30.63B.380 Emergency land disturbing activities and required permits.
(1) Land disturbing activity that requires a land disturbing activity permit may be undertaken to perform an emergency action, without first obtaining a permit, when insufficient time exists to obtain a land disturbing activity permit. An emergency action is only allowed when:
(a) One of the following circumstances exists:
(i) Damage is occurring as a result of flood waters at or exceeding flood stage as defined by the county’s departments of emergency management or public works, and land disturbing activity is necessary to protect existing property, maintain an existing utility facility function, or to prevent channel impairment;
(ii) Maintenance performed by a utility is necessary to repair a utility facility or line which has been damaged as a direct result of an emergency; or
(iii) Removal and relocation of material deposited onto commercial farmland by flood waters is necessary to protect farming operations; and
(b) All of the following criteria are met:
(i) Circumstances causing the emergency developed suddenly;
(ii) The emergency constitutes an imminent threat to public health, safety, welfare, property or the environment and emergency land disturbing activities are necessary to prevent an imminent threat of serious environmental degradation; and
(iii) The land disturbing activity is the minimum necessary to alleviate the emergency.
(2) Prior to undertaking any emergency land disturbing activity to remedy the emergency, the proponent of such activity must notify the department in writing by providing a summary of the intended activity. If prior notification is not feasible, the project proponent shall provide such notification in writing to the department within 48 hours of initiating the emergency land disturbing activity.
(3) The department shall notify the property owner or person who conducted the emergency land disturbing activity in writing that:
(a) The person responsible for the emergency action shall comply with soil erosion and sedimentation control practices required pursuant to minimum requirement 2 (SCC 30.63A.445 and 30.63A.450) as soon as practicable; and
(b) Applications for project permits necessary to satisfy compliance with this chapter shall be submitted to the department within 120 days from the date the emergency land disturbing activity was initiated; and
(c) Whether the land disturbing activity meets the criteria of subsections (1) and (2) of this section.
(4) If the director determines that land disturbing activity was performed that did not meet the criteria in this section, then in addition to requiring that a land disturbing activity permit application be submitted to the department within 120 days of the land disturbing activity, code enforcement may be pursued. (Added by Amended Ord. 10-023, June 9, 2010, Eff date Sept. 30, 2010; Amended by Ord. 15-103, Jan. 11, 2016, Eff date Jan. 22, 2016).