No person shall conduct or maintain a regulated
activity without first obtaining a permit for such activity from the
Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission of the Town of Wethersfield.
A.
Applications must be submitted five business days
prior to regularly scheduled meeting of the Agency in order to be
included on the meeting agenda. The application shall be formally
received only at a regularly scheduled meeting of the Agency.
B.
No application shall be deemed complete unless it
shall be in such form and contain such information as the Agency deems
necessary for fair determination of the issues. The Agency shall inform
all applicants of such necessary information without delay.
C.
The information required by the Agency shall be furnished
in sufficient copies to permit the Agency to carry out its duties
under these regulations. In no case will fewer than 15 copies be accepted
for a final review of an application proposal.
D.
All information submitted in the application shall
be considered factual, and, in the case of anticipated activity, if
shall be considered binding. A failure on the part of the applicant
or any of the applicant's agents to provide correct information or
performance exceeding the levels of anticipated activity may be sufficient
grounds for the revocation of any permit issued under these regulations
and/or for penalties to be imposed.
All applications shall include the following
information, in writing, and shall be on a form provided by the Agency,
available from the office of the Town's Engineering Division:
A.
The applicant's name, home and business addresses,
and telephone numbers.
B.
The owner's name (if not the applicant), home and
business addresses, telephone numbers and written consent to the proposed
activity set forth in the application and written consent from the
owner to file the application.
C.
The applicant's interest in the land.
D.
The geographical location of the property affected
by the proposed activity, including a description of the land in sufficient
detail to allow identification of the property on the Inland Wetlands
and Watercourses Map.
E.
The purpose and description of the proposed activity
and proposed erosion and sedimentation controls and other management
practices and mitigation measures which may be considered as a condition
of issuing a permit for the proposed regulated activity including,
but not limited to, measures to:
F.
Alternatives considered by the applicant and why the
proposal to alter wetlands as set forth in the application was chosen.
G.
A site plan showing existing and proposed conditions
in relation to wetlands and watercourses and identifying any further
activities associated with, or reasonably related to, the proposed
activity which are made inevitable by the proposed regulated activity
and which may have an impact on wetlands or watercourses.
H.
Assurance, by written certification of a professional
engineer registered to practice in the State of Connecticut, that
the flood-carrying capacity within the altered or relocated portion
of any floodway is maintained.
I.
The Agency will notify adjacent communities when an
applicant petitions to relocate or alter a floodway when such floodway
exists across the Town line or the Town of Wethersfield. The applicant
will notify the State Coordinator's office and the Federal Insurance
Administration prior to any relocation or alteration of a floodway
and submit copies of such notification to the Agency.
J.
Names and mailing addresses of adjacent landowners.
K.
A statement by the applicant that the applicant is
familiar with all the information provided in the application and
is aware of the penalties for obtaining a permit through deception
or through inaccurate or misleading information;
L.
Authorization for the members and Designated Agents
of the Agency to inspect the subject land, at reasonable times, both
before and after a final decision has been issued;
M.
Any other information the Agency deems necessary to
the understanding of what the applicant is proposing; and
N.
Submission of the appropriate filing fee based on
the fee schedule established in the Appendix of these regulations.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Said appendix is included at the end of this chapter.
A.
When an application to conduct or cause to be conducted
a regulated activity upon an inland wetland or watercourse is filed
and any portion of such wetland or watercourse is within 500 feet
of the boundary of another municipality, the applicant shall give
written notice of the application by certified mail, return receipt
requested, on the same day to the inland wetlands agency of such other
municipality.
B.
The Agency shall, in accordance with PA 87-307,[1] notify the Clerk of any adjoining municipality of the
pendency of any application to conduct a regulated activity when:
(1)
Any portion of the property on which the regulated
activity is proposed is located within 500 feet of the boundary of
an adjoining municipality;
(2)
Traffic attributable to the completed project on the
site will use streets within the adjoining municipality to directly
enter or exit the site;
(3)
Sewer or water drainage from the project site will
flow through and significantly impact the sewage or drainage system
within the adjoining municipality; or
(4)
Water runoff from the improved site will impact streets
or other municipal or private property within the adjoining municipality.
[1]
Editor's Note: See C.G.S. § 8-7d.
C.
Notice of the pendency of such application shall be
made by registered mail and shall be mailed within seven days of the
date of receipt of the application.
The date of official receipt of any application
shall be the day of the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Agency
immediately following the day of submission to the Agency, or 35 days
after such submission, whichever is sooner.
At any time during the review period, the Agency
may require the applicant to provide additional information about
the regulated area or regulated activity which is the subject of the
application or wetlands or watercourses affected by the regulated
activity.
If a public hearing is to be held on any application
for a permit, all documentary evidence in support of the application
shall be filed with the Agency and available for public inspection
prior to the hearing or any reconvening thereof.
All applications shall be open for public inspection.
Incomplete applications may be denied.
A.
Declaratory ruling. To carry out the purpose of this section, any person proposing to carry out a permitted or nonregulated operation or use within a regulated area shall, prior to commencement of such operation or use, notify the Agency by completing an application form and sufficient information to enable a proper determination that the proposed activity and use is permitted or nonregulated use of the regulated area, as defined in § A181-5 of these regulations.
B.
Waiver provisions may be made by two of the following
three representatives of the Wethersfield Inland Wetlands and Watercourses
Commission Executive Subcommittee: The Chairperson, the Vice Chairperson
of the Inland Wetlands and Watercourses or the Watercourses Designated
Agent. Two of the three may rule that the proposed activity is or
is not a regulated activity and determine if a full permit procedure
is required. Such ruling shall be in writing and shall be made no
later than the next regularly scheduled meeting. Two of the three
representatives for the Commission may make such a ruling on behalf
of the Commission at any time. The Inland Wetlands and Watercourses
Designated Agent shall submit to the Commission a description of any
waiver authorized under the provisions of this subsection at the next
regularly scheduled meeting. Initiation of the permitted use or operation
shall be within one year of any ruling pursuant to this section and
shall expire in one year from the date of issuance unless otherwise
extended by the Agency.
A.
If the Agency finds that a proposed activity is a regulated activity not involving significant impact or major effect on the regulated areas, as defined in § A181-5 of these regulations, it may allow the activity with or without conditions after initial review. In order to grant a permit at this stage, the Agency (after full review of the considerations set forth in §§ A181-24 and A181-25 of these regulations and other pertinent factors) shall issue an opinion presenting the reasons for granting the permit with or without conditions.
If the proposed activity involves a significant activity as defined in § A181-5 of these regulations, additional information as outlined in § A181-15, based on the nature and anticipated effects of the activity, including, but not limited to the following:
A.
Site plan for the proposed use or operation showing
the property that will be affected, indicating existing and proposed
conditions, wetland and watercourse boundaries, land contours, boundaries
of land ownership, proposed alterations and uses of wetlands and watercourses
and other pertinent features of the development drawn by a licensed
surveyor, professional engineer or architect registered in the State
of Connecticut or in an adjoining state, or by such other person acceptable
to the Agency.
B.
Engineering reports and analyses and additional drawings
to fully describe the proposed project and any filling, excavation,
drainage or hydraulic modifications to watercourses.
C.
Mapping of soil types consistent with the categories
established by the National Cooperative Soils Survey by the Natural
Resources Conservation Service of the USDA.
D.
A description of the ecological communities and functions
of the wetlands or watercourses involved with the application and
the effects of the proposed regulated activities on these communities
and wetland functions.
E.
A description of how the proposed activity will change,
diminish, or enhance the ecological communities and functions of the
wetlands or watercourses involved in the application and with each
alternative.
F.
Analysis of chemical or physical characteristics of
any fill material.
G.
Management practices which would mitigate the impact
of the proposed activity.
H.
In the case of any application which is subject to
the notification provisions of § A181-16A(1) of these regulations,
a public hearing shall not be conducted if the Clerk of the adjoining
municipality(s) has not received notice of the pendency of the applications.
A.
The Agency shall not hold a public hearing on an application
unless the Agency determines that the proposed activity may have a
significant impact on wetlands or watercourses, or a petition signed
by at least 25 persons requesting a hearing is filed with the Agency
not later than 14 days after the date of receipt of such application
or the Agency finds that a public hearing regarding such application
would be in the public interest. Such hearing shall be held no later
than 65 days after the receipt of such application.
B.
All applications and maps and documents relating thereto
shall be open for public inspection. Any person may appear and be
heard at any public hearing.
(1)
All public hearings shall commence no later than 65
days after receipt of the application.
(2)
Notice of hearings shall be published at least twice
at intervals of not less than two days, the first not more than 15
days and not fewer than 10 days, and the second, not less than two
days before the date set for the hearing, in a newspaper having a
general circulation in the Town.
(3)
All applications, maps, and documents relating to
this public hearing shall be open for public inspection in the office
of the Engineering Division. Notice of the hearing shall be sent by
the Agency to the applicant and to owners of record of abutting land
provided by the applicant, no less than 15 days prior to the day of
the hearing.
(4)
Where possible, public hearings shall be completed
in a single session. The Agency shall complete the public hearing
within 35 days of the commencement of the public hearing. The Agency
shall act upon the application within 65 days after the completion
of the public hearing. However, the hearing may be continued where
necessary for the full development of evidence or for the full adequate
participation of the parties, or for such other substantial purposes.
The applicant may consent to extend the time frame for any of the
steps, but the total of all extensions together cannot exceed 65 days.
In no case shall continuances be used as a device for delay.
A.
The Agency shall collect permit fees by check or money
order at time of application to the Agency, to help defray the costs
and expenses of carrying out its duties under these regulations. The
application fee is not refundable. Boards, Commissions, Councils and
Departments of the Town of Wethersfield are exempt from all fee requirements.
B.
Application fees shall be based on the fee schedule
included in the Appendix.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Said appendix is included at the end of this chapter.
A.
Due consideration shall be given to any reports from
staff, other boards or commissions and/or federal or state agencies,
including the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Connecticut
Department of Environmental Protection, and the Flood Insurance Study,
Town of Wethersfield, latest revision, by the United States Department
of Housing and Urban Development Federal Insurance Administration,
and the Wethersfield Watershed Management Study, by Milone & MacBroom.
B.
Additional requested information.
C.
All relevant facts and circumstances, including but
not limited to the following:
(1)
Criteria for decision. In carrying out the purposes
and policies of Sections 22a-36 to 22a-45, inclusive, of the Connecticut
General Statutes, including matters relating to regulating, licensing
and enforcing of the provisions thereof, the Agency shall take into
consideration all relevant facts and circumstances, including but
not limited to:
(a)
The environmental impact of the proposed regulated
activity on wetlands or watercourses;
(b)
The applicant's purpose for, and any feasible
and prudent alternatives to, the proposed regulated activity which
alternatives would cause less or no environmental impact to wetlands
or watercourses;
(c)
The relationship between the short term and
long term impacts of the proposed regulated activity on wetlands or
watercourses and the maintenance and enhancement of long-term productivity
of such wetlands or watercourses;
(d)
Irreversible and irretrievable loss of wetland
or watercourse resources which would be caused by the proposed regulated
activity, including the extent to which such activity would foreclose
a future ability to protect, enhance or restore such resources, and
any mitigation measures which may be considered as a condition of
issuing a permit for such activity including, but not limited to,
measures to:
(e)
The character and degree of injury to, or interference
with, safety, health or the reasonable use of property which is caused
or threatened by the proposed regulated activity; and
(f)
Impacts of the proposed regulated activity on
wetlands or watercourses outside the area for which the activity is
proposed and future activities associated with or reasonably related
to, the proposed regulated activity which are made inevitable by the
proposed regulated activity and which may have an impact on wetlands
or watercourses.
(2)
In the case of an application which received a public hearing pursuant to a finding by the Agency that the proposed activity may have a significant impact on wetlands or watercourses, a permit shall not be issued unless the Agency finds on the basis of the record that a feasible and prudent alternative does not exist. In making this finding the Agency shall consider the facts and circumstances set forth in § A181-27. The finding and the reasons therefor shall be stated on the record in writing. In the case of an application which is denied on the basis of a finding that there may be feasible and prudent alternatives to the proposed regulated activity which have less adverse impact on wetlands or watercourses, the Agency shall propose on the record in writing the types of alternatives which the applicant may investigate provided this subsection shall not be construed to shift the burden from the applicant to prove that the applicant is entitled to the permit or to present alternatives to the proposed regulated activity.
D.
For purposes of this section, 1) "wetlands or watercourses"
includes aquatic, plant or animal life and habitats in wetlands or
watercourses, and 2) "habitats" means areas or environments in which
an organism or biological population normally lives or occurs.
E.
A municipal inland wetlands agency shall not deny
or condition an application for a regulated activity in an area outside
wetlands or watercourses on the basis of an impact or effect on aquatic,
plant, or animal life unless such activity will likely impact or affect
the physical characteristics of such wetlands or watercourses.
F.
Measures which would mitigate the impact of the proposed
activity and may be imposed as conditions of the permit. Such measures
include the availability of further technical improvements or safeguards
which could feasibly be added to the plan or action to avoid the reduction
of the natural capacity of the wetlands or watercourse to support
desirable biological life, prevent flooding, supply water, control
sedimentation and/or prevent erosion, assimilate wastes, facilitate
drainage, and provide recreation and open space.
G.
In the case of any application which has received a public hearing, a permit shall not be issued unless the Agency finds that a feasible and prudent alternative does not exist. In making this finding, the Agency shall consider the facts and circumstances set forth in this section of these regulations. This finding and the reasons therefore shall be stated on the record in the decision of the Agency. A permit shall not be issued unless the Agency finds on the basis of the record that a feasible and prudent alternative does not exist. In making this finding the Agency shall consider the facts and circumstances set forth in § A181-27. The finding and the reasons therefor shall be stated on the record in writing.
H.
In reaching its decision on any application after
a public hearing, the Agency shall base its decision on the record
of that hearing. Documentary evidence or other material not in the
hearing record shall not be considered by the Agency in its decision.
A conclusion that a feasible and prudent alternative does not exist
does not create a presumption that a permit should be issued. The
applicant has the burden of demonstrating that his application is
consistent with the purposes policies of these regulations and Sections
22a-36 to 22a-45, inclusive, of the Connecticut General Statutes.
A.
The Agency may grant the application as filed; grant
it upon such terms, conditions, limitations or modifications necessary
to carry out the purposes of the Act; or deny it.
B.
The Agency, or two of three Executive Subcommittee members acting pursuant to § A181-22 of these regulations, may, in accordance with these regulations, grant the application as filed or grant it upon other terms, conditions, limitations or modifications of the regulated activity designed to carry out the purposes and policies of the Act, or deny the application. Such terms may include any reasonable measures which would mitigate the impacts of the regulated activity and which would:
A.
No later than 65 days after receipt of an application, the Agency may hold a public hearing on such application. The hearing shall be completed within 35 days of its commencement, and action shall be taken on applications within 65 days after completion of a public hearing. In the absence of a public hearing, action shall be taken on applications within 65 days from the date of receipt of the application. (See §§ A181-14A and A181-25.)
B.
The Agency shall state upon its record the reasons
and bases for its decision and, in the case of any public hearing,
such decision shall be based fully on the record of such hearing and
shall be in writing.
C.
The agency shall notify the applicant and any named
parties to the proceeding of its decision within 15 days of the date
of the decision by certified mail, and the Agency shall cause notice
of its order in the issuance or denial of the permit to be published
in a newspaper having circulation in the Town wherein the inland wetland
or watercourse lies.
D.
If an activity authorized by the inland wetland permit
also involves an activity or project which requires zoning or subdivision
approval, a special zoning permit, variance or special exception,
a copy of the Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission's decision
report on the application shall be filed with the Town of Wethersfield
Planning and Zoning Commission within 15 days of the date of the decision.
This subsection does not apply to certification of sediment and erosion
control plans.
E.
If the Agency denies the permit "without prejudice"
or if it grants a permit with terms, conditions, limitations or modifications,
the applicant may attempt to modify the proposal to the Agency's satisfaction.
The Agency shall determine whether the proposed modification requires
the filing of a new application. The rejection of a modified or corrected
application by the agency shall be equivalent to the denial of an
application for the purposes of appeal.
F.
If the Agency denies a permit "with prejudice", the
application shall not be resubmitted for one-year following the date
of such denial.
G.
Permits shall be subject to the following time limits:
(1)
Any permit issued by the Agency shall be valid for
five years provided the Agency may establish a specific time period
within which any regulated activity shall be conducted.
(2)
Any application to renew or amend an existing permit shall be filed with the Agency in accordance with Article IV of these regulations at least 65 days prior to the expiration date of the permit. Any application to renew or amend such an existing permit shall contain the information required under § A181-15 of these regulations provided:
(a)
The application may incorporate the documentation
and record of the prior application by reference;
(b)
The application shall describe the extent of
work completed at the time of filing and the schedule for completing
the activities authorized in the permit;
(c)
The application shall state the reason why the
authorized activity was not initiated or completed within the time
specified in the permit;
(d)
The application shall describe any changes in
facts or circumstances involved with or affecting wetlands or watercourses
or use of the land for which the permit was issued;
(e)
The Agency may, prior to the expiration of a
permit, accept an untimely application to renew such permit if the
authorized activity is ongoing and allow the continuation of work
beyond the expiration date if, in its judgment, the permit is likely
to be renewed and the public interest or environment will be best
served by not interrupting the activity.
(3)
Any application to renew a permit shall be granted
upon request of the permit holder unless the Agency finds that there
has been a substantial change in circumstances which requires a new
permit application or an enforcement action has been undertaken with
regard to the regulated activity for which the permit was issued provided
no permit may be valid for more than 10 years.
H.
If the activity authorized by the inland wetland permit
also involves an activity or project which requires zoning or subdivision
approval, special permit, variance or special exception, no work pursuant
to the wetland permit may begin until all other such approvals are
obtained.
I.
The Agency may delegate to its Executive Subcommittee the authority to approve or extend an activity that is not located in a wetland or watercourse when such Executive Subcommittee finds that the conduct of such activity would result in no greater than a minimal impact on any wetlands or watercourses. Requests for such approval shall be made on a form provided by the Agency and shall contain the information listed under § A181-15 of these regulations and any other information the Agency may reasonably require. Notwithstanding the provisions for receipt and processing applications prescribed in these regulations, such Executive Subcommittee may approve or extend such an activity at any time.
