MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/related; boundary="----=_NextPart_01CAF734.ABAF8F90" This document is a Single File Web Page, also known as a Web Archive file. If you are seeing this message, your browser or editor doesn't support Web Archive files. Please download a browser that supports Web Archive, such as Microsoft Internet Explorer. ------=_NextPart_01CAF734.ABAF8F90 Content-Location: file:///C:/1E09C650/soilbylawProposed25_April_2010.htm Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/html; charset="us-ascii" SECTION 1

SECTION 1. PURPOSE

This byla= w sets forth the process for submission and review of Earth Alteration Applications before the Soil Conservation Bylaw. The purpose of the Earth Alteration Permit is to assure that proposed operations will be conducted i= n a manner that is consistent with land use objectives of the Town of Berkley.

SECTION 2. DEFINITIONS

ABUTTER=

The term “abutter” as used in this bylaw shall mean all property owners = of record sharing a common boundary line with the site and further inclu= de any other owner of record whose property is located within 300 feet of the = site boundaries.

ALTERATION

The term “alteration” as used in this byl= aw shall mean either:

1.    The removal of earth from a site

2.&n= bsp;        The depositing (bringing in) earth to a site;

3.&n= bsp;        The physical changing of contours = of earth, by more than two (2) feet, on a site. BOARD=

The term “Board” as us= ed in this bylaw shall mean the Soil Conservation Board as established = under Sec= tion 3 of this bylaw.

EARTH

The term “earth” as used in this bylaw shall include any non-organic material normally and naturally composing part of the world’s surface, including, but not limited to soil, loam, sand, stone, gravel and peat,= and unprocessed unconsolidated deposits, but excluding water.=

UNPROCESSED UNCONSOLIDATED DEPOSITS

The term “unprocessed unconsolidated deposits” as used in this bylaw sha= ll mean any non-organic material, normally and naturally composing the world’s surface and found in the earth’s subsurface, still in= its natural and unchanged state.

SECTION 3. = MEMBERS

A Soil Conservation Board is hereby established in the Town of Berkley for the purpose of <= b>regulatin= g the alteration of earth from the land located within the Town and in enforcing = the provisio= ns of this Bylaw. Members of the Board shall consist of one member of the Planning Board and four (4) citizens at large, who shall be registered voters of t= he Town of Berkley, to be appointed by the Board of Selectmen. No person engaged in the busine= ss of altering earth shall serve on such Board. Appointed members shall se= rve one to serve for three years, one to serve for two = years, and one to serve for one year and then annually one for three years. The Bo= ard shall ele= ct a chairman and secretary. The secretary need not be a member of the Board and shall keep a true record of the proceedings of the Board which shall be public records.

SECTION 4. PERMITS

Except as herein provided, no earth shall be altered from any land within the Town un= til a written permit from the Board, stating the land to which it applies, has been issued after a public hearing, a notice of= which setting forth the time, place and purpose of said meeting, and the land wit= h referenc= e to which application has been made, shall have been published in one or more <= /span>newspape= rs in general circulation in the Town, at least fourteen (14) days prior to the d= ay set for the hearing, and shall have been mailed Certified Ma= il, return receipt requested, to all abutters. All other provisions concerning the hearing shall be in conformance with Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 40A, sections relative to the granting= of special permits.

SECTION 5. EXEMPTIONS

A permit= shall not be required for the alteration of earth in the course of excavation incidental to the
construction of the foundation of buildings, walks, driveways, septic systems, nor swimming pools.

A permit shall not be required for = the alteration of earth in the ordinary and customary agricultural, = horticult= ural or floricultural use of land. (Note: Excavation in the building of farm pon= ds and excavations that will result in the lowering or raising of an existi= ng elevation by more than two (2) feet shall not be deemed normal and customary within the meaning of the foregoing). A permit shall no= t be required for the excavation and/or earth alterations made or done to comple= te the construction of ways and the installation of drainage and municipal services pursuant to a definitive subdivision plan submitted to and approved by the Berkley Planning Board under the Subdivision = Control L= aw. Note: however, a permit will be required for the excavation and/or earth alteration made or done to complete the construction of such wa= ys or installation of drainage and municipal services whenever existing elevations will be altered either in lowering or raising by more than two <= /span>(2) feet.= Under such circumstances, an earth alteration permit will be required in addition= to approval= by the Planning Board. The Soil Conservation Board may also issue a permit wit= hout a hearing for any alteration or use within the Town or not more than = one hundred (100) yards of earth for any other purpose which is not commercial.

SECTION 6. APPLICATIONS

The application shall include the following information, and any other information the Board may <= b>require = in its rules and regulations, and shall not be acted upon until all such informati= on is provided.

A.        &= nbsp;    The location of the site upon which alteration = is proposed, identified by both Berkley Assessor’s Map and Lot number, and by street address and identified by the Registry of Deeds book and = page references.

B.        &= nbsp;  The name and address of the Applicant.

C.      =      The name and address of the Owne= r.

D.        &= nbsp;  The name and address of the Operator.=

E.&n= bsp;           A certified list from the Assessor’s Off= ice of the names and addresses of all abutters, as published= on the most recent Assessor’s tax list.

F.&n= bsp;            A site plan submitted to the Board in conforman= ce with the rules and regulations of the Board.

G.&n= bsp;         An estimated number of cubic yards of earth proposed for alteration based on field data from the engineering firm issuing the Site Plan.

H.  Under this bylaw the Board shall establish a fi= ling fee, and the Board shall also establish a fee for the issuance of permits which shall be no more than sufficient in the opinion of the Board = to reimburse the Town for the cost of applying and enforcing this bylaw; and <= /span>the Board shall also establish a reasonable removal fee to be held for further appro&= shy;priation= at a future Town Meeting; and no permit shall be issued until such fees are paid. The fees collected under this bylaw shall, at intervals determined by the Board, be paid over to the Town Treasurer.=

I.        &= nbsp;         Plan to show all relationship to any existing wetlands and/or Order of Conditions from the Conservation Commission= for the entire project must accompany the application and at lea= st one plan with a majority of the signatures from the Conservation = Commission indicating this is the plan they have reviewed and approved.

SECTION 7. PERFORMANCE SPECIFICATIONS

All work performed under an earth alteration permit granted under this bylaw shall be done in <= span style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial;letter-spacing:-.5pt'>accordanc= e with the following specifications which shall be deemed to be incorporated there= in by reference:

<= b>A. An earth alteration permit shall n= ot be issued for alteration of earth within three hundred

(300) fe= et of a public way or within two hundred and fifty (250) feet of a private way or= within two hundred and fifty (250) feet of an abutter, unless the Board determines tha= t such remo= val will not undermine the way or otherwise endanger the safety of public travel u= pon it, nor impair the convenience and welfare of the public or the amenities o= f living in= the houses upon such way, nor injuriously affect the abutting owners, as furthe= r set out in Section 8 hereof.

B.&n= bsp;            = ;    All trees are to be cut and removed in complian= ce with all local, state and federal laws and regulations.<= /span>

C.        &= nbsp;        All loam and topsoil must be scraped and stockpiled on the site for use in later landscaping. Upon completio= n of all earth alteration, the loam or topsoil must be spread back over= the entire area and the re-graded area must then be seeded with an <= b>acceptable material and maintained until the grass heights have reached the two (2) inch minimum. No loam or topso= il may be removed from the site, except when necessary for or incidental to the construction of a road, or other permanent facilit= y which changes the character or use of the l= and: but in such case the Board shall r= equire evidence of good faith in the intent of the applicant to complete such road= or other facility, and shall make such evidenc= e part of its records.

D.        &= nbsp;        All public ways utilized for earth alteration operations must be paved to minimize dust and mud. All access roads leading= to public ways shall be paved for a distance of not less tha= n one hundred fifty (150) feet back from the public way. Any spillage on public <= /span>ways, wi= thin one thousand (1,000) feet of the access road, shall be cleaned by the operator= on a daily basis following working hours.

E.        &= nbsp;        Earth must be altered to contours set forth in t= he approved Site Plan.

F.        &= nbsp;         Unless the site conditions or specific needs set out in the permit application expressly requires alteration of drai= nage patterns, the land shall be left so that natural storm drainage = shall leave the property at the original natural drainage points; and so that the total discharge at peak flow is not increased; and so that the hydrograph of any post development stream is not more than that of the predevelopment stream.

G.        &= nbsp;       Any earth alteration in the vicinity of or with= in wetland areas governed by Massachusetts General Laws Chapter = 131 or other wetland related laws, shall also be subject = to orders of conditions from the Conservation Commission. Whether such = proposed= earth alteration projects fall within the jurisdiction of the Conservation Commission shall be determined by the Conservation Commission and applicable local, state and federal laws and regulations.

H.        &= nbsp;        The Board shall also establish rules and regulations relative to all other design or alterati= on standards that it deems necessary and these rules and regulations will be attached to the permit as additional conditions as outlined in section 8 hereof.

I.&n= bsp;     No excavation/removal/proc= essing of consolidated and unconsolidated soil will be allowed below the mean annu= al high groundwater elevation. The natural mean annual high groundwater shall = be established by a licensed/certified Massachusetts Soil Evaluator and the elevation shall be noted on a monument placed on the property, and shown on the topographic and/or site plan for the property. T= he soil evaluation conducted to determine the mean annual high groundwater elevation shall be witnessed by the municipal regulatory authority or its authorized agent. The exemptions for the excavation/removal of soil shall be for properly permitted residential, general business, municipal constructio= n, septic, drinking and environmental/geophysical monitoring wells, road and cranberry bogs or other similar agricultural uses.

SECTION 8. CONDITIONS

In issuing a permit, the Board may impose reasonable conditions, which shall be written upon and shall constitute part of the permit, requiring the restoration of the land within= a designated period, by grading, leveling, or filling and by replaci= ng sufficient topsoil for planting cover to the end that no substanti= al injury to health, safety, convenience, welfare, natural beauty, and economic prosperity of the neighborhood, town, and the inhabitants will be caused by the acts authorized by such permit, all as set out by th= is bylaw. Conditions may in like manner be imposed to provide adequate = protecti= on for the neighborhood, the aquifer, and the Town from nuisances that may arise f= rom the course of such removal. If such alteration is carried on in such a w= ay as to injuriously affect the welfare of the town, by an increase in the amo= unt of products removed or otherwise, and the Town is not adequately protected by the conditions imposed by the permit, the Board may impose additional restrictions. The Board may, and in the ca= se of the alteration for commercial purposes, such as = soil stripping and gravel operations, shall require a bond or other security to enforce the performance of conditions listed in this paragraph, a= nd may also revoke or suspend a permit if the condition= s are not complied with.

SECTION 9. = REASONS FOR DENIAL

No permit shall be issued if any of the following conditions exist and cannot be rectified through the use of reasonable conditions as provided by Section 8 to the satisfaction of the Soil Conservation Board:

A. Any vehicular traffic of a type or quantity so as to adversely affect the immed= iate neighborhood.

B.&n= bsp;          Any conditions dangerous to premises and reside= nts in the neighborhood through fire, explosion, emission of wastes or ot= her causes.

C.&n= bsp;          Any creation of noise, vibration, dust, heat, smoke, fumes, odor, glare or other nuisances or serious hazards so as= to adversely affect the immediate neighborhood.

D.<= span style=3D'font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'>      =      Rock quarry and/or associa= ted rock processing operations.

SECTION 10. DURATION OF PERMIT

A permit issued under this bylaw s= hall expire upon completion of the earth alteration and subsequent re-grading for which the permit was issued, and in any event no longer than= one year from the issued date. If it appears that the operations for which su= ch permit was issued have been carried on continuously; and in go= od faith, but have not been completed and that all conditions presently applic= able have been complied with, the permit may be renewed for an additional year <= /span>without a hearing. The expiration or revocation of the permit shall not affect the obligation of the holder thereof to comply with the conditions attache= d to the permit, or release him or the surety on his bond= from the obligations thereof or require the return of any deposit made by him un= til such conditions have been complied with.

SECTION 11. ENFORCEMENT

If the Board shall find that there= has been a violation of this bylaw, the Board shall send by register= ed mail to the offender a written warning. If such violation continues, then a= ny penalties authorized by the Massachusetts General Laws may be imposed. The penalty for earth alteration in violation of this bylaw shall be a fine of not more than three hundred ($300) dollars for the first offense after such warning; any subsequent violation

shall result in permit revocation and/or any other remedy available at law or in equity. Each day on <= /b>which ear= th removal takes place shall constitute a separate offense for the person remo= ving the same. If the offender holds a permit issued under this bylaw, such perm= it shall be revoked.

SECTION 12. ENDANGERMENT TO PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY

When the Board finds that any excavation hitherto made for the purpose of earth removal is = maintain= ed in such a way as to endanger the public health or safety or to constitute a nuisance, the Board shall request the Board of Health to take such steps as are authorized by law to protect the public health and safety, or = to cause such nuisance to be abated.

SECTION 13. EXISTING OPERATIONS

Whenever the Board shall find that = the alteration of any earth has previously been undertaken in a <= span style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial;letter-spacing:-.35pt'>particul= ar location, and was in continuous operation at the time when notice of the warrant for the Town Meeting at which this bylaw was adopted was give= n, a permit for the further continuance of such operation within the sa= me territorial limits shall be issued subject to conditions in the same manner= as other permits.

SECTION 14. SEVERABILITY

The invalidity of any part of this bylaw shall not af= fect the validity of the remaining parts or in any way act thereon.

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