14.100.050 Exempt and Allowed Activities.
A. Exempt Activities. The following activities are exempt from the provisions of this chapter:
1. Maintenance of existing, lawfully established landscaping and gardens within a regulated critical area or its buffer, including but not limited to mowing lawns, weeding, removal of noxious and invasive species, harvesting and replanting of garden crops, pruning and planting of ornamental vegetation or indigenous native species to maintain the condition and appearance of such areas as they existed prior to adoption of this code; provided, that native growth protection areas, mitigation sites, or other areas protected via conservation easements or similar restrictive covenants are not covered by this exception.
2. Maintenance, repair, or replacement of an existing nonconforming structure pursuant to Section 14.100.052 that does not further alter or increase the impact to the sensitive area or buffer and results in no increased risk to life or property as a result of the proposed modification or replacement.
3. Low impact activities such as hiking, canoeing, nature study, photography, fishing, education, or scientific research.
4. The removal of noxious weed species designated by Washington State or the local weed control authority, and the following species, with hand labor and light equipment: English ivy (Hedera helix); Himalayan blackberry (Rubus discolor, R. procerus); and evergreen blackberry (Rubus laciniatus).
5. Minor site investigative work necessary for land use submittals, such as surveys, soil logs, percolation tests, and other related activities, where such activities do not require construction of new roads, removal of native trees or shrubs, or displacement of more than five (5) cubic yards of material. Investigations involving displacement of more than five (5) cubic yards of material, including geotechnical soil borings, ground water monitoring wells, percolation tests, and similar activities shall require submittal of specific plans and restoration plans. In every case, impacts to the sensitive area shall be minimized and disturbed areas shall be immediately restored.
6. The application of herbicides, pesticides, organic or mineral-derived fertilizers, or other hazardous substances, if necessary, in critical area buffers; provided, that their use shall be conducted in accordance with applicable state and federal law.
7. Public and private pedestrian trails provided they are subject to the following:
a. The trail surface shall not exceed four (4) feet in width;
b. The trail surface shall consist of gravel or pervious materials, including boardwalks;
c. The trail shall meet all other city requirements including water quality standards;
d. Sensitive area and/or buffer widths shall be increased, where possible, equal to the width of the trail corridor, including disturbed areas;
e. No state or local permits are required for the activity;
f. The trail is not located in a wetland or fish and wildlife habitat critical area; and
g. Trails proposed to be located in landslide or erosion hazard areas shall be constructed in a manner that does not increase the risk of landslide or erosion and in accordance with an approved geotechnical report.
8. Forest practices governed by a valid forest practices permit granted by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources, except where:
a. The lands have been or are proposed to be converted under a conversion option harvest plan to a use other than commercial forest product production as provided in RCW 76.09.050 and 76.09.240; or
b. On lands which have been platted after January 1, 1960, as provided in RCW 76.09.050 and 76.09.240.
9. Activities undertaken to comply with a United States Environmental Protection Agency Superfund related order, or a Washington Department of Ecology order pursuant to the Model Toxics Control Act that specifically preempts local regulations in the findings of the order.
10. Exempt activities in wetland critical areas according to Section 14.100.230(A).
B. Allowed Activities Requiring Prior Notification to the Director. Allowed activities are authorized within critical areas and buffers; provided, that the applicant provides a written notification to the director, and the activity is conducted in accordance with the applicable standards noted below.
1. Allowed activities shall avoid impacts to critical areas. All allowed activities shall use mitigation sequencing to avoid potential impacts to critical areas, using best management practices that result in the least amount of impact to the critical areas where practicable. Designation as an allowed activity does not give permission to degrade a critical area or ignore risk from natural hazards. Best management practices shall be used for tree and vegetation protection, construction management, erosion and sedimentation control, water quality protection, fish and wildlife protection, and regulation of chemical applications. The city may monitor the use of best management practices to ensure that the activity does not result in degradation to the critical area. Any incidental damage to, or alteration of, a critical area that is not a necessary outcome of the allowed activity shall be restored, rehabilitated, or replaced at the responsible party’s expense within one growing season.
2. Form of Notification. Submittal of drawings, plans or other documentation necessary to obtain city permits or approvals to conduct the work will satisfy the notification requirements. If no other city permits or approvals are required to conduct the work, notification containing the following information will be submitted to the director:
a. The name of the property owner and the person(s) doing the work;
b. The address and location of where the work will be performed;
c. Phone number where the persons conducting the work can be reached;
d. The proposed start and end dates when the work will be performed;
e. The type of critical area to be affected;
f. Specific information describing the activity and the mitigation to be implemented to document that the activity will not result in increased risk to public health, safety and welfare, that adverse impacts to critical areas are minimized, and that disturbed areas are restored;
g. The notification will be signed and dated by the person doing the work.
3. The notification will be submitted at least ten (10) full business days prior to initiating work. Unless otherwise specified, notification shall be valid for one (1) year per activity; provided, that there is no change in the scope of the project including, but not limited to, the location and/or extent of the activity allowed under the notification process.
4. Upon receipt of the notification, the director may provide guidance on best management practices for tree and vegetation protection, construction management, erosion and sedimentation control, water quality protection, and use of chemical applications to be used in the execution of the following activities.
5. The following activities as specified are authorized within critical areas and buffers; provided, that the applicant provides a written notification to the director as described above:
a. Replacement, modification, installation, or construction of utility facilities, lines, pipes, mains, equipment, or appurtenances, not including substations, when such facilities are located within the existing improved portion of the public right-of-way (road surface, shoulder, sidewalks, and fill slopes) or the improved portion of city-authorized private roadway; provided, that no fill or discharge occurs outside the existing improved area and with appropriate best management practices to control erosion, sedimentation and other potential impacts. Excluded is work within a water body or wetland, including, but not limited to, culverts or bridge replacement or construction.
b. Utility projects that have minor or short-duration impacts to critical areas and buffers, as determined by the director in accordance with the criteria below, and which do not significantly impact the functions or values of a sensitive area(s); provided, that such projects are constructed with best management practices, and appropriate restoration measures are provided. These activities shall not result in the transport of sediment or increased stormwater. Such allowed minor utility projects shall meet the following criteria:
(1) There is no practical alternative to the proposed activity with less impact on sensitive areas;
(2) The activity involves the placement of a utility pole, street signs, anchor, or vault or other small component of a utility facility; and
(3) The activity involves disturbance of less than seventy-five (75) square feet of the sensitive area and/or buffer.
c. The removal of hazard trees from sensitive areas and buffers that are posing a threat to public safety, or an imminent risk of damage to a permanent structure; provided, that:
(1) The applicant submits a report from a certified arborist or professional forester that documents the hazard; provided, that the director may waive this requirement for any trees that are clearly dead, or dying, and provides a replanting schedule for the replacement trees.
(2) Tree cutting shall be limited to pruning and crown thinning, unless otherwise justified by a qualified professional. Where pruning or crown thinning is not sufficient to address the hazard, trees should be removed or converted to wildlife snags.
(3) If native vegetation is cut or removed from a sensitive area or buffer, it shall be left within the sensitive area or buffer where practicable unless removal is warranted due to safety considerations, the presence of an established disease infestation or other hazard, or because of access or maintenance needs if the area is a utility or access right-of-way.
(4) The landowner shall replace any trees that are removed with new trees at a ratio of two (2) replacement trees for each tree removed (two (2) to one (1)) within one (1) year in accordance with an approved restoration plan. Replacement trees shall be species that are native and indigenous to the site and a minimum of one (1) inch in diameter-at-breast height (dbh) for deciduous trees and a minimum of three (3) feet in height for evergreen trees as measured from the top of the root ball; provided, that the director may allow smaller replacement trees with a higher replacement ratio.
(5) Hazard trees that constitute an emergency may be removed or pruned by the landowner prior to receiving written approval from the city; provided, that within fourteen (14) days following such action, the landowner shall submit a restoration plan that demonstrates compliance with the provisions of this chapter.
d. Measures to control a fire or halt the spread of disease or damaging insects consistent with the state Forest Practices Act, Chapter 76.09 RCW; provided, that the removed vegetation shall be replaced in kind or with similar native species within one (1) year in accordance with an approved restoration plan.
e. Maintenance, operation and/or repair of existing rights-of-way, trails, roads, utilities, dikes, ditches, levees, buildings and other facilities within critical areas and buffers; provided, that the activity does not further alter, impact, or encroach upon the sensitive area or buffer or further affect the functions of sensitive areas, and there is no increased risk to life or property as a result of the proposed operation, maintenance, or repair. Notification to the director shall also include:
(1) Type, timing, frequency and sequence of maintenance activity to be conducted;
(2) Type of equipment to be used (hand or mechanical);
(3) Manner in which the equipment will be used; and
(4) Best management practices to be used.
f. Project and facilities for restoration and enhancement of ecological functions of critical areas and related resources may be allowed within critical areas and buffers, upon approval of a restoration and mitigation plan in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, or for restoration of enhancement programs in an adopted shoreline restoration plan pursuant to Chapter 173-26 WAC, a watershed planning document prepared and adopted pursuant to Chapter 90.82 RCW, a watershed restoration project pursuant to RCW 89.08.460, a salmonid recovery plan, the salmon recovery board habitat project list, or identified by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife as essential for fish and wildlife habitat enhancement pursuant to RCW 77.55.290.
g. Allowed activities in wetland critical areas according to Section 14.100.230(B).
h. Allowed activities in geologically hazardous areas according to Section 14.100.420(A).
i. Allowed activities in fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas according to Section 14.100.530(A) through (M).
C. Emergency Actions. Emergency actions are those activities necessary to prevent an immediate threat to life, to public health, safety, or welfare, or that pose an immediate risk of damage to private structures or improvements and that require remedial or preventative action in a time frame too short to allow for compliance with the procedural requirements of this chapter.
1. Emergency actions that create an impact on a critical area or its buffer shall be limited to those actions that are required to address the emergency and generally are limited to the actions necessary to remove the immediate threat. Additional actions to permanently address a deficiency generally do not qualify as emergency actions and require full compliance with the procedural requirements of this chapter. Emergency actions also must be carried out in a manner that has the least feasible impact on the critical area or its buffer.
2. The person or agency undertaking emergency action shall notify the director within one (1) working day following commencement of the emergency activity. Within fourteen (14) days, the director shall determine if the action taken was within the scope of the emergency actions allowed in this subsection. If the director determines that the action taken, or any part of the action taken, was beyond the scope of an allowed emergency action, then the enforcement provisions of Section 14.100.091 shall apply.
3. After the emergency, the person or agency undertaking the action shall submit a critical area report to assess effects on critical areas and conduct necessary restoration and/or mitigation for any impacts to the critical area and buffers resulting from the emergency action in accordance with an approved critical area report and mitigation plan. The person or agency undertaking the action shall apply for all approvals required by this chapter. Restoration and/or mitigation activities must be initiated within sixty (60) days of the date of the emergency, unless an extension is approved by the director, and completed in a timely manner.