No person shall open or operate a gravel bank or earth removal and/or processing operation without first obtaining a permit from the Town Council of West Greenwich. Prior to any permit being issued, the Town Planner, Engineer, and/or Building Official shall inspect the site where the gravel bank is operating or is proposed and shall report findings to the Planning Board. The Planning Board will send the site inspection report with the application and plans, along with the Board's advisory opinion, to the Council.
In addition to definitions otherwise herein set forth, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
BUILDING OFFICIAL
The individual charged by the Town with the issuance of building permits.
GRAVEL BANK
A lot or parcel of land or portion thereof which is used for the primary or principal purpose of extracting stone, sand, gravel, loam or other earth materials; or the removal of 20,000 cubic yards of material.
PERSON
Any individual, corporation, partnership or any other entity; and the singular shall include the plural.
TOWN ENGINEER
The individual(s) or company contracted or employed by the Town to provide engineering services to the municipality.
TOWN PLANNER
The individual charged by the Town with municipal planning duties.
A. 
The permit/license required by § 400-107 shall not be issued until application therefor is made to the Town Council. Said application will be forwarded to the Planning Board for review and advisory opinion. Such application shall be accompanied by the following documentation:
(1) 
Four copies each of proposed preliminary maps and plans prepared by a professional engineer or registered land surveyor, drawn to a scale of one inch equals 40 feet and showing accurately the following:
(a) 
The entire premises owned and the limits of the area for which a permit is requested.
(b) 
Existing and proposed land contours at a vertical contour level of not more than one foot within the permit area, and the area within 200 feet in all directions therefrom.
(c) 
Existing and proposed drainage, rivers, streams, ponds, watercourses and swamps on and within 200 feet of the premises owned.
(d) 
Proof of groundwater elevation shall be provided and documented by test well information.
(e) 
Proposed ingress to and egress from the permit area, and all fences and gates.
(f) 
A permanent point or benchmark in a location safe from disturbance for the duration of the permit, with a designation of its elevation.
(g) 
The storage area in which the applicant will stockpile sufficient topsoil, as calculated by a professional engineer, soil conservation commission or land surveyor, to cover the area to an average depth of no less than four inches.
(h) 
The proposed time period of productivity for the bank in its entirety, as well as a map showing the proposed areas for phased operation.
(i) 
The location of any proposed burial areas for stumps, boulders, etc.
(j) 
Any other information as requested by the Town Council and/or Planning Board which shall be pertinent to the existing or proposed gravel bank.
(2) 
The number(s) and type(s) of equipment to be used, including any proposed fuel storage, in the operation of the gravel bank and its location, if it is to be permanently situated within the gravel bank. Such equipment must be for use on that site only, and is only permitted for the duration of the gravel bank operations.
(3) 
A statement indicating whether the applicant has made application for and/or secured all necessary permits required under any other federal or state law or Town ordinance, including a list of such permits sought and/or secured.
(4) 
A fee as established by the Town Council.
B. 
The Planning Board will have 45 days from the time the Planning Board accepts the application as complete to conclude its review and forward comments to the Town Council. The applicant will then prepare and submit a final plan for the permit.
A. 
In connection with the application for a permit, the Town Council may grant or deny any application filed pursuant to this article in whole or in part, and in so acting shall take into account public health, safety and welfare, including the possibility of dust, noise, unsightly waste, soil erosion, drainage problems and protection of property values, together with such other factors as it shall deem appropriate, and may impose conditions which, in its discretion and judgment in each particular case, are designed to prevent personal injury, to promote the health and welfare of the Town's residents and to safeguard the surrounding area and the Town against permanent and temporary injury to property values either during operation of the gravel bank (including the handling and transportation of earth materials) or after operations are completed.
B. 
However, all permits shall require that:
(1) 
The following buffer areas be left in their natural state during the life of the permit:
(a) 
Three hundred feet from any street line.
(b) 
Two hundred feet from any other boundary line.
(c) 
Six hundred feet from any occupied dwelling.
(2) 
In the permit areas, ledge shall not be left exposed above the approved grade, and all cleared trees, stumps and brush shall be removed or completely buried. If buried, a plan showing the location of all such buried trees, stumps or other material subject to subsequent compacting by decay shall be filed with the Building Official. However, no trees, stumps or other material subject to decay shall be buried at an elevation below the maximum water table.
(3) 
All final banks shall be graded to a slope no steeper than one foot vertical to two feet horizontal.
(4) 
Following earth material removal, topsoil shall be spread to a minimum depth of four inches. Seeding of the area shall be done per the requirements of the Planning Board.
(5) 
No excavation shall produce standing water unless specifically approved.
(6) 
Earth material shall not be removed to an elevation less than six feet above the maximum water table elevation.
(7) 
In earth removal operations involving two or more acres, a bond shall be posted with the Town Clerk with penal sum and surety satisfactory to the Town Council, conditioned upon the faithful performance by the applicant of the conditions of the permit. Such bond shall not be less than $7,500 per acre of working area; i.e., any area in condition other than its natural or reconditioned state. The applicant shall define bonded areas and costs on the final plan.
(8) 
Adequate measures shall be taken to prevent erosion or depositing of sediment upon surrounding land and streets or into any waterway, pond or swamp as required by the Planning Board.
(9) 
All work shall take place between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 7:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon on Saturday. No work shall take place on Sunday and legal holidays. The Town Council shall modify these hours depending upon its findings of conditions in each application case.
(10) 
Screening, either in the form of vegetation or fencing, not less than six feet in height, shall be erected around the permit area along the property boundary.
(11) 
Access roads to the site and within the permitted area shall be treated, with water only, to minimize dust conditions.
(12) 
No machinery for the screening, washing, crushing or other like uses shall be permitted on the property.
(13) 
Earth removal operations shall be limited to 10 acres at any given time. Each additional 10 acres, or a part thereof, shall be part of another approved phase.
(14) 
All land excavated must be rehabilitated within one year of completion of the excavations of each phase. Rehabilitation of the area shall be in conformance with the United States Department of Agriculture Guidelines for Developing and Restoring Gravel Pits.
(15) 
Access points to the property shall be kept free of loose gravel and debris.
C. 
The Planning Board may stipulate other site/operational specific conditions in the permit, not listed above, upon review of particular applications.
A. 
The Town Council shall issue such permits for a period not to exceed one year. All permits shall specify the commencement date and shall expire on the succeeding first day of January.
B. 
Any permit holder may renew his/her permit by filing an application in compliance with § 400-107. Applications for renewal may incorporate by reference any documents filed with the original application. All operations up for renewal will be subject to site inspection, prior to renewal, to confirm that all plans and permit conditions are being followed by the operators. All applications for renewal shall be filed prior to the first day of December in each year.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
Fees for any permit issued under this article and annual renewal fees shall be set from time to time by the Town Council.
A. 
No permit granted under the provisions of this article shall run with the land. Any conveyance of the premises containing the gravel bank or a portion thereof shall require an application for a new permit by the succeeding owner, if gravel bank operations are to be continued upon those premises or a portion thereof. Sale for other uses must be preceded by satisfactory completion of site reclamation.
B. 
Any permit granted under the provision of this article shall be limited to the boundaries of the original lot/lots for which the permit was granted. Expansion beyond the original property site requires a new application.
Any person who, after receiving a permit in accordance with this article, violates any condition set forth in said permit shall be subject to having such permit revoked and said bond forfeited. No revocation shall be made without first giving notification of the violation to the permit holder and after a public hearing.
This article shall be enforced by the Town Council or its agent.
Any person found guilty of violating this article shall be subject to a fine of $500 per day for each day such person shall be in violation hereof.
Any person who, prior to the passage of this article, shall have owned or operated any gravel bank and who continues to own or operate a gravel bank after the adoption of this article shall, within 30 days after the date of passage hereof, file an application for a permit in accordance with the provisions of this article.