The provisions of this article modify the regulations applicable
to the underlying municipal zoning districts, with specific regard
to permitted uses, conditionally permitted uses, prohibited uses,
and densities and intensities of development.
All principal and accessory uses permitted or conditionally permitted by the underlying municipal Land Use Ordinance (Chapter 100) shall remain in effect as provided therein, except to the extent that such uses may be modified or eliminated by the provisions of this section. Any and all principal and accessory uses prohibited by the underlying Land Use Ordinance shall remain prohibited as provided therein, unless specifically designated as a permitted use by the provisions of this section. The lists of permitted, conditionally permitted and prohibited uses of the underlying Land Use Ordinance are herewith amended as necessary to provide for the use allowances and use restrictions that follow.
A.
Permitted uses. The permitted uses applicable to that portion of any municipal zoning district overlain by the Highlands District classifications listed below shall be modified in accordance with the provisions that follow. In addition, any use permitted by the underlying zoning that is cited at § 101-20B or C below shall be amended in accordance with the provisions set forth therein.
(1)
Agricultural Resource Area. With the exception of any forested portion of the Agricultural Resource Area that is also designated as a Forest Resource Area, permitted principal uses shall be supplemented to include the agricultural and horticultural uses (defined at § 101-13) specified at § 101-31C, below. Accessory uses permitted in conjunction with these uses shall include ancillary, incidental or otherwise related supporting uses and the accessory structures devoted to such uses. The permitted principal residential use for any underlying municipal zoning district which permits single-family residential development as a principal use shall be restricted solely to residential cluster development in accordance with the residential cluster development standards as set forth at § 101-41, below. This provision shall apply only if the minimum threshold requirements for residential cluster development pursuant to § 101-41F can be satisfied. Where the minimum threshold requirements of § 101-41F cannot be satisfied, permitted principal residential uses shall remain as permitted by the underlying municipal Land Use Ordinance.
(2)
Permitted principal uses shall include the continuance of any lawfully
existing residential use permitted by the underlying municipal Land
Use Ordinance as of the effective date of this chapter.
C.
Prohibited uses.
(1)
Carbonate Rock Area, Prime Groundwater Recharge Area, Wellhead Protection
Area. The following principal or accessory uses and structures related
or devoted to such uses, where otherwise permitted by the underlying
municipal Land Use Ordinance, are expressly prohibited from the Prime
Groundwater Recharge Area, Wellhead Protection Area Tiers 1 and 2,
and from any portion of the Carbonate Rock Area determined to contain
karst features, or from any lands identified as discharging surface
water into any portion of a designated Carbonate Rock Area determined
to contain karst features:
(a)
Landfills;
(b)
Facilities for the permanent storage or disposal of hazardous
wastes, industrial or municipal sludge or radioactive materials, including
solid waste landfills;
(c)
Collection and transfer facilities for hazardous wastes, solid
wastes that contain hazardous materials, and radioactive materials;
and
(d)
Industrial treatment facility lagoons.
(2)
Wellhead Protection Area, Tier 1. Any principal or accessory use,
or structure related or devoted to such use, which is designated by
the Highlands Council as a major or minor potential contaminant source
(PCS) (see Appendix B and Appendix C[1]), where otherwise permitted by the municipal ordinance,
is expressly prohibited from that portion of any Tier 1 Wellhead Protection
Area lying within 200 feet of the wellhead.
[1]
Editor's Note: Said appendix is included as an attachment to this chapter.
The provisions of this section are intended to ensure that development
in the Highlands Area occurs at densities and intensities that are
appropriate to the water supply and wastewater treatment options available
to support it. These provisions shall serve as a check on the various
density/intensity provisions of the underlying Land Use Ordinance,
which shall remain in effect to the extent not specifically in conflict
with these provisions. The density/intensity allowances of the underlying
Land Use Ordinance provisions reflect the intents and purposes set
forth for the municipal zoning districts as established by the Township
Master Plan and the effectuating Land Use Ordinances. They define
and support the intended character and patterns of development for
each district, setting forth the relationship between built form in
a district and the lot or lots on which it is situated. The provisions
of this section relate solely to ensuring that such development: a)
does not exceed the capacity of the land, resources and infrastructure
available to support it; and b) is designed to minimize land disturbance
and protect natural resources.
A.
Use of terms. For purposes of these provisions, density of development
standards refer to requirements of the underlying Land Use Ordinance
that regulate the permitted number of dwelling units per acre of land,
whether specifically defined as density standards or set forth as
minimum lot size requirements for application to specific zoning districts.
Intensity of development standards refer to those requirements used
to define the relationship between the permitted extent, form and
location of development of a lot, to the size, shape and configuration
of the lot on which it is situated (e.g., floor area ratio, building
coverage, building height, yard setbacks, number of stories).
B.
Base mapping. Base maps regarding water availability and wastewater
treatment capacity appear in the technical information provided in
the Conservation and Utility Services Plans of the Township Master
Plan Highlands Element. These maps are combined into one for purposes
of this chapter, denoted as Appendix P and herewith adopted and incorporated,
as titled: "Net Water Availability by HUC14 Subwatershed, Highlands
Domestic Sewerage Facilities, Public Community Water Systems."[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Said appendix is included as an attachment to this chapter.
C.
Development subject to water availability. Any proposed increase in the demand for water supply averaging 6,000 gallons per day or more, deriving from Highlands Area groundwater sources or from surface water sources that are not associated with a NJDEP-approved safe yield, shall be accompanied by a finding of sufficient water capacity, which finding shall be issued by the Highlands Council. This provision shall apply to all development as defined at § 101-13, expressly including changes in use and modifications to existing uses. Specific requirements pertinent to new development reliant upon groundwater supplies may be found at § 101-28. For purposes of determining net increases in water demand associated with modifications to existing uses pursuant to these requirements, the following unit/square footage figures shall apply as four-hundred-gallon-per-day equivalents:
D.
Development served by septic systems.
(1)
Preservation Area. Development proposals involving new or increased demand for septic system capacity in the Preservation Area shall be regulated in accordance with NJDEP Preservation Area Rules (N.J.A.C. 7:38). Applicable only to major Highlands development, these provisions override any density, intensity, bulk, or other standard of the underlying Land Use Ordinance that would permit a septic system density in excess of that provided therein. The applicable NJDEP septic system density requirements appear below. For septic systems proposed in service to a cluster development, the provisions of Article VIII shall also apply. Nothing herein shall be deemed to apply to the replacement or repair of an existing septic system.
(a)
Septic system density requirements. A new individual subsurface disposal system or aggregate of equivalent disposal units where the sanitary wastewater design flow is 2,000 gallons per day or less shall be permitted only in accordance with the density limitations, in Subsection D(1)(a)[1] through [4], below. Forest under this subsection shall be identified and calculated as provided at Appendix A[2] (from N.J.A.C. 7:38-3). For the purposes of this subsection,
"equivalent disposal unit" means, for residential development, one
system serving one single-family home sized in accordance with the
Standards for Individual Subsurface Sewage Disposal Systems, Volume
of Sanitary Sewage, at N.J.A.C. 7:9A-7.4; or for nonresidential development
or residential development comprising structures other than single-family
homes, 500 gallons of wastewater per day generated for the development
type, as determined in accordance with N.J.A.C. 7:9A-7.4 (provided
at Appendix F[3]).
[1]
On a lot that contains all forest, there shall be no more than
one individual subsurface disposal system or equivalent disposal unit
for each 88 acres of the lot;
[2]
On a lot that does not contain forest, there shall be no more
than one individual subsurface disposal system or equivalent disposal
unit for each 25 acres of the lot;
[3]
For the purposes of this subsection, the acreage of a lot shall
be the total area of the lot(s) on which the proposed development
is located as described by deed(s) or subdivision plat(s) on file
with the municipal or county clerk.
[4]
For a lot containing both forest and nonforest areas, the total
number of allowable individual subsurface disposal systems or equivalent
disposal units permitted on the lot shall be determined by calculating
the number of acres of the lot that are forest (as determined in accordance
with Appendix A, from N.J.A.C. 7:38-3.9) and dividing that number
by 88; calculating the remaining number of acres of the lot that are
not forest and dividing that number by 25; and then summing the results.
If the sum results in a fraction, the number shall be rounded down
to the nearest whole number in order to determine the number of permitted
individual subsurface disposal systems or equivalent disposal units.
[5]
For purposes of this section, noncontiguous lots in existence
as of August 10, 2004, may be aggregated such that the number of individual
subsurface disposal systems or equivalent disposal units that would
be permitted under this section on one or more of the aggregated lots
is transferred to one or more of the aggregated lots provided:
[a]
The proposed development on the lot or lots to
receive the transferred individual subsurface disposal systems or
equivalent disposal units complies with all federal, state and local
laws;
[b]
The proposed development on the lot or lots to
receive the transferred individual subsurface disposal systems or
equivalent disposal units does not require a waiver of any requirement
of N.J.A.C. 7:38 and is constructed in accordance with the Highlands
Act and N.J.A.C. 7:38, inclusive of 3% maximum impervious surface
limitations;
[c]
The lots to be aggregated under this subsection
are all located in the Preservation Area and within the same HUC14;
and
[d]
The lot or lots from which the individual subsurface
disposal systems or equivalent disposal units are to be transferred
are subject to a conservation restriction against future disturbance
provided in accordance with N.J.A.C. 7:38-6.3.
[2]
Editor's Note: Said appendix is included as an attachment to this chapter.
[3]
Editor's Note: Said appendix is included as an attachment to this chapter.
(b)
Additional septic system requirements. In addition to the requirements
above, individual subsurface sewage disposal systems or equivalent
disposal units shall satisfy the Standards for Individual Subsurface
Sewage Disposal Systems (N.J.A.C. 7:9A) without extraordinary measures,
including replacement of disposal field soil with permeable material
or mounding of a disposal field to achieve the required depth to groundwater
or confining layer.
(2)
Planning Area. Development proposals involving new or increased demand
for septic system capacity in the Planning Area shall be regulated
in accordance with this subsection. These provisions shall override
any density, intensity, bulk, or other standard of the underlying
Land Use Ordinance that would otherwise permit a septic system density
or use of septic system yield in excess of that as provided herein.
These provisions shall apply equally in the case of any agricultural
or horticultural development application proposing three or more residential
dwelling units (including accessory dwelling units) served by individual
on-site septic system(s). Nothing herein shall be deemed to apply
to the replacement or repair of an existing septic system, however.
(a)
Septic system density allowances.
[1]
Septic system density (gross acres per septic system) shall
not exceed the following allowances, for each Highlands Zone and Sub-Zone:
[2]
These allowances indicate the minimum acreage required per septic
system, where that system is designed for a one-family household generating
a maximum flow of 300 gallons of wastewater per day. The resulting
acreage shall be applied as the minimum average acreage necessary
to support every 300 gallons of daily wastewater flow generated by
any proposed use where the unit/square footage figures below shall
be applied as three-hundred-gallon-per-day equivalents.
(b)
Equivalent yields. The following unit/square footage figures
shall be applied as three-hundred-gallon-per-day equivalents:
[1]
Residential uses (all types, except as provided below): one
dwelling unit.
[2]
Deed-restricted senior citizen residential units, or mobile
home parks with dwelling units less than 500 square feet in size:
1.5 dwelling units.
[3]
Office and commercial uses: 2,400 square feet of floor area.
[4]
Industrial (including warehousing/distribution) uses: 18,182
square feet of floor area (excluding process wastewater flow).
[5]
Specific nonresidential uses by facility type: In lieu of Subsection D(2)(b)[3] or [4], above, three-hundred-gallon-per-day equivalents may be computed based on the average sewage volumes provided in Appendix F,[4] from N.J.A.C. 7:9A-7.4.
[4]
Editor's Note: Said appendix is included as an attachment to this chapter.
(c)
Floor area. For the purposes of this subsection, floor area
shall comprise the area of each floor of a building lying within the
inside perimeter of its exterior walls excluding vent shafts, courts,
and unfinished areas such as basements or attics having ceiling heights
less than that required for habitable space under the building code.
(d)
Additional septic system requirements. In addition to the requirements
above, individual subsurface sewage disposal systems or equivalent
disposal units shall satisfy all standards for design, installation,
and maintenance as set forth in any applicable Township Health Ordinance
and any related and applicable regulatory requirements of other agencies
having jurisdiction.
E.
Development served by existing or extended utility infrastructure.
Where lots proposed for development in the Highlands Area are served
by existing public water and wastewater utility infrastructure having
sufficient available capacity, the density and intensity of new development
shall be consistent with all requirements of the underlying municipal
Land Use Ordinance. For purposes of this provision, "existing" water
and wastewater utility infrastructure refers to that either a) lawfully
constructed and operational, or b) approved for construction in an
Existing Community Zone (excluding the Constrained Sub-Zone) in the
Planning Area, under an Areawide Water Quality Management Plan.
F.
New or extended utility infrastructure.
(1)
Preservation Area. New, expanded or extended public water systems,
wastewater collection and treatment systems, and community on-site
treatment facilities are prohibited unless approved through issuance
of either a Highlands applicability determination indicating that
a project is exempt from the Highlands Act, or a Highlands Preservation
Area approval with waiver pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:38.
(2)
Planning Area: Protection Zone, Conservation Zone, and Environmentally
Constrained Sub-Zones. New, expanded or extended public water systems,
wastewater collection and treatment systems, and community on-site
treatment facilities are permitted only where approved by the Highlands
Council.
(3)
Planning Area: Existing Community Zone (excluding Environmentally Constrained Sub-Zone). Expansion or creation of public water systems, wastewater collection and treatment systems, and community on-site treatment facilities are permitted: to serve lands which are appropriate for designated TDR Receiving Zones, infill development, or redevelopment; to address public health and safety; or to serve new areas for development; all of which address all other requirements of this chapter. (See applicable provisions at §§ 101-39 through 101-40, below.)
G.
Development served by new or extended utilities. Where new development
proposed in the Highlands Area will not rely upon installation of
septic systems, but will be served by new or extended public water
systems, wastewater collection and treatment systems, or community
on-site treatment facilities, such development shall be in compliance
with any conditions of approval required by the Highlands Council
or the NJDEP, as applicable, in connection with amendment of the Areawide
Water Quality Management Plan.
