The district will make technical assistance
available as requested by the County. This assistance, as set forth
below, will be provided by federal, state and local resource agencies
which work through the district, within the limitations of their budgets
and availability of personnel and in accordance with established policies
for reimbursement of certain costs.
This article shall be known as the "Erosion and Sediment Control Ordinance of Rappahannock County." The purpose of this chapter is to prevent degradation of properties, stream channels, waters and other natural resources of Rappahannock County by establishing requirements for the control of soil erosion, sediment deposition and nonagricultural runoff and by establishing procedures whereby these requirements shall be administered and enforced. This article is authorized by the Code of Virginia, Title 10.1, Chapter
5, Article 4 (§ 10.1-560 et seq.), known as the "Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control Law."
As used in the ordinance, unless the context
requires a different meaning, the following terms shall have the meaning
indicated:
AGREEMENT IN LIEU OF A PLAN
A contract between the plan-approving authority and the owner
that specifies conservation measures that must be implemented in the
construction of a single-family residence; this contract may be executed
by the plan-approving authority in lieu of a formal site plan.
APPLICANT
Any person submitting an erosion and sediment control plan
for approval or requesting the issuance of a permit, when required,
authorizing land-disturbing activities to commence.
BOARD
The Virginia Soil and water Conservation Board.
CERTIFIED INSPECTOR
An employee or agent of a program authority who holds a certificate
of competence from the Board in the area of project inspection or
is enrolled in the Board's training program for project inspection
and successfully completes such program within one year after enrollment.
CERTIFIED PLAN REVIEWER
An employee or agent of a program authority who holds a certificate of competence from the Board in the area of plan review, is enrolled in the Board's training program for plan review and successfully completes such program within one year after enrollment, or is licensed as a professional engineer, architect, certified landscape architect or land surveyor pursuant to Article 1 (§ 54.1-400 et seq.) of Chapter
4 of Title 54.1.
CERTIFIED PROGRAM ADMINISTRATOR
An employee or agent of a program authority who holds a certificate
of competence from the Board in the area of program administration
or is enrolled in the Board's training program for program administration
and successfully completes such program within one year after enrollment.
Generally, the County Administrator shall be the Certified Program
Administrator for Rappahannock County.
CLEARING
Any activity which removes the vegetative ground cover including,
but not limited to, root mat removal or top soil removal.
COUNTY
The County of Rappahannock.
DEPARTMENT
The Department of Conservation and Recreation.
DEVELOPMENT
A tract of land developed or to be developed as a single
unit under single ownership or unified control which is to be used
for any business or industrial purpose or is to contain three or more
residential dwelling units.
DIRECTOR
The Director of the Department.
EROSION AND SEDIMENT CONTROL PLAN OR PLAN
A document containing material for the conservation of soil
and water resources of a unit or group of units of land. It may include
appropriate maps, an appropriate soil and water plan inventory, and
management information with needed interpretations and a record of
decisions contributing to conservation treatment. The plan shall contain
all major conservation decisions to assure that the entire unit or
units of land will be so treated to achieve the conservation objectives.
EROSION IMPACT AREA
An area of land not associated with current land-disturbing
activity but subject to persistent soil erosion resulting in the delivery
of sediment onto neighboring properties or into state waters. This
definition shall not apply to any lot or parcel of land of 10,000
square feet or less used for residential purposes.
EXCAVATING
Any digging, scooping or other methods of removing earth
materials.
FILLING
Any depositing or stockpiling of earth materials.
GRADING
Any excavating or filling of earth material or any combination
thereof, including the land in its excavated or filled conditions.
LAND-DISTURBING ACTIVITY
Any land change which may result in soil erosion from water
or wind and the movement of sediments into state waters or onto lands
in the commonwealth, including, but not limited to, clearing, grading,
excavating, transporting and filling of land, except that the term
shall not include:
A.
Minor land-disturbing activities such as home
gardens and individual home landscaping, repairs and maintenance work;
B.
Individual service connections;
C.
Installation, maintenance, or repair of any
underground public utility lines when such activity occurs on an existing
hard-surfaced road, street or sidewalk provided such land-disturbing
activity is confined to the area of the road, street or sidewalk which
is hard-surfaced;
D.
Septic tank lines or drainage fields unless
included in an overall plan for land-disturbing activity relating
to construction of the building to be served by the septic tank system;
F.
Exploration or drilling for oil and gas, including
the well site, roads, feeder lines, and off-site disposal areas;
G.
Tilling, planting, or harvesting of agricultural, horticultural, or forest crops, or livestock feedlot operations; including engineering operations and agricultural engineering operations as follows: construction of terraces, terrace outlets, check dams, desilting basins, dikes, ponds not required to comply with the Dam Safety Act, Article 2 (§ 10.1-604 et seq.) of Chapter 6, ditches, strip cropping, lister furrowing, contour cultivating, contour furrowing, land drainage, and land irrigation; however, this exception shall not apply to harvesting of forest crops unless the area on which harvesting occurs is reforested artificially or naturally in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 11 (§ 10.1-1100 et seq.) of this title or is converted to bona fide agricultural or improved pasture use as described in Subsection
B of § 10.1-1163;
H.
Repair or rebuilding of the tracks, rights-of-way,
bridges, communication facilities and other related structures and
facilities of a railroad company;
I.
Disturbed land areas of less than 10,000 square
feet in size;
J.
Installation of fence and sign posts or telephone
and electric poles and other kinds of posts or poles;
K.
Emergency work to protect life, limb or property,
and emergency repairs; provided that if the land-disturbing activity
would have required an approved erosion and sediment control plan,
if the activity were not an emergency, then the land area disturbed
shall be shaped and stabilized in accordance with the requirements
of the plan-approving authority.
LAND-DISTURBING PERMIT
A permit issued by Rappahannock County for the clearing,
filling, excavating, grading, transporting of land or for any combination
thereof or for any purpose set forth herein.
LOCAL EROSION AND SEDIMENT CONTROL PROGRAM or LOCAL CONTROL
PROGRAM
An outline of the various methods employed by Rappahannock
County to regulate land-disturbing activities and thereby minimize
erosion and sedimentation in compliance with the state program and
may include such items as local ordinances, policies and guidelines,
technical materials, inspection, enforcement, and evaluation.
OWNER
The owner or owners of the freehold of the premises or lesser
estate therein, a mortgagee or vendee in possession, assignee of rents,
receiver, executor, trustee, lessee or other person, firm or corporation
in control of a property.
PERMITTEE
The person to whom the permit authorizing land-disturbing
activities is issued or the person who certifies that the approved
erosion and sediment control plan will be followed.
PERSON
Any individual, partnership, firm, association, joint venture,
public or private corporation, trust, estate, commission, board, public
or private institution, utility, cooperative, County, city, town or
other political subdivision of the commonwealth, any interstate body,
or any other legal entity.
PLAN-APPROVING AUTHORITY
The Culpeper Soil and Water Conservation District, which
is responsible for determining the adequacy of a plan submitted for
land-disturbing activities on a unit or units of lands and for approving
plans.
PROGRAM AUTHORITY
Rappahannock County, which has adopted a soil erosion and
sediment control program approved by the Board.
RESPONSIBLE LAND DISTURBER
An individual from the project or development team, who will be in charge of and responsible for carrying out a land-disturbing activity covered by an approved plan or agreement in lieu of a plan, who holds a responsible land disturber certificate of competence, holds a current certificate of competence from the Board in the areas of combined administration, program administration, inspection, or plan review, holds a current contractor certificate of competence for erosion and sediment control, or is licensed in Virginia as a professional engineer, architect, certified landscape architect or land surveyor pursuant to Article 1 (§ 54.1-400 et seq.) of Chapter
4 of Title 54.1.
STATE WATERS
All waters on the surface and under the ground wholly or
partially within or bordering the commonwealth or within its jurisdiction.
TRANSPORTING
Any moving of earth materials from one place to another place
other than such movement incidental to grading, when such movement
results in destroying the vegetative ground cover either by tracking
or the buildup of earth materials to the extent that erosion and sedimentation
will result from the soil or earth materials over which such transporting
occurs.