Environmentally Critical Areas | Environment & Sustainability
2. Critical areas study requirement
d. If necessary to ensure compliance with this chapter, the director may require additional information from the applicant, separate from the critical areas study. e. A development proposal may be allowed to utilize past studies from neighboring properties, if confirmed that the study findings remain accurate and applicable to proposed development. f. A wetland delineation completed over five years ago needs to be revisited. Revisiting a wetland delineation that is five or more years old does not necessarily mean that a new wetland delineation needs to be completed. It means that a field verification by the City may need to be performed to determine whether the delineation is still accurate or whether it needs to be redone based on existing conditions.
a. An applicant for a development proposal where impacts to or alteration of an environmentally critical area or modification or reduction of a buffer associated with an environmentally critical area is proposed or may occur as a consequence of proposed actions shall submit a critical areas study at a level determined by the director to adequately evaluate the proposal and probable impacts. b. The director may waive or modify the requirement for a critical areas study if the applicant shows, to the director’s satisfaction, that: i. There will be no alteration of the critical area or buffer; ii. The development proposal will not have an impact on the critical area in a manner contrary to the goals, purposes, objectives, and requirements of this chapter; and iii. The minimum standards required by this chapter are met; or iv. Critical areas are located off site and access to applicable off-site property is restricted. c. If the development proposal will affect only a part of the development proposal site, the department may limit the scope of the required critical areas study to include only that area that is affected by the development proposal.
3. Contents of critical area study
a. The critical areas study shall be in the form of a written report prepared by a qualified professional using guidance based on best available science per Chapter 36.70A RCW and shall contain the following, as determined to be applicable by the director: i. The applicant shall disclose to the City the presence of critical areas on the development proposal site and any mapped or identifiable critical areas within the distance equal to the largest potential required buffer applicable to the development proposal area on the applicant’s property;
ii. Assessment of the impacts or risks to an environmentally critical area or buffer:
Effective | January 1, 2022
Title 21: Sammamish Development Code | 71
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