In addition to the following definitions, this chapter shall rely upon existing definitions contained in the Chelan County development standards resolution, Chapter
15.30, the Washington State Forest Practices Act (Chapter
76.09 RCW), the Rules for the Washington State Forest Practices Act (Chapter
222-16 WAC), and the Chelan county zoning resolution definitions in Chapter
14.98, Definitions.
“Applicant”means the person, party, firm, corporation, legal entity, or agent thereof that proposes a forest practice on property in Chelan County for the property owner, or makes application for lifting, waiving, or rescinding development moratoria placed on property in Chelan County pursuant to Chapter
76.09 RCW.
Classes of Forest Practices.The four classifications of forest practices activities are described in WAC
222-16-050 and RCW
76.09.050. The class of forest practice is determined by considering several factors including but not limited to the type of activity proposed (e.g., harvesting, thinning), its scale, the affected environment, and future use of the site. The descriptions of the classes of forest practices paraphrased below are intended to summarize the classifications and do not supersede the specific definitions described in Chapter
222-16 WAC and Chapter
76.09 RCW:
(A) “Class I”are those forest practices that have been determined to have no direct potential for damaging a public resource. Examples of Class I forest practices include the culture and harvest of Christmas trees and seedlings; tree planting and seeding; and cutting and/or removal of less than five thousand board feet of timber for personal use (e.g., firewood, fence post) in any consecutive twelve-month period. Class I forest practices may be conducted without submitting an application or a notification to Chelan County, except that when Class I forest practices involve timber harvesting or road construction within “urban growth areas” designated pursuant to Chapter
36.70A RCW, they are processed as Class IV forest practices. These forest practices are not subject to environmental review under Chapter
43.21C RCW.
(B) “Class II”are those forest practices which have less than an ordinary potential for damaging a public resource. Examples of Class II forest practices include, with certain exclusions, the construction of advance fire trails; salvage of logging residue; partial cutting of five thousand board feet per acre or less; and timber harvests of less than forty acres. Class II forest practices require notification to the DNR prior to being conducted. Property logged pursuant to a Class II permit must be reforested and is intended to remain in timber production. Class II shall not include forest practices:
(i) On lands platted after January 1, 1960, as provided in Chapter
58.17 RCW or on lands that have or are being converted to another use;
(ii) Which require approvals under the provisions of the Hydraulics Act, RCW
75.20.100;
(iv) Excluded from Class II by the state forestry board; or
(v) Which involve timber harvesting or road construction within “urban growth areas” designated pursuant to Chapter
36.70A RCW, which are processed as Class IV.
(C) “Class III”are those forest practices not listed under Class I, II, and IV. Class III forest practices require permit approval by the DNR. Property logged pursuant to a Class III permit must be reforested and is intended to remain in timber production.
(D) “Class IV”forest practices are divided into two categories as follows:
(i) “Class IV – General”are those forest practices, unless listed as Class IV – Special, occurring on lands within UGAs; and forest practices (other than those in Class I) on lands platted after January 1, 1960, or on lands which are being converted to a use other than commercial timber production. Examples of Class IV – General forest practices include harvest of timber and conversion of land to agricultural, residential or commercial uses. Reforestation is not required under a Class IV – General forest practices permit as the property subject to the permit is being converted to a nonforestry use.
(ii) “Class IV – Special”are those forest practices which have the potential to result in a substantial impact to the environment and require an environmental checklist in compliance with the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA). Examples of Class IV – Special forest practices include forest practices conducted on lands designated as critical wildlife habitat for threatened or endangered wildlife species; timber harvest, road construction, aerial application of pesticides and site preparation in national, state, or local parks; and forest practices involving the filling or draining of more than 0.5 acres of wetland.
“Conversion option harvest plan (COHP)”means a voluntary plan approved by Chelan County indicating the limits of harvest areas, road locations, and open space. An approved COHP gives a landowner the ability to harvest timber on a site, while maintaining the option to convert lands to a nonforest production use in the future. A six-year moratorium shall not be imposed on a site that meets the conditions of an approved COHP.
“Critical areas”include the following areas and ecosystems as regulated under Title 11 of the Chelan County Code:
(B) Areas with a critical recharging effect on aquifers used for potable water;
(C) Fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas;
(D) Frequently flooded areas; and
(E) Geologically hazardous areas.
“Diseased tree”means a tree that in the opinion of the director or an assigned expert approved by Chelan County (such as, but not limited to, a professional forester or landscape architect) has a strong likelihood of infecting other trees or brush in the area or becoming a hazard as a result of the disease.
“Forest land”means all land which is capable of supporting a merchantable stand of timber and is not actively used for a use which is incompatible with timber growing. Forest land does not include agricultural land that is or was enrolled in the conservation enhancement program by contract if such agricultural land was historically used for agricultural purposes and the landowner intends to use the land for agricultural purposes in the future.
“Forest practices”means any activity conducted on or directly pertaining to forest land and relating to growing, harvesting, or processing timber, including but not limited to:
(A) Road and trail construction;
(B) Harvesting, final and intermediate;
(F) Prevention and suppression of diseases and insects;
“Forest practices”shall not include preparatory work such as tree marking, surveying and road flagging, and removal or harvesting of incidental vegetation from forest lands such as berries, ferns, greenery, mistletoe, herbs, mushrooms, and other products which cannot normally be expected to result in damage to forest soils, timber, or public resources.
“Forest practices application or notification”means the application or notification required to be submitted to the Washington State Department of Natural Resources for the conduct of forest practices or to Chelan County for forest conversions, generally, and, within urban growth areas, the harvesting of timber and road building.
“Hazard tree”means any tree which, in the opinion of the director or an expert approved by Chelan County (such as, but not limited to, a professional forester or landscape architect), has a strong likelihood of causing a hazard to life or property.
“Moratorium, development”means the act of imposing a development moratorium pursuant to Section
15.70.100, whereby the county shall deny any or all applications for permits or approvals, including building permits and subdivision approvals, relating to nonforestry uses of land subject to the application. Development moratoria are used to ensure that the provisions of this chapter and the Forest Practices Act are followed.
“Moratorium, notice of”means the document used by the Department of Natural Resources to obtain the landowner’s signature acknowledging the intent not to convert to nonforestry uses as prescribed in the Washington State Forest Practices Act.
“Professional forester”means a person with academic and field experience in forestry or urban forestry. This may include arborists certified by the International Society of Arboriculture, foresters with a degree in forestry from a Society of American Foresters (SAF) accredited forestry school, members of the Washington Association of Consulting Foresters, or urban foresters with a degree in urban forestry.
(Res. 2007-53 (part), 3/27/07)