
a site during and after construction activities.
Lakes, bays, sounds, ponds, impounding reservoirs, springs,
wells, rivers, streams, creeks, estuaries, marshes, inlets, canals,
the Atlantic Ocean within the territorial seas of the State of New
York and all other bodies of surface water, natural or artificial,
inland or coastal, fresh or salt, public or private (except those
private waters that do not combine or effect a junction with natural
surface or underground waters), which are wholly or partially within
or bordering the state or within its jurisdiction. Storm sewers and
waste treatment systems, including treatment ponds or lagoons which
also meet the criteria of this definition, are not waters of the state.
This exclusion applies only to man-made bodies of water which neither
were originally created in waters of the state (such as a disposal
area in wetlands) nor resulted from impoundment of waters of the state.
An employee from the contracting (construction) company that
has received four hours of Department-endorsed training in proper
erosion and sediment control practices from a Soil and Water Conservation
District or other Department-endorsed entity. After receiving the
initial training, the trained contractor shall receive four hours
of training every three years.
[Added 8-6-2012 by L.L. No. 4-2012]
A permanent or intermittent stream or other body of water,
either natural or man-made, which gathers or carries surface water.
A channel that directs surface runoff to a watercourse or
to the public storm drain.
[1]
Editor's Note: Schedule A is included at the end of this chapter.
[Amended 8-6-2012 by L.L. No. 4-2012]
A.
This Part 1 shall be applicable to all land development activities
as defined in this Part 1.
B.
The municipality shall designate a Stormwater Management Officer
who shall accept and review all stormwater pollution prevention plans
and forward such plans to the applicable municipal board. The Stormwater
Management Officer may:
C.
An owner or operator of a land development activity that is subject
to the requirements of this Part 1 must first develop a SWPPP in accordance
with all applicable requirements of this Part 1 and then have its
SWPPP reviewed and accepted by the Stormwater Management Officer prior
to submitting the notice of intent (NOI) to the Department. The owner
or operator shall have the MS4 SWPPP Acceptance form signed by the
Stormwater Management Officer and then submit that form along with
the NOI to the address referenced under "Notice of Intent (NOI) Submittal"
in the applicable SPDES permit.
D.
All land development activities subject to review and approval by
the applicable board of the Town of Onondaga under subdivision, site
plan, special permit and/or zoning regulations shall be reviewed subject
to the standards contained in this Part 1.
The following activities may be exempt from review under this
Part 1:
A.
Agricultural activity as defined in this Part 1.
B.
Silvicultural activity, except that clear cutting and harvesting
of timber as a one-time nonrecurring practice is not considered an
exempt silviculture activity and that landing areas and log haul roads
are subject to this Part 1.
C.
Routine maintenance activities that disturb less than five acres
and are performed to maintain the original line and grade, hydraulic
capacity or original purpose of a facility.
D.
Repairs to any stormwater management practice or facility deemed
necessary by the Stormwater Management Officer.
E.
Any part of a final subdivision if a plat for the subdivision has
been approved by the Town of Onondaga on or before the effective date
of this Part 1.
F.
Land development activities for which a building permit has been
approved on or before the effective date of this Part 1.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection G, listing subdivision
of a rural tract of land that meets certain conditions, which immediately
followed this subsection, was repealed 6-1-2009 by L.L. No. 2-2009.
G.
Cemetery graves.
H.
Installation of fence, sign, telephone, and electric poles and other
kinds of posts or poles.
I.
Emergency activity immediately necessary to protect life, property
or natural resources.
J.
Activities of an individual engaging in landscaping or home gardening
by growing flowers, vegetable and other plants primarily for use by
that person and his or her family.
K.
Landscaping and horticultural activities in connection with an existing
structure.
