Posted by Christine A. Odiaga (146.243.225.150) on May 20, 2002 at 14:32:45:
In addition to its two main rivers (Saugus and Mill), Wakefield has an
endless number of smaller waterways, both naturally occurring and man-made,
the majority of which serve as components of the Town's storm drainage
system; there are also storm drain outlets into many bordering vegetated
wetlands. I regularly receive complaints about flooding which, in the
general concensus, are largely caused by exessive accumulations of road sand
and debris clogging the streams. It appears to me that the biggest issues
to overcome in advance of launching a widespread cleanup program are what to
do with the removed sediment, gaining access through wetland resource areas,
and notification to abutters.
Everything I've looked at so far (primarily articles in trade magazines)
deals with stream restoration; I have yet to see any reference to stream
cleaning, either as a stand-alone project or as a part of the restoration.
I seek information and guidance on stream cleaning by the DPW as a
stand-alone project.
It is my understanding that the DPW needs a permit to clean out sediment
from areas that fall under WPA jurisdiction - is that correct? It appears
that this sort of maintenance might be considered a limited project, but I
haven't found any section in 310 CMR 10 that indicates that it is exempt
from filing entirely. (I know about the exemption for ditch maintenance for
mosquito control, but that doesn't help nearly enough.)
If the area that needs cleanout is a naturally occurring BVW where a SD
outlet has dumps a lot of road sand, would that qualify for the mosquito
control exemption or/and the limited project status?
If the stream was manmade but a BVW has developed around it, does that fall
under the jurisdiction of WPA? How about if a naturally occurring stream
was straightened or rerouted?
What other regulations should I be looking at? I've taken a preliminary
look at 314 CMR 9.00 and I see bits about dredging less than 100 cubic yards
being exempt provided that an Order of Conditions has been issued, but they
lead to a reference to 33 USC 1251 et seq, which I haven't figured out yet.
Do you have information about other Towns that have done
extensive/widespread stream cleaning?
Can you refer me to towns that have local bylaws or ordinances that address
this issue?
I seem to recall having read about limitations on sidecasting of materials,
but they didn't seem to match. One was the exemption for less than 100
cubic yards in 314 CMR 9.03 (3) - does that mean it's okay to sidecast these
100 c.y.? The other was something about materials could be sidecast from X
number of linear feet of sediment removal but I can't recall the source...
maybe a solid waste reg?
___________________________
Christine A. Odiaga
Conservation Agent and
Stormwater Coordinator
Town of Wakefield
One Lafayette Street
Wakefield, MA 01880
Telephone: (781) 224-5015
Facsimile: (781) 246-6266
E-mail: codiaga@wakefield.ma.us