AN ACT

 

1Amending the act of June 22, 1937 (P.L.1987, No.394), entitled,
2as amended, "An act To preserve and improve the purity of the
3waters of the Commonwealth for the protection of public
4health, animal and aquatic life, and for industrial
5consumption, and recreation; empowering and directing the
6creation of indebtedness or the issuing of non-debt revenue
7bonds by political subdivisions to provide works to abate
8pollution; providing protection of water supply and water
9quality; providing for the jurisdiction of courts in the
10enforcement thereof; providing additional remedies for
11abating pollution of waters; imposing certain penalties;
12repealing certain acts; regulating discharges of sewage and
13industrial wastes; regulating the operation of mines and
14regulating the impact of mining upon water quality, supply
15and quantity; placing responsibilities upon landowners and
16land occupiers and to maintain primary jurisdiction over
17surface coal mining in Pennsylvania," further providing for
18potential pollution.

19The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
20hereby enacts as follows:

21Section 1. Section 402 of the act of June 22, 1937
22(P.L.1987, No.394), known as The Clean Streams Law, is amended
23by adding a subsection to read:

1Section 402. Potential Pollution.--* * *

2(c) (1) The use or installation of riparian buffers and
3riparian forest buffers <-shall not be required under this
4section. Riparian buffers and riparian forest buffers may be
5used as a preferred choice or option among best management
6practices, design standards and alternatives to minimize the
7potential for accelerated erosion and sedimentation and to
8protect, maintain, reclaim and restore water quality and for
9existing and designated uses of a perennial or intermittent
10river, stream or creek or lake, pond or reservoir of this
11Commonwealth to ensure compliance with 25 Pa. Code Ch.93
12(relating to water quality standards).

13(2) Projects in special protection watersheds that propose
14greater than one acre of earth disturbance within 100 feet of a
15surface water shall offset any reduction in the total square
16footage of the buffer zone that would have been utilized as a
17best management practice, with a replacement buffer elsewhere in
18the same drainage basin <-as close as feasible to the area of
19disturbance at a ratio of <-two-to-one for Zone 1 (1 through 50
20feet) and one-to-one <-for Zone 2 (50 through 100 feet). Any
21project incorporating such an alternative shall also include
22other best management practices to manage postconstruction
23stormwater to protect, maintain, reclaim and restore water
24quality and existing and designated uses of waters of this
25Commonwealth. Replacement planting costs shall be calculated
26using department guidance as specified in BMP 6.7.1: Riparian
27Buffer Restoration of the Pennsylvania Stormwater Best
28Management Practice Manual.

29Section 2. Any and all regulations are abrogated to the
30extent of any inconsistency with this act.

1Section 3. This act shall take effect in 60 days.