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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOW 2009-11-23 Item 4I.1 - Shoreline Master Program - Attachment A.03: Definitions3. DEFINITIONS The following definitions shall be used in the administration of the Master Program and will be incorporated into the Definitions Chapter of the Zoning Code, TMC 18.10. Appurtenance: means a structure that is necessarily connected to the use and enjoyment of a single family residence, including a garage, deck, driveway, utilities, fences, installation of a septic tank and drain field and grading which does not exceed 250 cubic yards and which does not involve placement of fill in any wetland or waterward of the ordinary high water mark (WAC 173 -27 -040 (2) (g)). Armoring: means the control of shoreline erosion with hardened structures, such as bulkheads, sea walls, and riprap. Bank: means the rising ground bordering a water body and forming an edge or slope. Bioengineering: Means integrating living woody and herbaceous materials with organic (plants, wood, jute mats, coir logs, etc) and inorganic materials (rocks, soils) to increase the strength and structure of the soil along a riverbank, accomplished by a dense matrix of roots which hold the soil together. The above ground vegetation increases the resistance to flow and reduces flow velocities by dissipating energy. Buffer: means an area separating two different types of uses or environments for the purpose of reducing incompatibilities between them or reducing the potential adverse impacts of one use or environment upon the other. Bulkhead: means vertical structures erected parallel to and near the ordinary high water mark for the purpose of protecting adjacent uplands from erosion, from the action of waves or currents. Channel migration zone: means the area along a river within which the channel(s) can be reasonably predicted to migrate over time as a result of natural and normally occurring hydrological and related processes when considered with the characteristics of the river and its surroundings. Dike: means an embankment or structure built in the river channel to contain or redirect flow within the channel and prevent shoreline destabilization. Development, shoreline: means a use consisting of the construction or exterior alteration of structures; dredging; drilling; dumping; filling; removal of any sand, gravel, or minerals; construction of bulkheads; driving of piling; placing of obstructions; or any project of a permanent or temporary nature which interferes with the normal public use of the waters overlying lands subject to the Shoreline Management Act at any stage of water CL 9 11/19/2009 12 PM W \Shoreline \Council Review \\Document \Council SMP 149 150 level. Ecological/ecosystem functions (or shoreline functions): means the work performed or role played by the physical, chemical, and biological processes that contribute to the maintenance of the aquatic and terrestrial environments that constitute the shoreline's natural ecosystem. See WAC 173 -26 -200 (2)(c). Ecosystem -wide processes: means the suite of naturally occurring physical and geologic processes of erosion, transport, and deposition; and specific chemical processes that shape landforms within a specific shoreline ecosystem and determine both the types of habitat and the associated ecological functions. Environment designation: means the term used to describe the character of the shoreline in Tukwila based upon the recommended classification system established by WAC 173 -26 -211 and as further refined by Tukwila's SMP. Feasible: means, for the purpose of the Shoreline Master Program, that an action, such as a development project, mitigation, or preservation requirement, meets all of the following conditions: 1. The action can be accomplished with technologies and methods that have been used in the past in similar circumstances, or studies or tests have demonstrated in similar circumstances that such approaches are currently available and likely to achieve the intended results; 2. The action provides a reasonable likelihood of achieving its intended purpose; and 3. The action does not physically preclude achieving the project's primary intended legal use. In cases where these guidelines require certain actions unless they are infeasible, the burden of proving infeasibility is on the applicant. In determining an action's infeasibility, the reviewing agency may weigh the action's relative public costs and public benefits, considered in the short- and long -term time frames. Flood plain: means that land area susceptible to inundation with a one percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year (synonymous with one hundred -year flood plain). The limit of this area shall be based upon flood ordinance regulation maps or a reasonable method which meets the objectives of the Shoreline Management Act.. Flood hazard reduction: means actions taken to reduce flood damage or hazards. Flood hazard reduction measures may consist of nonstructural or indirect measures, such as setbacks, land use controls, wetland restoration, dike removal, use relocation, bioengineering measures, and storm water management programs; and of structural measures such as dikes and levees intended to contain flow within the channel, channel realignment, and elevation of structures consistent with the National Flood Insurance Program. CL 10 11/19/2009 12:55:00 PM W \Shoreline \Council Review\ \Document \Council SMP Floodway: means the channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent land areas that must be reserved in order to discharge the base flood without cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation more than one foot. Grading: means activity that results in change of the cover or topography of the earth, or any activity that may cause erosion, including clearing, excavation, filling, grading and stockpiling Large Woody Debris (LWD): means whole trees with root wads and limbs attached, cut logs at least 4 inches in diameter along most of their length, root wads at least 6.5 feet long and 8 inches in diameter. Large woody debris is installed to address a deficiency of habitat and natural channel forming processes. Levee: means a broad embankment of earth built parallel with the river channel to contain flow within the channel and prevent flooding from a designated design storm. Levee. Minimum Profile: means, where there is room, the minimum levee profile for any new or reconstructed levee is the King County "Briscoe Levee" profile 2.5:1 overall slope with 15 foot mid -slope bench for maintenance access and native vegetation plantings. Where there is insufficient room for a levee backslope due to the presence of legal nonconforming structures existing at the time of the adoption of this SMP. a floodwall may be substituted. The figure below illustrates the minimum levee profile. 18' —18'— Maintenance Easement Typical Shoreline Buffer in Leveed Areas-Width Will Vary Reconfigured Levee 15' `Reconfigured Slope averages 2.5:1 with bench 1.5 Minimum Levee Profile Not To Scale Vegetated Bench Willows .Existing Levee Ordinary High Water Mark OHWM CL 11 11/19/2009 12:55:00 PM W \Shoreline \Council Review\ \Document \Council SMP 151 152 Mean Higher High Water (MHHW): means the average of the higher high water height of each tidal day, and used in determining the OHWM for the tidally influenced portions of the river. Native Vegetation: means vegetation with a genetic origin of Western Washington, Northern Oregon and Southern British Columbia, not including cultivars. No Net Loss: means a standard intended to ensure that shoreline development or uses, whether permitted or exempt, are located and designed to avoid loss or degradation of shoreline ecological functions that are necessary to sustain shoreline natural resources. In cases where unavoidable loss results from allowed uses or developments, the standard is met through appropriate mitigation, consistent with the provisions of this master program. Nonconforming: means a use or development which was lawfully constructed or established prior to the effective date of the Shoreline Management Act or the Shoreline Master Program or amendments thereto, but which does not conform to present regulations or standards of the program. Non water- oriented uses: means those uses that are not water dependent, water related, or water enjoyment. Ordinary high water mark: means that mark that will be found by examining the bed and banks and ascertaining where the presence and action of waters (all lakes, streams, and tidal water) are so common and usual, and so long continued in all ordinary years, as to mark upon the soil a character distinct from that of the abutting upland, in respect to vegetation as that condition exists on June 1, 1971, as it may naturally change thereafter, or as it may change thereafter in accordance with permits issued by a local government or the Department of Ecology. In any area where the ordinary high water mark cannot be found, the ordinary high water mark adjoining salt water shall be the line of mean higher high tide and the ordinary high water mark adjoining fresh water shall be the line of mean high water. Overwater Structure: means any device or structure projecting over the OHWM, including, but not limited to bridges, boat lifts, wharves, piers, docks, ramps, floats or buoys. Pre existing Structure: means a structure legally established prior to the effective date of the Shoreline Master Program, but which does not conform to present regulations or standards of the program. Pre existing Use: means a use legally established prior to the effective date of the Shoreline Master Program, but which does not conform to present regulations or standards of the program. CL 12 11/19/2009 12:55:00 PM W \Shoreline \Council Review \\Document \Council SMP Public Access: means the ability of the general public to reach, touch or enjoy the water's edge, to travel on the waters of the state, and to view the water and the shoreline from adjacent locations. Public access may be provided by an owner by easement, covenant, or similar legal agreement of substantial walkways, corridors, parks, or other areas serving as a means of view and/or physical approach to public waters. The Director may approve limiting public access as to hours of availability, types of activity permitted, location and area. Regional Detention Facility: means a stormwater detention and/or retention facility that accepts flow from multiple parcels and/or public ROW. The facility may be public or private. The facilitv shall be designed such that a fence is not required, planted with native vegetation, designed to blend with the surrounding environment, and provide design features that serve both public and private use, such as an access road that also can serve as a trail. The facility shall also be designed to locate access roads and other impervious surfaces as far from the river as practical. Revetment: means a sloping structure built to increase bank strength and protect an embankment, or shore against erosion by waves or river currents. A revetment is usually built of rock rip -rap, wood, or poured concrete. One or more filter layers of smaller rock or filter cloth and "toe" protection are included. A revetment typically slopes and has a rough or jagged face. The slope differentiates it from a bulkhead, which is a vertical structure. Riparian: means the land along the margins of rivers and streams. Riverbank analysis and report: means a scientific study or evaluation conducted by qualified experts and the resulting report to evaluate the ground and/or surface hydrology and geology, the geomorphology and hydraulic characteristics of the river, the affected land form and its susceptibility to mass wasting, erosion, scouring and other geologic hazards or fluvial processes. The report shall include conclusions and recommendations regarding the effect of the proposed development on geologic and/or hydraulic conditions, the adequacy of the site to be developed, the impacts of the proposed development, alternative approaches to the proposed development, and measures to mitigate potential site specific and cumulative geological, hydrological and hydraulic impacts of the proposed development, including the potential adverse impacts to adjacent and down current properties. Geotechnical/Hydrological /Hydraulic reports shall conform to accepted technical standards and must be prepared by qualified professional engineers or geologists who have professional expertise about the regional and local shoreline geology and processes. Shorelands or shoreland areas: means those lands extending Landward for two hundred feet in all directions as measured on a horizontal plane from the ordinary high watermark; floodways and contiguous floodplain areas landward two hundred feet from such floodways; and all wetlands and river deltas associated with the streams, lakes and tidal waters which are subject to the provisions of the SMA. CL 13 11/19/2009 12:55:00 PM W \Shoreline \Council Review \\Document \Council SMP 153 154 Shoreline areas and shoreline jurisdiction: means all "shorelines of the state" and "shorelands" as defined in RCW 90.58.030. Shoreline functions: see Ecological functions. Shoreline Jurisdiction: means an ar a rcoasurcd from the Ordinary High Water Mark and all wetlands- associated with this ar a and located within the 100 year floodplain. the channel of the Green/Duwamish River. its banks. the upland area, which extends from the ordinary high water mark landward for 200 feet on each side of the river. floodways and all associated wetlands within its floodplain. For the purpose of deterininina shoreline iurisdiction the floodwav shall not include those lands that have historically been protected by flood control devices and therefore have not been subiect to flooding with reasonable reuularity. Shoreline modifications: means those actions that modify the physical configuration or qualities of the shoreline area, through the construction or alteration of a physical element such as a dike, breakwater, pier, weir, dredged basin, fill, bulkhead, or other shoreline structure. They can include other actions, such as clearing, grading, or application of chemicals. Shoreline restoration or ecological restoration: means the re- establishment or upgrading of impaired ecological shoreline processes functions or habitats, including any project approved by the Federal, State, King County, or City government or the WRIA 9 Steering Committee with the intent of providing habitat restoration and where the future use of the site is restricted through a deed restriction to prohibit non habitat uses.. This may be accomplished through measures including, but not limited to, re- vegetation, removal of intrusive shoreline structures and removal or treatment of toxic materials. Restoration does not imply a requirement for returning the shoreline area to aboriginal or pre European settlement conditions Shoreline Significant Tree: means a single trunked tree that is 4 inches or more in diameter at a height of 4 feet above the ground or a multi trunked tree with a diameter of 2 inches or more (such as willows or vine maple). Shoreline Stabilization: means actions taken to protect riverbanks or adjacent uplands from erosion resulting from the action of waves or river currents. "Hard" structural stabilization includes levees, bulkheads and revetments. "Soft" shoreline stabilization includes use of bioengineering measures where vegetation, logs, and/or certain types of rock is used to address erosion control and/or slope stability. Shorelines: means the line at ordinary high water surrounding any body of water of 20 acres or larger or where the mean annual flow is 20 cubic feet per second or greater. CL 14 11/19/2009 12:55:00 PM W \Shoreline \Council Review \\Document \Council SMP Significant vegetation removal: means the removal or alteration of trees, shrubs, and/or ground cover by clearing, grading, cutting, burning, chemical means, or other activity that causes significant ecological impacts to functions provided by such vegetation. The removal of invasive or noxious weeds does not constitute significant vegetation removal. Tree pruning, not including tree topping, where it does not affect ecological functions, does not constitute significant vegetation removal. Substantial development: means any development of which the total cost or fair market value exceeds five thousand dollars or as adjusted by the State to account for inflation, or any development which materially interferes with the normal public use of the water or shorelines of the state. The following shall not be considered substantial developments for the purpose of the Shoreline Management Act, but are not exempt from complying with the substantive requirements of this SMP: 1. Normal maintenance or repair of existing structures or developments, including damage by accident, fire, or elements; 2. Emergency construction necessary to protect property from damage by the elements; 3. Construction and practices normal or necessary for farming, irrigation, and ranching activities, including agricultural service roads and utilities on shorelands, and the construction and maintenance of irrigation structures including but not limited to head gates, pumping facilities, and irrigation channels. A feedlot of any size, all processing plants, other activities of a commercial nature, alteration of the contour of the shorelands by leveling or filling other than that which results from normal cultivation, shall not be considered normal or necessary farming or ranching activities. A feedlot shall be an enclosure or facility used or capable of being used for feeding livestock hay, grain, silage, or other livestock feed, but shall not include land for growing crops or vegetation for livestock feeding and/or grazing, nor shall it include normal livestock wintering operations; 4. Construction or modification of navigational aids such as channel markers and anchor buoys; 5. Construction on shorelands by an owner, Lessee, or contract purchaser of a single family residence for his own use or for the use of his or her family, which residence does not exceed a height of thirty -five feet above average grade level and which meets all requirements of the state agency or Local government having jurisdiction thereof, other than requirements imposed pursuant to this chapter; 6. Construction of a dock, including a community dock, designed for pleasure craft only, for the private noncommercial use of the owner, lessee, or contract purchaser of single and multiple family residences. This exception applies if either: (A) In salt waters, the fair market value of the dock does not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars; or (B) in fresh waters, the fair market value of the dock does not exceed ten thousand dollars, but if subsequent construction having a fair market value exceeding two thousand five hundred CL 15 11/19/2009 12:55:00 PM W• \Shoreline \Council Review \\Document \Council SMP 155 156 dollars occurs within five years of completion of the prior construction, the subsequent construction shall be considered a substantial development for the purpose of this chapter; 7. Operation, maintenance, or construction of canals, waterways, drains, reservoirs, or other facilities that now exist or are hereafter created or developed as a part of an irrigation system for the primary purpose of making use of system waters, including return flow and artificially stored groundwater for the irrigation of lands; 8. The marking of property lines or corners on state owned lands, when such marking does not significantly interfere with normal public use of the surface of the water; 9. Operation and maintenance of any system of dikes, ditches, drains, or other facilities existing on September 8, 1975, which were created, developed, or utilized primarily as a part of an agricultural drainage or diking system; 10. Site exploration and investigation activities that are prerequisite to preparation of an application for development authorization under this chapter, if: a. -The activity does not interfere with the normal public use of the surface waters; b. The activity will have no significant adverse impact on the environment including, but not limited to, fish, wildlife, fish or wildlife habitat, water quality, and aesthetic values; c. The activity does not involve the installation of a structure, and upon completion of the activity the vegetation and land configuration of the site are restored to conditions existing before the activity; d. A private entity seeking development authorization under this section first posts a performance bond or provides other evidence of financial responsibility to the local jurisdiction to ensure that the site is restored to preexisting conditions; and e. The activity is not subject to the permit requirements of RCW 90.58.550 (Oil and Natural Gas exploration in marine waters); 11. The process of removing or controlling an aquatic noxious weed, as defined in RCW 17.26.020, through the use of an herbicide or other treatment methods applicable to weed control that are recommended by a final environmental impact statement published by the department of agriculture or the department jointly with other state agencies under chapter 43.21C RCW. 12. Watershed restoration projects, which means a public or private project authorized by the sponsor of a watershed restoration plan that implements the plan or a part of the plan and consists of one or more of the following activities: a. A project that involves less than ten miles of stream reach, in which less than twenty -five cubic yards of sand, gravel, or soil is removed, imported, disturbed or discharged, and in which no existing vegetation is removed except as minimally necessary to facilitate additional plantings; b. A project for the restoration of an eroded or unstable stream bank that CL 16 11/19/2009 12:55:00 PM W \Shoreline \Council Review \\Document \Council SMP employs the principles of bioengineering, including limited use of rock as a stabilization only at the toe of the bank, and with primary emphasis on using native vegetation to control the erosive forces of flowing water; or c. A project primarily designed to improve fish and wildlife habitat, remove or reduce impediments to migration of fish, or enhance the fishery resource available for use by all of the citizen of the state, provided that any structure, other than a bridge or culvert or instream habitat enhancement structure associated with the project, is less than two hundred square feet in floor area and is located above the ordinary high water mark of the stream. 13. Watershed restoration plan, which means a plan, developed or sponsored by the department of fish and wildlife, the department of ecology, the department of natural resources, the department of transportation, a federally recognized Indian tribe acting within and pursuant to its authority, a city, a county or a conservation district that provides a general program and implementation measures or actions for the preservation, restoration, re- creation, or enhancement of the natural resources, character, and ecology of a stream, stream segment, drainage area or watershed for which agency and public review has been conducted pursuant to the State Environmental Policy Act. 14. A public or private project that is designed to improve fish or wildlife habitat or fish passage, when all of the following apply: a. The project has been approved in writing by the department of fish and wildlife; b. The project has received hydraulic project approval by the department of fish and wildlife pursuant to chapter 77.55 RCW; and c. The local government has determined that the project is substantially consistent with the local shoreline master program. The local government shall make such determination in a timely manner and provide it by letter to the project proponent. Additional criteria for determining eligibility of fish habitat projects are found in WAC 173 -27 -040 2 (p) and apply to this exemption. Water- dependent: means a use or portion of a use which cannot exist in a location that is not adjacent to the water and which is dependent on the water by reason of the intrinsic nature of its operations. Examples of water dependent uses include ship cargo terminal loading areas, marinas, ship building and dry docking, float plane facilities, sewer outfalls, and shoreline ecological restoration projects. Water enjoyment: means a recreational use or other use that facilitates public access to the shoreline as a primary characteristic of the use. The use must be open to the general public and the shoreline- oriented space within the project must be devoted to the specific aspects of the use that fosters shoreline enjoyment. Examples of water enjoyment uses include parks, piers, museums, restaurants, educational /scientific reserves, resorts and mixed use projects. CL 17 11/19/2009 12:55:00 PM W• \Shoreline \Council Review \\Document \Council SMP 157 158 Water- oriented: means a use that is water dependent, water related or water enjoyment or a combination of such uses. Water related: means a use or portion of a use which is not intrinsically dependent on a waterfront location but whose economic viability is dependent upon a waterfront location because: 1. The use has a functional requirement for a waterfront location such as the arrival or shipment of materials by water or the need for large quantities of water; or 2. The use provides a necessary service supportive of the water dependent uses and the proximity of the use to its customers makes its services less expensive and/or more convenient. Examples of water related uses are warehousing of goods transported by water, seafood processing plants, hydroelectric generating plants, gravel storage when transported by barge, log storage or oil refineries where transport is by tanker. WRIA: means Water Resource Inventory Area river basin planning and management areas formalized under Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 173 500 -04 and authorized under the Water Resources Act of 1971, Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 90.54. WRIA 9 refers to the Green/Duwamish River Basin within which Tukwila is located. CL 18 11/19/2009 12:55:00 PM W• \Shoreline \Council Review\ \Document \Council SMP