Chapter 14.19.240
Administration
Sections:
14.19.240.020 Purpose and Scope.
14.19.240.010 Title.
This division shall be known as the “Grading, Erosion, and Sediment Control Ordinance” of the City of Vacaville, and may be so cited.
(Ord. 1985, Amended, 07/25/2023; Ord. 1720, Amended, 09/13/2004)
14.19.240.020 Purpose and Scope.
A. This division is enacted to regulate grading on property within the City limits of the City of Vacaville in order to accomplish the following purposes:
1. To safeguard life, limb, health, property, environment, and natural resources and to promote the public welfare; however, this division is not intended to create or otherwise establish or designate any particular class or group of persons who will or should be especially protected or benefited by its terms;
2. To ensure that the intended use of the graded site is consistent with the policies of the Land Use and Safety Elements of the General Plan and all applicable City ordinances and regulations;
3. To establish uniform engineering standards and procedures for grading, soil stabilization, erosion control protection, excavation and earthwork construction, including fills and embankments, and to allow reasonable deviations from these standards;
4. To establish administrative procedures for the issuance of permits and provide for the approval of plans, specifications, and the inspection of grading construction;
5. To supplement the grading regulations within the Uniform Building Code;
6. To avoid the disruption of natural or City authorized drainage flows caused by the activities of clearing and grubbing, grading, filling and excavation of land;
7. To avoid the degradation or pollution of watercourses with nutrients, sediments, or other materials and/or pollutants generated by new development and redevelopment;
8. To minimize increases in storm water runoff from development and redevelopment in order to reduce flooding, siltation, increases in stream temperature, and streambank erosion, and to maintain the integrity of stream channels;
9. To meet the requirements of state and federal law and the City’s NPDES General Permit CAS000004 WDRs for storm water discharges from small municipal separate storm sewer systems.
B. Scope. This division sets forth rules and regulations to control land disturbances, landfill, soil storage, pollution, and erosion and sedimentation resulting from new development and redevelopment, and establishes procedures for the issuance, administration and enforcement of permits for such activities. Except as exempted in Section 14.19.242.010, any grading within the City limits of the City of Vacaville as defined herein shall conform to the provisions of this division and other applicable provisions of the City’s Land Use and Development Code.
(Ord. 1985, Amended, 07/25/2023; Ord. 1883, Amended, 06/23/2015; Ord. 1720, Amended, 09/13/2004)
14.19.240.030 Definitions.
To the extent not inconsistent with the Clean Water Act and/or the implementing regulations thereto, the words used in this division in reference to grading actions or policy, erosion or sediment control, unless otherwise defined herein, shall have the meanings assigned to them in the California Building Code as currently adopted. Other general terminology shall have the definitions assigned to them in Division 14.02, Definitions. Defined below are the terms used most frequently throughout this division.
“Applicant” means any person seeking or receiving a grading permit pursuant to this division;
“Best management practices (BMPs)” means activities, practices, prohibition of practices, procedures, site design measures, design standards, and source control measures to prevent or reduce the discharge of pollutants and/or soil erosion directly or indirectly to the municipal storm drain system and waters of the United States. BMPs include but are not limited to: treatment facilities to remove pollutants from storm water; operating and maintenance procedures; facility management practices to control runoff, spillage or leaks of non-storm water, waste disposal, and drainage from materials storage; erosion and sediment control practices; and the prohibition of specific activities, practices and procedures and such other provisions as are contained and or specified in the State Water Resources Control Board NPDES Permit CAS000004 and any subsequent amendments thereto, and such other provisions as the City determines appropriate for the control of pollutants;
“City” means the City of Vacaville;
“City Council” means the City Council of the City of Vacaville;
“Civil engineer” means a professional engineer registered and certified by the state of California;
“Clean Water Act” means the federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) and any subsequent amendments thereto;
“Compaction” means the increase of density of a soil or rock fill by mechanical means;
“Construction activity” means activities subject to National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit For Storm Water Discharges Associated with Construction and the City’s municipal storm water NPDES permit. These include construction or demolition projects resulting in land disturbance. Such activities include, but are not limited to, clearing and grubbing, grading, excavating, and demolition;
“Cut (excavation)” means the removal of naturally occurring materials by manual or mechanical means, and the conditions resulting therefrom;
“Development” means the building or placement of any structure or portion thereof, including, but not limited to, excavation and grading;
“Earth material” means any rock, natural soil or fill and/or any combination thereof;
“Embankment (fill)” means the deposit of soil, rock or other materials placed by artificial means and the conditions resulting therefrom;
“Emergency grading” means grading that is a response to an occurrence or a situation that involves a clear and imminent danger, requiring immediate action to prevent or reduce the loss or damage to life, health, property or essential public services;
“Engineered grading” means grading with mechanical equipment in excess of 5,000 cubic yards, and all grading for permanent soil stabilization of a landslide, rockslide, mudflow, debris flow, or other failure of earth or rock, and not of an emergency or maintenance nature;
“Engineering geologist” shall mean an engineering geologist registered and certified by the state of California;
“Erosion” means the transport of the ground surface or soil as a result of the movement of wind, water or ice;
“Erosion and sediment control plan (ESC plan)” means a set of best management practices or equivalent measures designed to control surface runoff and erosion, retain sediment on a particular site, and prevent pollution of site runoff during the period in which preconstruction- and construction-related grading and/or soil storage occur, and before final improvements or permanent structures are completed;
“Erosion control” means measures that prevent erosion, including, but not limited to, seeding, mulching, vegetative buffer strips, sod, plastic covering, burlap covering, watering and other measures which control the movement of the ground surface or soil;
“Excavation (cut)” means the removal of naturally occurring materials by manual or mechanical means, and the conditions resulting therefrom;
“Exploratory grading” means grading for the purpose of determining conditions on a site;
“Export” means the hauling of natural earth materials from the site;
“Fill (embankment)” means the deposit of soil, rock or other materials placed by artificial means and the conditions resulting therefrom;
“Finished grade” means the final elevation of the site which conforms to the approved grading plan. This includes the finished pad elevation of all buildings, and the final elevations of building access, nonbuilding structures, paving and landscaping associated with a project;
“Geologic hazards” shall mean any condition in earth, whether naturally occurring or artificially created, which is dangerous or potentially dangerous to life, property, or improvements due to movement, failure, or shifting of earth. For the purposes of this division, soil conditions which endanger or potentially endanger life, limb, or property, or natural resources, which, in the opinion of the Building Official, City Engineer, or Director of Public Works, may lead to structural defects in structures located on or adjacent to soils having such conditions, shall be considered geologic hazards. Such geologic hazards include, but need not be limited to, faults, landslides, mudslides, and rockfalls; erosion and sedimentation; subsidence or settlement; and weak, expansive, or creeping soil;
“Grade” means the elevation of the ground surface as measured from a known vertical control;
“Grading” means the act or result of digging, excavation, transporting, spreading, deposition, filling, compacting, settling, or shaping of land surfaces and slopes, and other operations performed by or controlled by human activity involving the physical movement of rock or soil;
“Import” means the hauling of natural earth materials to the site;
“National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) storm water discharge permits” means general, group, and individual storm water discharge permits which regulate facilities defined in federal NPDES regulations pursuant to the Clean Water Act. The California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley Region (hereinafter, Regional Board) and the State Water Resources Control Board have adopted general storm water discharge permits, including but not limited to the general construction activity permit, the general industrial activity permit and the general permit for storm water discharges from small municipal separate storm sewer systems under which the City has obtained coverage for its municipal storm water discharges;
“Pad elevation, graded” means the finished grade elevation of the building pad area for a residential or nonresidential structure and does not include areas for parking, landscaping, or other non-building structure uses;
“Person” means any person, firm, corporation, business entity, or public agency, whether principal, agent, employee, or otherwise;
“Pollutant” means anything which causes or contributes to pollution. Pollutants may include, but are not limited to: paints, varnishes, and solvents; oil and other automotive fluids; nonhazardous liquid and solid wastes and yard wastes; refuse, rubbish, garbage, litter, or other discarded or abandoned objects, articles, and accumulations, so that same may cause or contribute to pollution; floatables; pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers; hazardous substances and wastes; sewage, fecal coliform and pathogens; dissolved and particulate metals; animal wastes; wastes and residues that result from constructing a building or structure (including, but not limited to, sediments, slurries, and concrete rinsates); and noxious or offensive matter of any kind;
“Post-construction BMPs” means structural and nonstructural controls which detain, retain, or treat runoff to minimize the discharge of runoff and pollutants from a development site for the life of the project after final stabilization is attained;
“Post-construction erosion and sediment control plan (PC plan)” means a set of best management practices or equivalent measures designed to control surface runoff and erosion and to retain sediment on a particular site after all final structures and permanent improvements have been erected or installed;
“Property owner” means the legal owner of the property where the grading work is to be done, as shown on the latest equalized assessment roll in the office of the Solano County Assessor;
“Regular grading” means grading involving 5,000 cubic yards or less or grading of an emergency or maintenance nature and not for permanent correction of a landslide, rockslide, mud flow, debris flow, or other failure of earth or rock;
“Rough grading” means the stage at which the grade approximately conforms to the approved plans, and structure foundation areas are at plan or subbase foundation grade, or an interim grading stage;
“Runoff” means surface runoff and drainage related to storm events, snow melt, street wash waters related to street cleaning or maintenance, and other waters associated with new development and redevelopment which are or may be introduced into the storm drain system;
“Sediment” means any material transported or deposited by water, including, but not limited to, soil debris or other foreign matter;
“Sediment control” means measures that prevent eroded sediment from leaving the site, including, but not limited to, dikes, sediment detention traps, sediment detention basins, filters, fences, barriers, swales, berms, drains, check dams, and other measures;
“Site” means a parcel or parcels of real property owned by one or more than one person on which activity regulated by this division is occurring or is proposed to occur;
“Slope” means an inclined ground surface, the inclination of which may be expressed as the ratio of horizontal distance to vertical distance;
“Soil” means all earth material of any origin that overlies bedrock and may include the decomposed zone of bedrock which can be excavated readily by mechanical equipment;
“Soils engineer” means an engineer registered in the state of California as being qualified to practice soils and geotechnical engineering;
“Soils engineering” means the application of the principles of soil mechanics in the investigation, evaluation, design, and construction of civil works involving the use of earth materials and the inspection and testing of the construction thereof;
“Storm drain system” means the publicly owned facilities operated by the City by which storm water is collected and/or conveyed, including, but not limited to, any roads with drainage systems, municipal streets, gutters, curbs, inlets, piped storm drains, pumping facilities, retention and detention basins, natural and human-made or altered drainage channels, reservoirs, and other drainage structures which are within the City and are not part of a publicly owned treatment works as defined at 40 CFR Section 122.2;
“Storm water” means any surface flow, runoff, and drainage consisting entirely of water from rain storm events;
“Verification” shall mean a written document prepared by the civil engineer, soils engineer or engineering geologist, as appropriate, attesting to completion of the work as shown on the approved plans and/or as described in a soils or geotechnical report;
“Watercourse” means any natural stream, whether flowing continuously or not, that is fed from permanent or natural sources, including, but not limited to, rivers, creeks, runs, swales and rivulets.
(Ord. 1985, Amended, 07/25/2023; Ord. 1883, Amended, 06/23/2015; Ord. 1800, Amended, 05/13/2008; Ord. 1720, Amended, 09/13/2004)
14.19.240.040 Hazards.
Whenever the Building Official, City Engineer, Director of Public Works, or their designees, determine that any existing excavation, embankment, or fill on private property constitutes a condition which could endanger persons or property, or an overhead or underground utility, or any public way, watercourse or drainage channel or swale, or could adversely affect the water quality of any water bodies or watercourses, the owner of the property upon which the excavation or fill is located, or other person or agent in control of said property, upon receipt of notice from the Building Official, Director of Public Works or the City Engineer, shall, within the period specified therein, repair, clean up, protect or eliminate such condition so as to eliminate the hazard and be in conformance with the requirements of this division or any state or federal requirements. The Building Official, Director of Public Works or the City Engineer may require the submission of plans, soil or geological reports, detailed construction recommendation, drainage study or other engineering data prior to and in connection with any work or activity proposed or required to correct such condition.
(Ord. 1985, Amended, 07/25/2023; Ord. 1720, Amended, 09/13/2004)