A. 
The Identified Floodplain Area shall be any areas of the Municipality, classified as Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHAs) in the Flood Insurance Study (FIS) and the accompanying Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) dated July 31, 2024, and issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) or the most recent revision thereof, including all digital data developed as part of the Flood Insurance Study (FIS) and any flood hazard area identified as such by the Municipality.
B. 
The above referenced FIS and FIRMs, and any subsequent revisions and amendments are hereby adopted by Municipality and declared to be a part of this chapter.
The Identified Floodplain Area shall consist of the following specific areas:
A. 
The Floodway Area shall be those areas identified in the FIS and the FIRM as floodway and which represent the channel of a watercourse and the adjacent land areas that must be reserved in order to discharge the base flood without increasing the water surface elevation by more than one foot at any point. This term shall also include floodway areas which have been identified in other available studies or sources of information for those Special Flood Hazard Areas where no floodway has been identified in the FIS and FIRM.
(1) 
Within any floodway area, no encroachments, including fill, new construction, substantial improvements, or other development shall be permitted unless it has been demonstrated through hydrologic and hydraulic analyses performed in accordance with standard engineering practice that the proposed encroachment would not result in any increase in flood levels within the Municipality during the occurrence of the base flood discharge.
(2) 
Within any floodway area, no new construction or development shall be allowed, unless the appropriate permit is obtained from the PA DEP Regional Office.
B. 
The AE Area/District shall be those areas identified as an AE Zone on the FIRM included in the FIS prepared by FEMA for which base flood elevations have been provided.
(1) 
The AE Area adjacent to the floodway shall be those areas identified as an AE Zone on the FIRM included in the FIS prepared by FEMA for which base flood elevations have been provided and a floodway has been delineated.
(2) 
AE Area without floodway shall be those areas identified as an AE zone on the FIRM included in the FIS prepared by FEMA for which base flood elevations have been provided but no floodway has been determined.
(a) 
No encroachments, including fill, new construction, substantial improvements, or other development shall be permitted in any AE Zone without floodway unless it has been demonstrated through hydrologic and hydraulic analysis performed in accordance with standard engineering practice that the proposed development, together with all other existing and anticipated development, would not result in an increase in flood levels of more than one foot within the entire community during the occurrence of the base flood discharge.
(b) 
No new construction or development shall be located within the area measured 50 feet landward from the top-of-bank of any watercourse, unless the appropriate permit is obtained from the PA DEP Regional Office.
C. 
The A Area/District shall be those areas identified as an A Zone on the FIRM included in the FIS prepared by FEMA and for which no base flood elevations have been provided. For these areas, elevation and floodway information from other Federal, State, or other acceptable sources shall be used when available. Where other acceptable information is not available, the following procedures shall be used to determine the base flood elevation:
(1) 
For all non-accessory structures (including residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional structures), the applicant shall be required to submit a Letter of Map Amendment (LOMA) to FEMA to either remove the non-accessory structure from the A Zone, or obtain a base flood elevation for a non-accessory structure that cannot be removed from the A Zone.
(2) 
For all accessory structures:
(a) 
The base flood elevation may be determined by using the elevation of a point on the boundary of the Identified Floodplain Area which is nearest the construction site; or
(b) 
The Municipality may require the applicant to determine the elevation using hydrologic and hydraulic engineering techniques. Hydrologic and hydraulic analyses shall be undertaken only by professional engineers or others of demonstrated qualifications, who shall certify that the technical methods used correctly reflect currently accepted technical concepts. Studies, analyses, computations, etc., shall be submitted in sufficient detail to allow for a thorough technical review by the Municipality. In the absence of any of the above data or documentation, the Municipality may require elevation of the lowest floor to be at least three feet above the highest adjacent grade.
(3) 
For all accessory structures and all non-accessory structures, no new construction or development shall be located within the area measured 50 feet landward from the top-of-bank of any watercourse, unless the appropriate permit is obtained from the PA DEP Regional Office.
D. 
The AO and AH Area/District shall be those areas identified as Zones AO and AH on the FIRM and in the FIS. These areas are subject to inundation by 1% annual chance shallow flooding where average depths are between one foot and three feet. In Zones AO and AH, drainage paths shall be established to guide floodwaters around and away from structures on slopes.
E. 
Municipal Identified Flood Hazard Areas shall be those areas where the Municipality has identified local flood hazard or ponding areas, as delineated and adopted on a "Local Flood Hazard Map" using best available topographic data and locally derived information such as flood of record, historic high water marks, soils, or approximate study methodologies.
The Identified Floodplain Area may be revised or modified by the Municipality where studies or information provided by a qualified agency or individual documents the need for such revision. However, prior to any such change to the Special Flood Hazard Area, approval must be obtained from FEMA. Additionally, as soon as practicable, but not later than six months after the date such information becomes available, the Municipality shall notify FEMA of the changes to the Special Flood Hazard Area by submitting technical or scientific data. See Article V, § 76-5.01B for situations where FEMA notification is required.
Should a dispute concerning any identified floodplain boundary arise, an initial determination shall be made by the Floodplain Administrator in consultation with the Municipal Engineer, and any party aggrieved by this decision or determination may appeal to the Municipal Zoning Hearing Board. The burden of proof shall be on the appellant. The procedure for appealing a boundary dispute shall be in accordance with Article III, § 76-3.12 of this chapter.
Prior to development occurring in areas where annexation or other corporate boundary changes are proposed or have occurred, the Municipality shall review flood hazard data affecting the lands subject to boundary changes. The Municipality shall adopt and enforce floodplain regulations in areas subject to annexation or corporate boundary changes that meet or exceed those in CFR 44 60.3.