Major earth-moving in a project may trigger state processes, county regulations
(Above photo is a stock photo)
With more development occurring in the county’s foothills, Chelan County Community Development is also seeing more county regulations triggered by the movement of large amounts of soils and rock.
While Chelan County does not have a “grade-and-fill” ordinance, that doesn’t mean developers are off the hook when it comes to a SEPA environmental review and other county regulations, said Deanna Walter, director of Chelan County Community Development.
“It is never our goal to hinder or stop development,” Walter said. “But it is our job to enforce county codes and regulations.”
SEPA, or the State Environmental Policy Act, is a process that addresses cumulative environmental impacts. Under SEPA, local governments and state agencies use an environmental checklist to help determine if a proposed development’s impacts are likely to be significant to the environment around it. In fact, the state mandates that any excavation of 1,000 cubic yards or more requires a SEPA review. (The fee for the SEPA review and determination is $215.)
In addition, the Critical Areas of the Chelan County Code (Chapters 11.77, 11.78, 11.80, 11.84 and 11.86) highlights protected or critical habitat that may need to be taken into consideration with any development. If an area is listed as being a priority habitat, such as shrub steppe or mule deer winter range, or as having a priority species, such as golden eagle, a critical area review will be required:
A critical area review is required for all land uses, development activity and alteration of any land, water, vegetation, structure or improvement in Chelan County that proposed land use action is within, likely to be within or is adjacent to a critical area whose buffers may overlap the proposed action, regardless of whether or not a permit or authorization is required from the county. (Chelan County 11.77.030)
Priority habitats and species maps are listed on the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife website.
Similar provisions are in place for the other critical areas designations.
If the director of Chelan County Community Development determines that a parcel of a proposed land use action is within, likely to be within or is adjacent to a critical area whose buffers may overlap the proposed action, a critical areas report or assessment prepared by a qualified professional specific to each critical area is required from the applicant. If the county must hire independent qualified consultants to assist in review of critical area reports, the applicant is responsible for the cost. The critical area reports may include required mitigation steps.
Finally, if the movement of land during development then causes an encroachment, or impact, on nearby public infrastructure or a private utility, such as an irrigation canal, those are also considerations to take into place. A slope above an irrigation canal, for example, may cause extra runoff into the canal, which may then cause complications for the purveyor and, ultimately, other customers. Landowners will need to mitigate any encroachment issues to protect nearby infrastructure.
Walter welcomes any questions from developers or their team of professionals.
Last Updated: 04/18/2024 11:41 AM
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The information contained on this site is provided as a courtesy of the Chelan County. Where it exists, the "Index.txt" will contain a brief explanation of files contained in this folder
Chelan County makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information provided on its web site. However, due to the possibility of transmission errors, HTML browser capabilities, changes made since the last update to the site, etc., neither Chelan County, nor any agency, officer or employee of Chelan County warrants the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any information published by this system and shall not be held liable for any losses caused by reliance on the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of such information. Portions of such information may be incorrect or not current. Any person or entity that relies on any information obtained from this system does so at his or her own risk.
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Assessor's Office Community Meeting: Leavenworth and Lake Wenatchee
Posted by: Chelan County Assessor
Chelan County Assessor Wes Cornelius invites property owners and all interested parties to attend one of four community meetings scheduled this spring throughout the county.