• Soil Erosion And Sediment Control

ARTICLE 12 SOIL EROSION AND SEDIMENT CONTROL ORDINANCE AN ORDINANCE PROVIDING FOR THE CONTROL OF SOIL EROSION AND SEDIMENT RUNOFF FROM AREAS UNDERGOING DEVELOPMENT 1201 Findings and Purpose The Board of Trustees of the Village of Johnsburg hereby finds that: 1201.1 Excessive quantities of soil may erode from areas undergoing development for certain non-agricultural uses including but not limited to the construction of dwelling units, commercial buildings and industrial plants, the building of roads and highways, the modification of stream channels and drainageways, and the creation of recreational facilities; 1201.2 The washing, blowing, and falling of eroded soil across and upon roadways endangers the health and safety of users thereof, by decreasing vision and reducing traction of road vehicles; 1201.3 Soil erosion necessitates the costly repairing of gulleys, washed-out fills, and embankments; 1201.4 Sediment from soil erosion tends to clog sewers and ditches and to pollute and silt rivers, streams, lakes, wetlands, and reservoirs; 1201.5 Sediment limits the use of water and waterways for most beneficial purposes, promotes the growth of undesirable aquatic weeds, destroys fish and other desirable aquatic life, and is costly and difficult to remove; and 1201.6 Sediment reduces the channel capacity of waterways and the storage capacity of floodplains and natural depressions, resulting in increased chances of flooding at risk to public health and safety 1202 Purpose The Board of Trustees therefore declares that the purpose of this ordinance is to safeguard persons, protect property, prevent damage to the environment, and promote the public welfare by guiding, regulating and controlling the design, construction, use and maintenance of any development or other activity which disturbs or breaks the topsoil or otherwise results in the movement of earth on land situated in the Village of Johnsburg. It is the intention of this ordinance that the delivery of sediment from sites affected by land disturbing activities be limited, as closely as practicable, to that which would have occurred if the land had been left in its natural undisturbed state. 1203 Definitions For the purposes of this Ordinance certain terms used herein are defined as set forth below: 1203.1 BUILDING PERMIT: A permit issued by the Village of Johnsburg for the construction, erection or alteration of a structure or building. 1203.2 CERTIFY OR CERTIFICATION: Formally attesting that the specific inspections and tests where required have been performed, and that such tests comply with the applicable requirements of this Ordinance. 1203.3 CLEARING: Any activity which removes vegetative ground cover. 1203.4 CUBIC YARDS: The amount of material in excavation and/or fill measured by the method of "average end areas." 1203.5 EXCAVATION: Any act by which organic matter, earth, sand, gravel, rock or any other similar, material is cut into, dug, quarried, uncovered, removed, displaced, relocated or bulldozed and shall include the conditions resulting therefrom. 1203.6 EXISTING GRADE: The vertical location of the existing ground surface prior to excavation or filling. 1207.7 FILL: Any act by which, earth, sand, gravel, rock or any other material is deposited, placed, replaced, pushed, dumped, pulled, transported or moved by man to a new location and shall include the conditions resulting therefrom. 1203.8 FINAL GRADE: The vertical location of the ground or pavement surface after the grading work is completed in accordance with the site development plan. 1203.9 GRADING: Excavation or fill or any combination thereof and shall include the conditions resulting from any excavation or fill. 1203.10 NATURAL DRAINAGE: Channels formed in the existing surface topography of the earth prior to changes made by unnatural causes. 1203.11 PARCEL: All contiguous land in one ownership. 1203.12 PERMITTEE: Any person to whom a site development permit is issued. 1203.13 PERSON: Any individual, firm or corporation, public or private, the State of Illinois and its agencies or political subdivisions, and the United States, of America, its agencies and instrumentalities, and any agent, servant, officer or employee of any of the foregoing. 1203.14 REMOVAL: Cutting vegetation to the ground or stumps, complete extraction, or killing by spraying. 1203.15 SITE: A lot or parcel of land, or a contiguous combination thereof, where grading work is performed as a single unified operation. 1203.16 SITE DEVELOPMENT: Altering terrain and/or vegetation and constructing improvements. 1203.17 SITE DEVELOPMENT PERMIT: A permit issued by the Village of Johnsburg for the construction or alteration of ground improvements and structures for the control of erosion, runoff and grading. 1203.18 STREAM: Any river, creek, brook, branch, flowage, ravine, or natural or man-made drainageway which has a definite bed and banks or shoreline, in or into which surface or groundwater flows, either perennially or intermittently. 1203.19 STRIPPING: Any activity which removes the vegetative surface cover including tree removal, clearing, and storage or removal of top soil. 1203.20 VACANT: Land on which there are no structures or only structures which are secondary to the use or maintenance of the land itself. 1203.21 VILLAGE: The Village of Johnsburg, McHenry County, Illinois. 1203.22 WETLANDS: Areas that are inundated or saturated by surface water or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. 1204 General Principles It is the objective of this ordinance to control soil erosion and sedimentation caused by development activities, including clearing, grading, stripping, excavating, and filling of land, in the Village of Johnsburg. Measures taken to control soil erosion and offsite sediment runoff should be adequate to assure that sediment is not transported from the site by a storm event of ten-year frequency or less. The following principles shall apply to all development activities within the Village of Johnsburg and to the preparation of the submissions required under Sections 1205.0 to 1213.0 of this ordinance: 1204.1 Development should be related to the topography and soils of the site so as to create the least potential for erosion. Areas of steep slopes where high cuts and fills may be required should be avoided wherever possible, and natural contours should be followed as closely as possible. 1204.2 Natural vegetation should be retained and protected wherever possible. Areas immediately adjacent to natural watercourses, lakes, ponds, and wetlands should be left undisturbed wherever possible. Temporary crossings of watercourses, when permitted, must include appropriate stabilization measures. 1204.3 Special precautions should be taken to prevent damages resultant from any necessary development activity within or adjacent to any stream, lake, pond, or wetland. Preventative measures should reflect the sensitivity of these areas to erosion and sedimentation. 1204.4 The smallest practical area of land should be exposed for the shortest practical time during development.