A. The following activities shall be exempt from the procedural requirements of this chapter:

1. Activities involving artificially created wetlands or streams intentionally created from nonwetland sites, including but not limited to grass-lined swales, irrigation and drainage ditches, detention facilities, and landscape features; except wetlands, streams, ditches or swales created as mitigation or replacement or that provide critical habitat for salmonid fishes;

2. Activities occurring in areas of forty percent slope or greater when the forty percent slope area has a vertical elevation change of not more than fifteen feet may be exempted based upon town review of a soils report prepared by a geologist or geotechnical engineer which demonstrates that no significant adverse impact will result from the activity;

3. Normal and routine maintenance, operation and reconstruction of existing roads, streets, utilities and associated rights-of-way and structures; provided, that reconstruction of any facilities may not increase the impervious area or reduce stormwater conveyance;

4. Normal maintenance and repair, and reconstruction or remodeling of residential, institutional or commercial structures, or legal pre-existing and on-going uses of the site; provided, that reconstruction or remodeling of any structures may not increase the previous approved building footprint;

5. Site investigative work and studies necessary for preparing land use applications, including soils tests, water quality studies, fish and wildlife studies and similar tests and investigations; provided, that any disturbance of the environmentally sensitive area shall be the minimum necessary to carry out the work or studies;

6. Educational activities, scientific research and outdoor recreational activities that will not have an adverse effect on the environmentally sensitive area, including but not limited to interpretive field trips, bird-watching and use of trails for horseback riding, bicycling and hiking;

7. Alterations in response to emergencies which threaten the public health, safety and welfare or which pose an imminent risk of damage to private property as long as any alteration undertaken pursuant to this subsection is reported to the Town immediately. Only the minimum intervention necessary to reduce the risk to public health, safety, or welfare and/or the imminent risk of damage to private property shall be authorized by this exemption. The Town shall confirm that an emergency exists and determine what, if any, additional applications and/or measures shall be required to protect the environment, consistent with the provisions of this chapter, and to repair any damage to a pre-existing resource;

8. Normal and routine maintenance and operation of existing landscaping and gardens including maintenance of view corridors along marine bluffs; provided that, no chemicals or fertilizers may be used in wetlands or streams, or established buffers of wetlands or streams or in high significance/high susceptibility aquifer recharge areas, and that removal of vegetation does not contribute to soil erosion and that maintenance and operation of existing landscaping and gardens comply with all other regulations in this chapter, or other applicable Town codes;

9. Construction of trails, according to the following criteria: constructed of permeable or semi-permeable materials, designed to minimize impact on the environmentally sensitive area, located within the outer half of the buffer area, and of a maximum trail corridor width of five feet;

10. Minor activities, such as the installation of a fence or fence posts not mentioned above and determined by the Town Engineer and/or Town Planner to have minimal impacts to an environmentally sensitive area;

11. Installation, construction, replacement, repair or alteration of utilities and their associated facilities, lines, pipes, mains, equipment or appurtenances in improved Town road rights-of-way;

12. Activities associated with, or carried out in accordance with federal, state and local regulations and requirements governing provision of construction, maintenance, repair, operation and protection of public water supply and distribution facilities.

B. Applicability of Regulations.

1. The applicability of this chapter is "triggered" by submittal of an application for development permit to the Town , including but not limited to application for building permit, clearing and grading, tree removal, zoning, subdivision and special use.

2. Notwithstanding the procedural exemptions provided by this subsection, an exempt activity occurring in

or near an environmentally sensitive area shall meet the purpose and intent of Section 16.10.010 and the proponent shall consider on-site alternatives that avoid or minimize significant adverse impacts.

C. With the exception of subsections (A)(7), (A)(8), (A)(9) and (A)(10) of this section, and normal maintenance and repair of residential and commercial structures as in subsection (A)(5), no property owner or other entity shall undertake exempt activities prior to providing ten days’ notice to the Town . In case of any question as to whether a particular activity is exempt from the procedural requirements of this section, the Town ’s determination shall prevail and shall be confirmed in writing within ten days of receipt of the owner’s or applicant’s letter. Those activities falling under subsection (A)(8) shall provide telephone or written communication to the Town within forty-eight hours of the activity notifying that such emergency activity was taken.

D. Otherwise conforming structures, located in an environmentally sensitive area buffer but not in an environmentally sensitive area, which are destroyed through an act of nature, fire or other nonintentional, accidental means shall be allowed to be reconstructed within twelve months. Reconstruction of the structure shall not further encroach into the buffer area or increase the building footprint. Mitigation provisions, consistent with the standards of this chapter may be required. (Ord. 01-412 §1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 2001; Ord. 00-387 §1(part), 2000)