This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Upper Gwynedd
Township MS4 Prohibited Discharge Ordinance" for those portions of
the Skippack Creek Watershed located within the Township.
The governing body of the municipality finds that:
A.
Inadequate maintenance of stormwater facilities contributes to erosion
and sedimentation, overtaxes the carrying capacity of streams and
storm sewers, increases the cost of public facilities to carry and
control stormwater, undermines floodplain management and flood control
efforts in downstream communities, reduces groundwater recharge, threatens
public health and safety, and increases pollution of water resources.
B.
Reasonable regulation of connections and discharges to municipal
separate storm sewer systems is fundamental to the public health,
safety and welfare and the protection of people of the commonwealth,
their resources and the environment.
C.
Stormwater is an important water resource, which provides groundwater
recharge for water supplies and baseflow of streams, which also protects
and maintains surface water quality.
D.
Federal and state regulations require certain municipalities to obtain
a permit for stormwater discharges from their separate storm sewer
systems under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
(NPDES). Permittees are required to enact, implement and enforce a
prohibition of nonstormwater discharges to the permittee's regulated
small municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s).
The purpose of this chapter is to promote health, safety and welfare within the municipality and its watershed by minimizing the harms and maximizing the benefits described in § 161-2 of this chapter through provisions designed to:
A.
Provide standards to meet NPDES permit requirements.
B.
Meet legal water quality requirements under state law, including
regulations at 25 Pa. Code Chapter 93 to protect, maintain, reclaim
and restore the existing and designated uses of the waters of this
commonwealth.
C.
Preserve the natural drainage systems as much as possible.
D.
Maintain groundwater recharge to prevent degradation of surface water
and groundwater quality and to otherwise protect water resources.
E.
Prevent scour and erosion of stream banks and streambeds.
F.
Provide proper operation and maintenance of all facilities and all
SWM BMPs that are implemented within the municipality.
The municipality also is empowered to regulate land use activities
that affect runoff by the authority of the Act of July 31, 1968, P.L.
805, No. 247, the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, as amended.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
All activities within those portions of the Skippack Creek Watershed
located within the Township related to proper operation and maintenance
of approved stormwater management BMPs and all activities within those
portions of the Skippack Creek Watershed located in the Township that
may contribute nonstormwater discharges to a regulated small MS4 are
subject to regulation by this chapter.
A.
Table 161-6 [attached] summarizes the exemptions from certain requirements in this chapter. "Proposed impervious surface" in Table 161-6 includes new, additional or replacement impervious surface/cover. Repaving existing surfaces without reconstruction (see § 161-13) does not constitute replacement.
B.
Exemptions for land use activities. (Note: Appendix B[1] contains guidance for preparation of small project SWM
site plans. This guidance provides property owners who propose such
small regulated activities the opportunity to submit SWM site plans
without having to hire qualified persons.)
(1)
Disconnected regulated activities (regulated activities that create disconnected impervious areas) smaller in area than 1,000 square feet are exempt from the SWM site plan (§ 161-14) preparation requirements of this chapter, except when the associated earth disturbance area is equal to or greater than 5,000 square feet.
(2)
Disconnected regulated activities (regulated activities that create disconnected impervious areas), having an area equal to or greater than 1,000 square feet and less than 5,000 square feet, and with an associated earth disturbance area of less than 5,000 square feet, are exempt only from the peak rate control (§ 161-26) requirements of this chapter in the case of new development, and are exempt from peak rate control (§ 161-26) and stream bank erosion (§ 161-25) requirements in the case of redevelopment.
(3)
Agricultural plowing and tilling are exempt from the rate control
and SWM site plan preparation requirements of this chapter, provided
the activities are performed according to the requirements of 25 Pa.
Code Chapter 102.
(4)
Forest management and timber operations are exempt from the rate
control and SWM site plan preparation requirements of this chapter,
provided the activities are performed according to the requirements
of 25 Pa. Code Chapter 102.
[1]
Editor's Note: The appendices are available at the Township.
C.
Infiltration exemptions.
(1)
Depth to limiting zone. A minimum of two feet of soil suitable for
infiltration must exist between the invert of the infiltration BMP
and the top of the nearest limiting zone. Otherwise, the Rev requirement
shall not be applied to the development site, and the entire WQv must
be treated.
(2)
Hotspots.
(a)
Stormwater hotspots. Below is a list of types of hotspots that
may be recognized by the municipality. If a site is a potential hotspot,
it has important implications for how stormwater is managed. First
and foremost, untreated stormwater runoff from hotspots concentrated
into a collection system shall not be recharged into groundwater where
it may contaminate water supplies. Therefore, the Rev requirement
shall not be applied to development sites that lie within a hotspot
(the entire WQv must still be treated). Second, a greater level of
stormwater treatment shall be applied at hotspot sites to prevent
pollutant washoff after construction. The Environmental Protection
Agency's (EPA) National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
(NPDES) stormwater program requires some industrial sites to prepare
and implement a stormwater pollution prevention plan.
(b)
List of potential hotspots:
[1]
Vehicle salvage yards and recycling facilities.
[2]
Vehicle fueling stations.
[3]
Vehicle service and maintenance facilities.
[4]
Vehicle and equipment cleaning facilities.
[5]
Fleet storage areas (bus, truck, etc.).
[6]
Industrial sites, based on standard industrial codes.
[7]
Marinas (service and maintenance).
[8]
Outdoor liquid container storage.
[9]
Commercial/industrial facilities.
[10]
Public works storage areas.
[11]
Facilities that generate, transfer, store or dispose of hazardous
materials.
[12]
Commercial container nursery.
(c)
The following land uses and activities are not normally considered
hotspots:
(3)
Rate of infiltration. When infiltration is not feasible due to poor
infiltration rates or hotspots, the water quality volume must be treated
by an approved SMP.
D.
Additional exemption criteria:
(1)
Exemption responsibilities. An exemption shall not relieve the applicant
from implementing such measures as are necessary to protect public
health, safety, property, water quality and the environment.
(2)
Drainage problems. Where drainage problems exist downstream of the
proposed activity, then the municipality may deny exemptions.
(3)
Exemptions are limited to specific portions of this chapter.
(4)
HQ and EV streams. The municipality shall deny exemptions in high
quality (HQ) or exceptional value (EV) waters and source water protection
areas (SWPA).
(5)
For a development taking place in stages, the entire development
plan must be used in determining compliance with these exemption criteria.
The starting point from which to consider tracts as "parent tracts"
in which future subdivisions and respective impervious area computations
are cumulatively considered shall be the date of the municipal ordinance
adoption of the original Skippack Creek Watershed Stormwater Management
Plan Ordinance (Ord. No. 2014-11, adopted October 27, 2014). For example:
If a property owner proposes a 300-square-foot shed after adoption
of the municipal Stormwater Management Ordinance, that property owner
would be exempt from site plan and peak rate control requirements.
If, at a later date, the property owner proposes to construct a garage
and driveway adding an additional 1,300 square feet of impervious
surface, the applicant would be required to submit an SWM site plan
or small project SWM site plan demonstrating the stormwater control
requirements for the total impervious surface of 1,600 square feet.
E.
The municipality may deny or revoke any exemption pursuant to this
section at any time for any project that the municipality believes
may pose a threat to public health, safety, property or the environment.
Any other ordinance provision(s) or regulation of the municipality
inconsistent with any of the provisions of this chapter is hereby
repealed to the extent of the inconsistency only.
In the event that a court of competent jurisdiction declares
any section or provision of this chapter invalid, such decision shall
not affect the validity of any of the remaining provisions of this
chapter.
Actions taken under this chapter do not affect any responsibility,
permit or approval for any activity regulated by any other code, law,
regulation or ordinance.
Notwithstanding any provision(s) of this chapter, including
exemptions, any landowner or any person engaged in the alteration
or development of land that may affect stormwater runoff characteristics
shall implement such measures as are reasonably necessary to prevent
injury to health, safety or other property. Such measures also shall
include actions as are required to manage the rate, volume, direction
and quality of resulting stormwater runoff in a manner that otherwise
adequately protects health, safety, property and water quality.
Any permit or authorization issued or approved based on false,
misleading or erroneous information provided by an applicant is void
without the necessity of any proceedings for revocation. Any work
undertaken or use established pursuant to such permit or other authorization
is unlawful. No action may be taken by a board, agency or employee
of the municipality purporting to validate such a violation.
