The purpose of this Article X is to prevent the degradation of the Town's natural resources, including its soil, surface water and groundwater and naturally occurring vegetation due to the improper or uncontrolled removal or redisposition of soils, vegetation and earth materials. Unless otherwise provided for in this bylaw, this Article X shall not apply to the removal of 19 cubic yards or less of material from a lot for noncommercial purposes for maintenance or improvement of the lot or the removal or alteration of existing vegetation upon a lot for noncommercial purposes related to the routine maintenance or improvement of the lot.
A.
Excavation, removal, stripping, or mining of any earth material, soil and vegetation, except as hereinafter permitted on any parcel of land, public or private, in Winchendon is prohibited.
B.
The Building Commissioner shall have the authority to enforce all conditions of any permit issued under this section of the Zoning Bylaw.
C.
All earth removal operations in existence in Winchendon on the effective date of this article shall be subject to the requirements stated herein. However, all earth removal permits issued prior to the effective date of this article shall remain in effect until their expiration date. At such time, said operation shall be subject to the provisions of this article, unless otherwise allowed by the Board of Appeals for a period not to exceed six months.
D.
An annual fee shall be required for an earth removal permit, as established by the Board of Appeals.
E.
Any earth removal over 19 yards for the sole purpose of commercial processing and/or sale may only be done in an Industrial Zone.
An applicant for a soil, vegetation, rock and gravel removal permit must, at a minimum, submit to the Board of Appeals such number of copies as that Board may require of the following materials:
A.
A plan or plans to scale (one inch equals 40 feet) prepared and stamped by a registered engineer and a registered land surveyor, showing the property lines of the parcel of land under consideration along with all abutters to the property, The parcel shall be subdivided into five-acre sections. For each section, the existing and final contours in two-foot elevation increments, existing and proposed final drainage of the site, including all culverts, streams, ponds, swamps, and siltation basins, and all wetlands pursuant to MGL c. 131, § 40, the means of entrance to and egress from the property, a locus map, and any other pertinent data deemed necessary by the Board of Appeals shall be shown.
B.
A plan, study, or report showing the proposed ultimate use of the land, which must conform with the existing Zoning Bylaw. Proper planning for future land use shall be a primary consideration in determining whether to issue a soil, vegetation, rock and gravel removal permit.
C.
A complete list of the names and addresses of current abutters of the property where such removal is proposed. Such list shall be certified by the Board of Assessors.
D.
An operation schedule showing the active area (not to exceed five acres) where the removal will begin and also how the total parcel will be developed in progressive five-acre increments.
E.
A log of soil borings taken to the depth of the proposed excavation, with a minimum of five borings per five-acre section. Additional borings may be requested by the Board of Appeals if necessary.
F.
A plan showing all refuse and debris burial sites on or off the property (may be shown on plan as required in Subsection A above).
G.
The full legal name and address of the owner of record, the operator of the removal operation and of the applicant.
Within 10 days of receipt of the application and plan, the Board of Appeals shall furnish the Planning Board and the Conservation Commission with a copy of said plan. Each board may investigate the case and make a written report of its recommendations to the Board of Appeals. The Board of Appeals shall not take final action on an application until it has received reports thereon from the boards or until 35 days have elapsed since those boards received the plan without the submission of a report.
A.
General.
(1)
The Board of Appeals may issue soil, vegetation, rock and gravel removal permits in accordance with provisions of this section of the bylaw, complete with conditions imposed, for areas not to exceed 20 acres. All permits shall conform to the minimum restoration and operating standards contained herein and such other conditions as the Board of Appeals may deem necessary. Said permit shall allow the working of only five acres at any one time. Upon completion of the earth removal operation on a five-acre parcel, or a part thereof, and substantial restoration of said parcel as determined by the Board of Appeals, according to the restoration standards and the permit conditions, application may then be made to the Board of Appeals for a permit renewal. Such permit renewal may allow the removal of earth on another five-acre section, as shown by the operating schedule submitted with the permit application.
(2)
This procedure shall be followed until the operation is completed. No soil being removed under special permit may take place within 300 feet of a street or way, nor within 100 feet of the high water mark of any natural watercourse, nor within 100 feet of a lot line. Soil may be disturbed within these established boundaries if it is considered part of the site restoration work and has received prior approval by the Board of Appeals.
(3)
No removal of material shall take place below a level that is considered by the Board to be an undesirable grade for the future development of the area, or to a level less than six feet above the springtime high water table unless such elevation has been approved by the Board of Appeals as being a desirable improvement that will enhance the future development of the area. A monitoring well shall be installed by the property owner to verify groundwater elevations.
(4)
The Board of Appeals may require an engineering review of the application and plan. The registered professional engineer shall be specified by the Board of Appeals and fees shall be borne by the applicant.
B.
Conditions of the permit. The permit shall be considered a nontransferable revocable permit to remove earth materials. If it is found that incorrect information was submitted in the application, or that conditions of the permit are being violated, or that the governing regulations are not being followed, the permit may be suspended until all the requirements have been met and promises made to conform. Failure of the permit holder to comply within the time specified by the Board of Appeals for correction of violations shall be cause for the permit to be revoked, and may permit forfeiture of the security to the Town, and the imposition of all allowable fines.
C.
Compliance review. The Board of Appeals shall discuss and review the permit periodically, and, at a minimum, annually. Written progress reports showing conformance with regulations and permit conditions shall be submitted to the Board of Appeals by the Building Commissioner or his designated agent every three months at a minimum, or when otherwise deemed appropriate by the Board of Appeals. The Building Commissioner may employ a registered professional engineer to act as his agent in the inspection of the work to insure compliance with this section of the Zoning Bylaw and to report to the Building Commissioner his recommendations as to the approval or disapproval of the work. In the event that the Board of Appeals employs an engineer under Subsection A of this section for plan review, then the Building Commissioner will, if possible, employ the same engineer for site inspection. Inspection fees shall be at the permittee's expense.
D.
Effective date. A soil, vegetation, rock and gravel removal permit shall not be in effect until the applicant has filed the proper security as required in § 300-10.9, paid the required fees as required by § 300-10.2D, recorded the special permit at the Registry of Deeds, and paid for an engineering review under § 300-10.5A.
A.
The Planning Board, as part of a definitive subdivision approval or site plan review, may allow the redistribution on or removal of earth materials from that site. Such permission may allow only such minimal alteration of the site as may be necessary for the permitted development and may not allow mining of earth materials.
B.
Conformance with the standards provided in § 300-10.7 below shall be required insofar as they are applicable. A permit from the Board of Selectmen under Chapter 134, Earth Removal, of the Town Code shall not be required. Suitable security from the applicant shall be required to ensure that the project is carried out as permitted. This requirement shall be in addition to any performance guarantee that may otherwise be required.
C.
Where material is to be removed in connection with the preparation of a specific site for building, removal may take place only after the issuance of a building permit by the Building Commissioner. Removal will be allowed only from the area for the building, driveways, parking areas, and from areas where removal is specifically required by the Board of Health in connection with disposal systems. Mechanical crushing, screening and/or processing is not allowed on site.
All soil, vegetation, rock and gravel removal activities controlled by this article shall be subject to the following standards:
A.
Time of operation.
B.
Site preparation.
(1)
Only the active area described in the permit application may be made ready for earth removal.
(2)
No standing trees are to be bulldozed over, or slashed and bulldozed into piles. All trees must be cut down. All wood and brush must be piled for removal or chipping. Wood chips may remain on the site. No trees are to be buried on the site.
(3)
Stumps shall be buried in predesignated areas as shown on application plans.
(4)
Any change in stump burial must be submitted to the Zoning Board of Appeals for approval.
(5)
All topsoil removed from the active removal area shall be piled and adequately protected from erosion for future site restoration.
(6)
Prior to any excavation or earth removal, adequate siltation basins shall be constructed to prevent the runoff of silted water from the site.
(7)
All excavation shall be done so as to create contours to channel runoff waters into the siltation basins.
(8)
No siltation basin shall exceed seven feet in depth.
(9)
Siltation basins must be cleaned when sediment deposits are within 18 inches of the outfall invert.
C.
Site maintenance.
(1)
No open-face excavation shall exceed 25 feet in height.
(2)
No excavation shall be closer than 100 feet to a property line.
(3)
No slope shall exceed a three foot horizontal to a one foot vertical (3:1) grade.
(4)
No earth removal operation shall create excessive amounts of dust or allow roads leading into or from a site to become excessively dust producing.
(5)
Proper dust control methods shall be employed and approved by the Board of Appeals.
D.
Screening and access.
(1)
An immediate program of site screening shall start when site preparation begins.
(2)
All visual access to the site shall be screened with natural vegetation, evergreens, or other suitable natural methods, so as to prevent a direct view into the earth removal area at any time.
(3)
All areas within a 100 feet of a traveled way or abutting property lines shall be reforested immediately upon completion of the earth removal operation of that area. Said reforestation shall be done in accordance with the standard as stated in § 300-10.8F of this article.
(4)
A minimum of 150 trees per acre shall be used for this reforestation.
(5)
All access roads shall be level with intersecting streets for a distance of 60 feet.
(6)
A STOP sign shall be installed so as to warn any vehicle entering onto a Town street.
(7)
All access roads shall be equipped with a suitable locking gate to prevent unauthorized entry.
(8)
The Board of Appeals may prescribe routes for transporting material in and out of the site within the Town boundaries.
(9)
If no route is deemed adequate by the Board of Appeals, it may require the improvement of a transport route at the expense of the permittee.
(10)
The permittee shall be responsible for the cleaning, repair and/or resurfacing of streets used in removal activity which have been adversely affected by such activities.
E.
Temporary buildings.
(1)
All temporary structures shall be specified in the special permit application and shown on the plan.
(2)
Any structure erected on the premises for use by personnel or storage of equipment shall be located at least 40 feet from any existing roadway and at least 30 feet from any lot line.
(3)
Any temporary structure will be removed no later than 90 days after the expiration date of the permit.
F.
Mechanical crushing and screening.
(1)
The crushing and screening of material on a removal site shall require a separate special permit from the Board of Appeals.
(2)
All crushing and screening permits shall be granted for a period not to exceed six months.
(3)
Washing of processed materials will not be allowed.
(4)
Operation of crushing or screening equipment shall be from 8:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, excluding state and national holidays.
(5)
All crushing and screening equipment shall be equipped with suitable dust and noise control devices.
(6)
Under no conditions shall the crushing and screening cause a nuisance beyond the property line.
(7)
Crushing and screening operations are only allowed in an Industrial Zone.
A.
All restoration, if such is being required, must be completed within 60 days after the termination of a soil, vegetation, rock and gravel removal permit or by the first of June if the permit terminates between December 1 through March 31.
B.
No slope shall be left with a grade steeper than a three-foot horizontal to a one-foot vertical.
C.
All siltation basins shall be filled with earth, and a natural drainage pattern must be reestablished. No area upon the site which will collect water shall remain unless approval is granted by the Board of Appeals or unless the area was shown on the original application plans.
D.
All topsoil which was on the site prior to earth removal operations shall be replaced to a minimum depth of six inches on all disturbed areas. Sites that had less than six inches of topsoil shall be restored with a minimum of four inches over the entire area.
E.
Seeding. The entire area shall be seeded with grass or legume which contains at least 60% perennials. The planted area shall be protected from erosion during the establishment period using good conservation practices. Areas which wash out shall be repaired immediately.
F.
Reforestation.
(1)
Except as hereafter provided, all areas which are disturbed in the earth removal operation shall be reforested with 50% coniferous and 50% deciduous trees planted at the rate of a minimum of 150 trees per acre. All trees used are to be a minimum of two-year transplants.
(2)
Areas which are to be used for agricultural or other purposes after earth removal operations are completed may be reforested in the following manner:
G.
Within 90 days of completion of operations, all equipment, accessory buildings, structures, and unsightly evidence of operation shall be removed from the premises.
There shall be filed with the Town Treasurer a continuous security in the form of a bond or deposit of money as has been approved by the Board of Appeals, the Board of Selectmen, and Town Counsel in the minimum amount determined in order to return the entire property to its original condition. Not less than one year after the completion of the total project, the Board of Appeals and the Board of Selectmen may issue a final release of the security, at the applicant's written request, if, in the opinion of the Board of Appeals and the Board of Selectmen, no damage or deterioration to the finished project has developed. If, during the year following the completion of the project, slumping, gullying, erosion, or any other unsatisfactory condition appears, the applicant shall be responsible for and shall make any necessary repairs before final release of security is granted. The bonding agent shall be required to give the Board of Appeals, the Board of Selectmen, and Town Counsel, by registered or certified mail, a sixty-day notice prior to any termination or cancellation of the bond.