The Town Council of the Town of Coventry authorizes
the Building Official to administer the provisions of this chapter
under the General Laws of the State of Rhode Island in Chapter 45-46,
entitled "Soil Erosion and Sediment Control," and may designate all
enforcement responsibilities to his/her designee.
This chapter shall be applicable to any situation involving any disturbance to the terrain, topsoil or vegetative ground cover upon any property within the Town of Coventry after determination of applicability by the Building Official or his or her designee, based upon criteria outlined in §
200-5 below. Compliance with the requirements as described herein shall not be construed to relieve the owner/applicant of any obligations to obtain necessary state or federal permits.
An application for review of plans submitted under this chapter shall require a nonrefundable filing fee paid to the Town according to the schedule set forth in Chapter
122, Fees.
Maintenance of all erosion sediment control
devices under this chapter shall be the responsibility of the owner.
The erosion sediment control devices shall be maintained in good condition
and working order on a continuing basis. Watercourses originating
and located completely on private property shall be the responsibility
of the owner to their point of open discharge at the property line
or at a communal watercourse within the property.
Neither approval of an erosion and sediment
control plan nor compliance with any condition of this chapter shall
relieve the owner/applicant from any responsibility for damage to
persons or property, nor impose any liability upon the city or Town
for damages to persons or property.
If, at any stage, the work in progress and/or completed under the terms of an approved erosion and sediment control plan does not conform to the plan, a written notice from the Building Official or his or her designee to comply shall be transmitted by certified mail to the owner. The notice shall set forth the nature of the temporary and permanent corrections required, and the time limit within which corrections shall be completed as set forth in §
200-18B. Failure to comply with the required corrections within the specified time limit shall be considered a violation of this chapter, in which case the performance bond or cash or negotiable securities deposit shall be subject to notice of default, in accordance with §
200-12B and
C of this chapter. In the case of construction, failure to submit a required plan will result in revocation of a building permit application and/or subdivision application.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
APPLICANT
Any persons, corporation or public or private organization
proposing a development which would involve disturbance to the natural
terrain as herein defined.
COASTAL FEATURE
Coastal beaches and dunes, barrier beaches, coastal wetlands,
coastal cliffs, bluffs and banks, rocky shores and man-made shorelines
as defined in the State of Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management
Program, as amended June 28, 1983.
CUT
An excavation; the difference between a point on the original
ground and a designated point of lower elevation on the final grade;
also, the material removed in excavation.
DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
Any construction, reconstruction, demolition or removal of
structures, roadways, parking or other paved areas, utilities or other
similar facilities, including any action requiring a building permit
by the city or Town.
EROSION
The removal of mineral and/or organic matter by the action
of wind, water and/or gravity.
EXCAVATE
Any act by which earth, sand, gravel or any other similar
material is dug into, cut, removed, displaced, relocated or bulldozed,
and shall include the conditions resulting therefrom.
FILL
Any act by which earth, sand or other material is placed
or moved to a new location above ground. The fill is also the difference
in elevation between a point of existing undisturbed ground and a
designated point of higher elevation of the final grade.
LAND-DISTURBING ACTIVITY
Any physical land development activity which includes such
actions as clearance of vegetation, moving or filling of land, removal
or excavation of soil or mineral resources or similar activities.
RUNOFF
The surface water discharge or rate of discharge of a given
watershed after a fall of rain or snow and including seepage flows
that do not enter the soil but run off the surface of the land; also,
that portion of water that is not absorbed by the soil, but runs off
the land surface.
SEDIMENT
Solid material, both mineral and/or organic, that is in suspension,
is being transported or has been moved from its site of origin by
wind, water and/or gravity as a product of erosion.
SOIL EROSION AND SEDIMENT CONTROL PLAN
The approved document required before any person may cause
a disturbance to the natural terrain within the city or Town as herein
regulated; also herein referred to as "erosion and sediment control
plan, approved plan."
WATERCOURSE
Any tidewater or coastal wetland at its mean high water level
and any freshwater wetland at its seasonal high water level, including,
but not limited to, any river, stream, brook, pond, lake, swamp, marsh,
bog, fen, wet meadow or any other standing or flowing body of water.
The edge of the watercourse, as herein defined, shall be used for
delineation purposes.