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This chapter shall be known and be cited as the "Groundwater
Management Zone Ordinance of the Town of Durham, Connecticut."
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The purpose of this chapter is to protect the health and safety
of the residents of Durham and to protect the integrity of the Durham
Meadows Superfund Site remedy by identifying a Groundwater Management
Zone ("GMZ") to prevent the use of and public exposure to contaminated
groundwater drawn from the GMZ, and to prevent further expansion of
the contaminated groundwater plume. In consultation with the United
States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Connecticut Department
of Energy & Environmental Protection (CT DEEP), the boundaries
of the GMZ are set forth on Figure 1 attached hereto.
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As authorized by Connecticut General Statutes § 7-148,
once this chapter is applicable to a property located within the boundaries
of the GMZ, comprised as set forth in this chapter, no groundwater
shall be extracted, consumed or utilized from the ground at that property,
except as otherwise provided within this chapter. This chapter shall
apply to the GMZ notwithstanding the provisions of any other Town
ordinance adopted.
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This chapter shall become applicable to any property within
the GMZ on the date that the City of Middletown's water supply
becomes available for connection to the property, by virtue of the
presence of a curb box at the property boundary and the initiation
of water delivery to the Durham Meadows Superfund Site.
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As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
GROUNDWATER
All the water found beneath the surface of the ground, including
all subsurface water stored in bedrock and overburden aquifers and
recharge areas within the GMZ. Groundwater does not include waters
found in fire ponds or any other surface water bodies within the GMZ.
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There is hereby established within the Town of Durham the GMZ
as depicted in Figure 1. The particular properties contained within the GMZ are
generally located on or adjacent to Main Street as depicted in Figure
1 and can be identified using assessor's maps that are on file
at the Town of Durham Office of Assessor, and can be viewed on the
Town of Durham's website. The GMZ depicted in Figure 1 is subject
to future amendment. Any future amendment to Figure 1 of this chapter
is subject to all notice and procedural requirements applicable to
a municipal ordinance amendment in the Town of Durham.
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Within the GMZ, except as specifically provided in §
8.5-8 (Exceptions), the following regulations shall apply:
(1) The extraction, consumption, or utilization of groundwater for any
purpose, including residential wells, is prohibited in the GMZ.
(2) Unless an exception is granted pursuant to §
8.5-8(e), all existing groundwater wells must be abandoned in accordance with the provisions of the Connecticut Well Drilling Code and Rules, Sections 25-126 through 25-137 of the General Statutes and Regulations of the State of Connecticut and all applicable regulations of the Town of Durham Health Department within 30 days of connection to the public water supply made following authorization granted pursuant to Subsection
(3) of this section.
(3) Unless an exception is granted pursuant to §
8.5-8(e), for all properties located within the GMZ that contain any habitable structures (residential, commercial or industrial) with running water, the owner or such other duly authorized person must, within 30 days of receiving notice that a connection from the building or buildings served by existing groundwater wells will be provided to the public water system, either provide written authorization on the form contained in the notice that the connection can be installed; or file an application for an exception under §
8.5-8(e) of this chapter. In the event that the application for an exception is denied, written notice of authorization must be provided within 30 days of denial on the form contained in the original notice of the availability of the connection to the public water supply.
(4) Nothing in this regulation shall prohibit any party from developing
property within the GMZ, provided that any development proposal requiring
on-site drinking water shall demonstrate the ability to connect to
public water at such party's expense and be approved by the Town
of Durham Health Department.