Posted: | December 28, 2020 02:13 PM |
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From: | Senator Gene Yaw |
To: | All Senate members |
Subject: | “Stream Cleaning” and Maintenance Program |
In the near future, I will be reintroducing legislation, SB 679 of the 2019-20 session, adding a new section to Act 325 of 1978, the Dam Safety and Encroachments Act. This legislation will direct the Environmental Quality Board to develop regulations that authorize counties to adopt a program for “stream cleaning” and maintenance and the removal of obstructions and flood-related hazards from our local waterways. Under this program, a county would submit an application to the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) that covers the entire county, in order to expedite the process. This program will include the creation of working “regional curves” that can be utilized to identify stream channel elements of width, depth, cross-sectional area and flood plain dimensions at a given stream reach location in the watershed. This tool, coupled with an extensive training component for municipal officials and contractors, an expedited permit process, and being overseen locally can achieve the following goals:
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