This week’s Land Use Committee meeting will include a review of the city’s Critical Areas Ordinance (CAO) as required by city code. According to the staff memo in preparation for the meeting, the section relating to geologically hazardous areas (GHA) needs some changes.
Land Use Committee Meeting
Tuesday, October 6, 2009 – 12:30 – 2:30 p.m.
City Council Chamber
A discussion relating to the CAO will begin at approximately 1:25 p.m. and has been scheduled for 45 minutes. If you home is on or adjacent to a geologically hazardous area (see definition below), you should plan to attend. If you do, please take notes and send them to us.
From a staff memo in preparation for the meeting…
Each type of critical areas, as defined by the Revised Code of Washington (RCW 36.70A.030), requires different management to response to characteristics of the specific critical area. Not all critical areas require the same type of development restrictions. The Washington Administrative Code (WAC) provides guidance to implement the requirement to manage the different types of critical areas.
WAC 365-190-080 (4)(a) states “Geologically hazardous areas include areas susceptible to erosion, sliding, earthquake, or other geological events. They pose a threat to the health and safety of citizens when incompatible commercial, residential, or industrial development is sited in areas of significant hazard. Some geological hazards can be reduced or mitigated by engineering, design, or modified construction or mining practices so that risks to health and safety are acceptable. When technology cannot reduce risks to acceptable levels, building in geologically hazardous areas is best avoided.”
The primary characteristic of geologically hazardous area is that these areas may pose a threat to health and safety if development occurs on or near them in an unsafe manner. These areas may also provide other functions to other types of critical areas, such as buffers to streams but these critical areas functions should be protected by other sections of the CAO. Therefore, part of the proposed amendments to this section of the CAO will be to more clearly make the distinction between GHA land management requirements and other types of critical area management requirements.
The memo goes on to describe problems with the existing code and recommended changes. You can download the memo here.
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