HomeMy Public PortalAboutStormwater Management and Erosion Control Ordinance 23 Feb 2016ELECTED
OFFICIALS:
Watertown Town Council
Administration Building
149 Main Street
Watertown, MA 02472
Phone: 617-972-6470
Mark S. Sideris, ORDINANCE #
Council President
0-2016- -
Vincent J. Picc rilli,
Jr.,
AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING REQUIREMENTS FOR
Vice President
STORMWATER MANAGEMENT AND EROSION CONTROL
Michael F. Dattoli,
Councilor At Large
Whereas, the establishment of minimum requirements and procedures to
AaronP. Dushku,
regulate land disturbance associated with construction activities serves the public
Councilor At Large
interest by reducing the adverse impacts of soil erosion and sedimentation from
Susan G. Falkoff,
stormwater runoff; and
Councilor At Large
Anthony Palomba,
Whereas, such regulation serves the objective of preventing pollutants
Councilor At Large
from entering into, and discharging from, the Town of Watertown's storm
drainage system; and
� Angeline B.
Kounelis,
District A Councilor
Whereas, the Town wishes to ensure that best management practices for
stormwater controls, including long-term operation and maintenance practices for
Lisa J. Feltner,
District B Councilor
stormwater facilities, are incorporated into land development and redevelopment;
and
Kenneth M.
woodland,
District D Councilor
Whereas, regulations adopted by the United States Environmental
Protection Agency under the Federal Clean Water Act require the Town to
regulate stormwater runoff related to construction and post -construction activities,
as a condition of the federal General Permit for Municipal Separate Storm Sewer
Systems.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT ORDAINED by the Town Council of the City
Known as the Town of Watertown that Title IX of the Watertown Code of
Ordinances, "Business Regulations," is hereby amended by the insertion of a new
Chapter 98 as follows:
CHAPTER 98: STORMWATER MANAGEMENT AND EROSION
CONTROL
CHAPTER 98: STORMWATER MANAGEMENT AND EROSION CONTROL
§98.01 GENERAL PROVISIONS
(A) Purpose
The purpose of this Ordinance is to control stormwater runoff into the Town of
Watertown's Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) and local water bodies to
minimize stormwater runoff and prevent pollution. Specifically, the objectives are:
(1) To protect, maintain, and enhance the public safety, environment, health,
and general welfare by establishing minimum requirements and
procedures to reduce the adverse impacts of soil erosion and sedimentation
and manage stormwater runoff;
(2) To control and prevent soil erosion and sedimentation resulting from
construction site stormwater runoff;
(3) To promote infiltration and the recharge of groundwater in order to
minimize flooding;
(4) To prevent pollutants from entering the Town's MS4 and to minimize
discharge of pollutants from the MS4;
(5) To ensure that stormwater management techniques, including Best
Management Practices, are incorporated into the land disturbance,
development, and redevelopment planning and design process in order to
control soil erosion and sedimentation and stormwater runoff;
(6) To ensure that the adequate long-term Operation and Maintenance of Best
Management Practices (BMPs) is incorporated into the land disturbance,
development, and redevelopment process and implemented in the future so
that they work as designed; and
(7) To comply with state and federal statutes and regulations relating to
stormwater runoff discharges.
This Ordinance establishes the Town's legal authority to ensure compliance with the
provisions of this Ordinance through permitting, inspection, maintenance, and
enforcement.
(B) Applicability
A Stormwater Management and Erosion Control Permit shall be required prior to
undertaking any alteration or land disturbance activity that:
(1) Will result in land disturbances of 5,000 square feet of total area or more,
or smaller activities that are part of a larger common development plan
that will disturb 5,000 square feet or more;
(2) Will cause a net increase in site impervious surface area by more than 500
square feet;
(3) Proposes to create or modify a direct connection to the MS4; or
(4) In the opinion of the Department of Public Works, may result in an
adverse impact on the MS4 or water resources of the Town of Watertown.
(C) Exemptions
The following activities are exempt from the requirements of this Ordinance, provided
that such work must utilize the best practical measures to avoid any negative impacts on
stormwater quality or runoff rate or volume:
(1) Repairs to any stormwater treatment practice that are deemed necessary by
the Department of Public Works.
(2) Normal maintenance and improvement of land for the primary purpose of
agriculture, horticulture, floriculture, or viticulture, or the use, expansion,
or reconstruction of existing structures for the primary purpose of
agriculture, horticulture, floriculture, or viticulture, to the extent protected
under the Zoning Act, M.G.L Chapter 40A, Section 3.
(3) Normal maintenance of landscaping, gardens, or lawn areas.
(4) Reclamation and replacement of lawfully located, existing pavement at
single-family or two-family residences, as well as reclamation and
replacement of lawfully located, existing pavement at any parking lot
containing fewer than 10 spaces.
(5) Overlaying of existing pavement, with no increase in impervious area.
(6) Construction of a fence or wall that does not alter the existing terrain or
drainage patterns.
(7) Emergency activities necessary for the protection of the health and safety
of the public, provided that (a) the work is to be performed by or has been
ordered by an agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or a
political subdivision thereof, (b) advance notice, oral or written, has been
given to the Department of Public Works prior to commencement of work
or within 24 hours after commencement, (c) the Department of Public
Works or its drily authorized designee certifies the work as an emergency
activity, and (d) the work is performed only for the time and place
certified by the Department of Public Works for the limited purposes
necessary to abate the emergency.
(8) Maintenance, repair or replacement of an existing and lawfully located
structure or facility used in the service of the public to provide electric,
gas, water, telephone, telegraph or other telecommunication services,
provided that (a) there is no alteration in the terrain, ground cover or
drainage patterns; and (b) written notice has been given to the Department
of Public Works prior to commencement of work.
(9) Maintenance, repair or replacement of existing drainage infrastructure,
provided that (a) there is no alteration of the existing terrain or drainage
patterns; (b) there is no increase in the size or capacity of the pipe; (c)
there is no change in the drainage area contributing to the pipe; and (d)
best practical measures are utilized to avoid any negative impacts on
stormwater quality or runoff rate or volume.
(10) Operation and maintenance of stormwater Best Management Practices, in
accordance with an approved Operations and Maintenance Plan.
(11) Normal maintenance of Town -owned public land, right-of-ways, public
utilities, and appurtenances, including roadway reconstruction.
(D) Simplified Permit
The Department of Public Works shall have the authority to develop a Simplified Permit
for specific types of projects.
(1) The purpose of the Simplified Permit is to streamline the permitting
process under this Ordinance by waiving certain submission
requirements, provided a set of predetermined design standards are met.
(2) The predetermined design standards shall be outlined in the Rules and
Regulations authorized in accordance with Section 3.3 of this Ordinance.
(3) By meeting the predetermined requirements and performance standards,
the proposed project will be presumed to meet the requirements and
intent of this Ordinance.
(E) Compatibility with Other Permit and Ordinance Requirements
This Ordinance is not intended to interfere with, abrogate, or annul any other Ordinance,
Rule or Regulation, Statute, or other provision of law in whole or in pail. The
requirements of this Ordinance should be considered minimum requirements, and where
any provision of this Ordinance imposes restrictions different from those imposed by any
other Ordinance, Rule or Regulation, Statute or other provision of law, whichever
provisions are more restrictive or impose higher protective standards for human health or
the environment shall be considered to take precedence.
§98.02 DEFINITIONS
Alter or Alteration: Any activity, which will change the ability of a ground surface to
absorb water or will change existing surface drainage patterns. Alter may also be referred
to as "alteration of drainage characteristics," and "conducting land disturbance activities."
Ap lip cant: Any person, as defined in this Ordinance, who has filed an application for a
Stormwater Management and Erosion Control Permit.
Best Management Practice (BMP): A structural or nonstructural technique for managing
stormwater to prevent or reduce nonpoint source pollutants from entering surface waters
or ground waters. A structural stormwater Best Management Practice includes a basin,
discharge outlet, swale, rain garden, filter, or other stormwater treatment practice or
measure either alone or in combination, including without limitation any overflow pipe,
conduit, weir control structure that: (a) is not naturally occurring; (b) is not designed as a
wetland replication area; and (c) has been designed, constructed, and installed for the
purpose of conveying, collecting, storing, discharging, recharging, or treating stormwater.
Nonstructural stormwater Best Management Practices include source control and
pollution prevention measures.
Convey: Any structure or device, including pipes, drains, culverts, curb breaks,
paved swales and man-made swales, natural and man-made channels, and ditches
designed or utilized to move or direct stormwater runoff or existing water flow; any
impervious surface/sheet flow utilized to remove rainfall (for example, a parking lot)
which drains directly onto a vegetated surface or public road without any curbing or
drainage system to intercept the flow.
Erosion Control: The prevention or reduction of the movement of soil particles or rock
fragments due to stormwater runoff.
Impervious Surface or Area: Any material or structure on or above the ground that
prevents water from infiltrating through the underlying soil. Impervious surface is
defined to include, without limitation: paved surfaces (parking lots, sidewalks, driveways,
etc.), roof tops, swimming pools, and patios, as well as paved, gravel, and compacted dirt
surfaced roads.
Infiltration: Percolation of water into the subsurface. Also referred to as "Recharge."
Land Disturbance Activity: Any activity that causes a change in the position or location
of soil, sand, rock, gravel, or similar earth material.
Low Impact Development (LID): A site design strategy for managing stormwater by
maintaining or replicating the predevelopment hydrologic functions through the use of
design techniques to create a functionally equivalent hydrologic landscape.
Maintenance: Maintenance of a stormwater management system means the work
necessary to keep a stormwater management system functional and in good repair so that
it may continue to operate as originally designed. Maintenance of a stormwater
management system does not include work that (a) reduces the capacity of the system to
treat stormwater, provide recharge, or attenuate peak flow; (b) increases the total or peak
rate or volume of the stormwater managed by the system; (c) directs additional
stormwater discharges to the system; or (d) results in reduced use of above ground
stormwater Best Management Practices.
Massachusetts Storrmvater Management Standards: The Standards issued by the
Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), codified in regulations at
310 CMR 10.05(6)(k)-(q) and further defined and specified in the Massachusetts
Stormwater Handbook, Volumes 1 through 3, issued by the DEP. The Standards address
stormwater impacts through implementation of performance standards that reduce or
prevent pollutants from reaching water bodies and control the quantity of runoff from a
site.
Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4): The system of conveyances designed or
used for collecting or conveying stormwater, including any road with a drainage system,
street, gutter, curb, inlet, piped storm drain, pumping facility, retention or detention basin,
natural or man-made or altered drainage channel, reservoir, and other drainage structures
that together comprise the storm drainage system owned or operated by the Town of
Watertown.
Operation and Maintenance Plan: A plan setting up the functional, financial, and
organizational mechanisms for the ongoing operation and maintenance of a stormwater
management system to ensure that it continues to function as designed.
Overlay of Pavement: The placement of pavement on top of an existing impervious
surface. The underlying surface is sometimes milled (partially ground down in thickness)
before the overlay is placed.
Owner: A person with a legal or equitable interest in land, structures, or equipment.
Permittee: The person who is issued a permit by the Watertown Department of Public
Works pursuant to this Ordinance.
Person: An individual, partnership, association, firm, company, trust, corporation,
agency, authority, department, or political subdivision of the Commonwealth or the
federal government, to the extent permitted by law, and any officer, employee, or agent
of such person.
Pollutant: Any substance, either man-made or man -induced, that alters the chemical,
physical, biological, or radiological integrity of water.
Reclamation of Pavement: A procedure whereby existing pavement is broken and
pounded into small fragments.
Redevelopment: Development, replacement, rehabilitation, expansion, demolition, or
phased projects that disturb the ground surface on previously developed sites.
Sediment: Mineral or organic soil material that is transported by wind or water from its
origin to another location; the product of erosion processes.
Sedimentation: The process or act of depositing sediment.
Simplified Permit: A permit issued for an application that meets a set of predetermined
standards adopted by the Department of Public Works in accordance with Section
98.01(B) of this Ordinance.
Stormwater Management and Erosion Control Permit: A permit issued by the Department
of Public Works, after review of an application, plans, calculations, and other supporting
documents, in accordance with the provisions of this Ordinance.
Stormwater Management Plan: A plan submitted as part of an application for a
Stormwater Management and Erosion Control Permit, as required by Section 98.04(A) of
this Ordinance.
Stormwater Management System: the collective system for conveying, collecting,
storing, discharging, recharging, or treating stormwater on -site, including stormwater
Best Management Practices and any pipes and outlets intended to transport and discharge
stormwater to the groundwater, a surface water, or a municipal separate storm sewer
system. Also referred to as "drainage."
Stormwater Runoff: Flow over the ground surface resulting from precipitation or snow
and ice melt or through a drainage system.
§98.03 AUTHORITY AND ADMINISTRATION
(A) Authority
This Ordinance is adopted under authority granted by the Home Rule Amendment of the
Massachusetts Constitution, and the Home Rule Statutes and pursuant to the regulations
of the federal Clean Water Act found at 40 CFR 122.34.
(B) Administration
The Watertown Department of Public Works shall administer, implement, and enforce
this Ordinance. Any powers granted to or duties imposed upon the Department of Public
Works may be delegated to the Department's employees or agents.
(C) Rules and Regulations
The Town Manager may adopt, and periodically amend, Rules and Regulations relating
to the detailed requirements, procedures, and administration of this Ordinance, including
application and inspection fees. Failure by the Town Manager to promulgate such Rules
and Regulations, or a declaration of their invalidity by a court of law, shall not have the
effect of suspending or invalidating the provisions of this Ordinance or any permit issued
hereunder. Such Rules and Regulations (or amendments thereto) shall become effective
five days after being filed with the Town Clerk.
(D) Appeals
A decision of the Department of Public Works shall be final. A request for relief of a
decision of the Department of Public Works shall be reviewable in the Superior Court in
an action filed within 60 days thereof.
§98.04 PERMIT PROCEDURES
(A) Permit Required
No land disturbance activity that meets the criteria specified in Section 98.01(B) may
commence prior to issuance of a Stormwater Management and Erosion Control Permit
subject to this Ordinance.
(B) Procedures and Requirements
Permit procedures and requirements — including but not limited to application, fee
schedules, actions, right -of -entry, Stormwater Management Plan contents, technical
requirements, inspections, and project closeout — shall be included as part of the Rules
and Regulations promulgated under Section 98.03(C) of this Ordinance.
§98.05 PERFORMANCE STANDARDS
Criteria for Stormwater Management and Erosion Control Performance Standards shall
be defined and included as part of the Rules and Regulations promulgated under Section
3.3 of this Ordinance.
§98.06 ENFORCEMENT
The Department of Public Works shall have authority to enforce this Ordinance and
resulting Rules and Regulations, and shall issue orders, violation notices, and
enforcement orders, and may pursue all available civil and criminal remedies for such
violations.
(A) Notices and Orders
(1) The Department of Public Works may issue a written order to
enforce the provisions of the Stormwater Management and Erosion
Control Ordinance or the Rules and Regulations, which may include
requirements to:
(a) Cease and desist from construction or land disturbance
activity until there is compliance with the Stormwater Management
and Erosion Control Ordinance and the Stormwater Management
and Erosion Control Permit;
(b) Repair, maintain, or replace the stormwater management
system or portions thereof in accordance with the approved
Operation and Maintenance Plan;
(c) Perform monitoring, analyses, and reporting; and/or
(d) Remediate adverse impacts resulting directly or indirectly
from malfunction of the stormwater management system.
(2) If the Department of Public Works determines that abatement or
remediation of adverse impacts is required, the order shall set forth a
deadline by which such abatement or remediation must be completed.
(3) If a person violates the provisions of this Ordinance, regulations,
permit, notice, or order issued thereunder, the Department of Public Works
may seek injunctive relief in a court of competent jurisdiction restraining
the person from activities which would create further violations or
compelling the person to perform abatement or remediation of the
violation.
(B) Penalties
Pursuant to Section 10.99 of the Town Code, any person who violates any provision of
the Stormwater Management and Erosion Control Ordinance, or order or permit issued
thereunder, may be ordered to correct the violation and/or slialI be punished by a fine of
not more than $300.00 per violation, excluding the cost of damages. Each day or part
thereof that such violation occurs or continues shall constitute a separate violation.
(C) Non -Criminal Disposition
As an alternative to criminal prosecution, the Department of Public Works may elect to
utilize the non -criminal disposition procedure set forth in M.G.L. c. 40, § 21D, which has
been adopted by the Town in § 35.05 of the Town Code, for which purpose the Director
of the Department of Public Works and the Department's employees shall be enforcing
persons. The specific penalties under this provision shall be (a) $25 for the first offense,
(b) $50 for the second offense, and (c) $100 for the third and any subsequent offense.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the enforcing person shall have the discretion to issue a
warning in lieu of the citation for $25 for the first offense.
(D) Appeals
The decisions or orders of the Department of Public Works shall be final. Further relief
shall be to a court of competent jurisdiction.
(E) Remedies Not Exclusive
The remedies listed in this Ordinance are not exclusive of any other remedies available
under any applicable federal, state, or local law.
§98.07 SEVERABILITY
Any finding of the invalidity of any section, provision, paragraph, sentence, or clause of
this Ordinance shall not invalidate any other section, provision, sentence, or clause
thereof, nor shall it invalidate any permit or determination that has been previously issued
under this Ordinance.
AND FURTHER BE IT ORDAINED that the Watertown Code of Ordinances, Title IX,
Chapter 97, is hereby amended by changing the title of said Chapter 97 from "Storm -water
Regulations" to "Regulation of Discharges to the Municipal Storm Sewer System".
0/J a
Council Member
I hereby certify that at a regular meeting of the Town Council for which a quorum was present,
the above Ordinance was adopted by a roll call vote of--�—for, 4) against, 61present on
February 23,2016.
Mardy . Pronov st, Council Clerk
10
ZD-'14
Mark S. Sideris, Council President