Filing an application for an approval or permit grants the Board
and its employees or agents permission to enter the site to verify
the information in the application and to inspect for compliance with
approval or permit conditions.
The Board or its designated agent shall make inspections as
outlined in the rules and regulations to verify and document compliance
with the land disturbance permit.
Permit procedures, permit requirements, and performance standards shall be established and included in the Stormwater Management Rules and Regulations promulgated under §
238-5 of this bylaw to meet the following purposes:
A. Ensure the Town's compliance with requirements of its National
Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit for
Stormwater Discharges from Small Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems
(MS4) and other applicable state and federal mandates.
B. Reduce and eliminate impairments of the Nemasket, Taunton, and Weweantic
Rivers and to preserve the health of the Town's water resources,
including Poquoy Brook and Fall Brook.
C. Regulate and control stormwater runoff quantity and quality.
D. Encourage the use of nonstructural stormwater management, better
site design practices or "low-impact development practices," such
as reducing impervious cover, increasing site-wide infiltration, and
preserving open space and other natural areas, to the maximum extent
practicable.
E. Establish provisions for the long-term responsibility for and maintenance
of structural stormwater control facilities and nonstructural stormwater
management practices to ensure that they continue to function as designed,
are maintained, and pose no threat to public safety or the environment.
F. Establish provisions to ensure there is an adequate funding mechanism,
including surety, for the proper review, inspection, and long-term
maintenance of stormwater facilities implemented as part of this bylaw.
The objective of an effective construction stormwater runoff
control program is to minimize or eliminate erosion and maintain sediment
on site so that is not transported in stormwater and allowed to discharge
off-site or to the Town of Middleborough's MS4. Construction
site stormwater runoff control will be achieved through the following:
A. Construction sites resulting in land disturbance equal to or greater
than the threshold area described in the rules and regulations are
required to use sediment and erosion control practices to address
sediment and erosion control requirements. Recommended practices are
described in the rules and regulations.
B. Construction site operators are required to implement a sediment
and erosion control program that includes BMPs appropriate for the
conditions at the construction site. These BMPs include, but are not
limited to, the following:
(1) Minimize the amount of disturbed area and protect natural resources;
(2) Stabilize sites when projects are complete or operations have temporarily
ceased;
(3) Protect slopes on the construction site;
(4) Protect all storm drain inlets and armor all newly constructed outlets;
(5) Use perimeter controls at the site;
(6) Stabilize construction site entrances and exits to prevent off-site
tracking;
(7) Inspect erosion and stormwater controls at consistent intervals and
after major storm events (greater than 0.25 inch in a twenty-four-hour
period).
C. Construction site operators are required to control all wastes on
site, including demolition debris, litter, discarded building materials,
concrete truck washout, chemicals, and sanitary wastes. These wastes
may not be discharged to the MS4. Recommended controls are included
in the rules and regulations.
D. Prior to construction commencement, the Board or its designated agent
will conduct a pre-construction review with the applicant. The Board
or its designated agent will review the planned operations at the
construction site, planned BMPs during the construction phase, and
planned BMPs to be used to manage runoff created after development.
If feasible, the Board or its designated agent will recommend the
use of low-impact design and green infrastructure. The requirements
for the pre-construction review are described further in the rules
and regulations.
Upon completion of the work, the applicant shall submit a report,
including certified as-built construction plans, from a professional
engineer (PE), surveyor, or certified professional in erosion and
sedimentation control (CPESC), certifying that all erosion and sedimentation
control devices, and approved changes and modifications, have been
completed in accordance with the conditions of the approved erosion
and sediment control plan and stormwater management plan. The plan
must depict all on-site controls, both structural and nonstructural,
designed to manage the stormwater associated with the completed site.
A long-term operation and maintenance plan is to be submitted with
the as-built plan. Any discrepancies between the proposed design and
the completed design shall be noted in the cover letter.
The Board of Selectmen or its designated agent shall enforce
this bylaw, the rules and regulations, and any associated orders,
violation notices, and enforcement orders, and may pursue all civil
and criminal remedies for such violations.
B. Orders. If the Board determines that a person's failure to follow
the requirements of this bylaw, any regulatory provision issued hereunder,
or any authorization issued pursuant to this bylaw or regulations
is creating an adverse impact to a water resource, then the Board
may issue a written order to the person to remediate the adverse impact,
which may include requirements to:
(1) Cease and desist from land-disturbing activity until there is compliance
with the bylaw or provisions of an approved stormwater management
permit;
(2) Maintain, install, or perform additional erosion and sediment control
measures;
(3) Perform monitoring, analyses, and reporting;
(4) Remediate erosion and sedimentation resulting directly or indirectly
from land-disturbing activity;
(5) Comply with the requirements of the stormwater management permit
for operation and maintenance of stormwater management systems;
(6) Remediate adverse impacts resulting directly or indirectly from malfunction
of the stormwater management systems; and/or
(7) Eliminate discharges, directly or indirectly, into a watercourse
or into the waters of the commonwealth.
C. Criminal and civil penalties. Any person who violates any provision
of this bylaw, valid regulation, or the terms or conditions in any
permit or order prescribed or issued thereunder shall be subject to
a fine not to exceed $300 for each day such violation occurs or continues
or subject to a civil penalty, which may be assessed in an action
brought on behalf of the Town in any court of competent jurisdiction.
D. Entry to perform duties under this bylaw. To the extent permitted
by state law, or if authorized by the owner or other party in control
of the property, the Board, its agents, officers, and employees may
enter upon privately owned property for the purpose of performing
their duties under this bylaw and regulations and may make or cause
to be made such examinations, surveys or sampling as the Board deems
reasonably necessary.
E. Appeals. The decisions or orders of the Board shall be final. Further
relief shall be to a court of competent jurisdiction.
F. Remedies not exclusive. The remedies listed in this bylaw are not
exclusive of any other remedies available under any applicable federal,
state, or local law.
The applicant for a permit shall have the burden of providing
by a preponderance of the credible evidence that the work proposed
in the application will not have unacceptable adverse or cumulative
effect on the stormwater quality; flood elevations; adjacent and downgradient
private or public property; or health, safety and the environment
protected by this bylaw. Failure to provide adequate evidence to show
the effect the proposed project may have on the surface waters or
ground waters of the commonwealth, and/or the storm drainage system
of the Town of Middleborough, shall be sufficient cause for the Board
to deny a permit or grant a permit with conditions.
Permit and application fees are payable at the time of application
and are nonrefundable. Permit fees shall be calculated by the Board,
or its designated agent, in accordance with the fee schedule included
in the rules and regulations. Town, county, state, and federal projects
are exempt from fees.
The invalidity of any section, provision, paragraph, sentence,
or clause of this bylaw shall not invalidate any other section, provision,
paragraph, sentence, or clause thereof, nor shall it invalidate any
permit or determination that previously has been issued.
Property owners shall have 60 days from the effective date of
this bylaw to comply with its provisions, provided good cause is shown
for the failure to comply with the bylaw during that period, or act
anything thereon.