Current through Register Vol. 30, No. 52, December 27, 2024
A.
An application package to construct, reconstruct, repair, enlarge, or alter a
very low hazard potential dam shall include the following prepared by an
engineer or a person under the supervision of an engineer as defined in
R12-15-1202(11):
1. A completed application filed in duplicate
on forms provided by the Director that contains the following information:
a. The name and address of the owner of the
dam or the agent of the owner.
b.
The location, type, size, and height of the proposed dam and appurtenant
works.
c. The storage capacity of
the reservoir associated with the proposed dam.
d. The proposed time for beginning and
completing construction.
e. A
description of the use for the impounded or diverted water and proof of a right
to impound that water.
2. The means, plans, and specifications by
which the stream or body of water is to be dammed, by-passed, or controlled
during construction.
3. Maps,
drawings, and specifications of the proposed dam.
4. An initial application fee based on the
total estimated project cost and computed in accordance with A.R.S. §
45-1204 and
R12-15-104(A)(7).
5. A detailed estimate of project costs.
Project costs are all costs associated with construction of the dam and
appurtenant works, including preliminary investigations and surveys,
engineering design, supervision of construction, and any other engineering
costs.
6. A statement by the
responsible engineer that classifies the dam as very low hazard in accordance
with
R12-15-1206(B).
The responsible engineer shall submit a map of the area that would be inundated
by failure or improper operation of the dam. The responsible engineer shall
demonstrate that failure or improper operation would be unlikely to result in:
a. Loss of human life. The demonstration may
be based on an emergency action plan for persons who may be in the area of
inundation;
b. Significant
incremental adverse consequences; or
c. Significant intangible losses, as defined
in
R12-15-1202(21)
and identified and evaluated by a public natural resource management protection
agency, because the dam has a size classification of either small or
intermediate under
R12-15-1206(A)
and any release would be limited to the 100 year floodplain or property owned
or controlled by the dam owner under long-term lease.
7. The seal and signature of the responsible
engineer in accordance with A.R.S. Title 32, Chapter 1.
8. The drawings required by subsection (A)(3)
shall include a plan view and maximum section of the dam; the outlet works; and
the spillway plan, profile, and cross section.
9. The specifications required by subsection
(A)(3) shall include the construction materials, testing criteria, and
installation techniques.
B. The Director may make other requirements
for drawings and specifications for the proposed repair or alteration of a very
low hazard potential dam. In determining other requirements, the Director shall
consider the size and extent of the repair or alteration, the portions of the
dam that will be repaired or altered, and whether the requirements elicit a
description of the proposed construction work that is adequate to allow the
Director to evaluate the repair or alteration.
C. An owner intending to breach, remove, or
reduce a very low hazard potential dam to nonjurisdictional size shall submit
written notice to the Director at least 60 days before the date that
construction begins.
D. After
receipt of a complete application package as prescribed by subsection (A), the
Director shall either:
1. Determine that the
dam falls within the very low hazard classification and approve the application
in writing; or
2. Issue a written
notice that the dam does not fall within the very low hazard
classification.
E. The
Director's determination that the proposed dam does not fall within the very
low hazard classification is an appealable agency action and subject to
administrative and judicial review under A.R.S. Title 41, Chapter 6, Article
10.
F. Upon completion of
construction, the owner shall notify the Department in writing. The owner shall
not use the dam and reservoir before receipt of a license unless the Director
issues written approval.
G. Within
90 days after completion of the construction, reconstruction, repair,
enlargement, or alteration of a very low hazard potential dam, the owner shall
file the following:
1. An affidavit showing
the actual cost of construction, reconstruction, repair, enlargement, or
alteration of the dam. The owner shall submit a detailed accounting of the
costs, including all engineering costs.
2. An additional fee or refund request
computed in accordance with A.R.S. § 45-1209 and
R12-15-104(A)(7),
based on the actual cost of construction, reconstruction, repair, enlargement,
or alteration.
3. A brief
completion report summarizing the salient features of the project, including a
description of the causes for any changes or deviations from the approved
application package prepared by the engineer who supervised the construction in
accordance with A.R.S. Title 32, Chapter 1. The report shall include:
a. That the dam has been designed and
constructed in compliance with basic principles of dam construction currently
being practiced in the industry;
b.
That the dam as constructed has structural integrity and flood routing capacity
consistent with its hazard potential classification; and
c. That the as constructed drawings and the
report accurately represent the construction of the dam.
4. As constructed drawings prepared by the
engineer who supervised the construction. The owner and the engineer shall
maintain a record of the drawings.
H. Within 30 days after receipt of the
information in subsection (G), the Director shall issue to the owner either a
license or a notice that the dam and appurtenant works shall not be operated
because the dam and appurtenant works do not qualify as very low hazard or were
not built according to the submitted design. Upon receiving the Director's
written approval, the owner may operate the dam and appurtenant works. The
license shall include conditions of operation, including:
1. The safe storage level of the
reservoir,
2. A requirement that
the conditions resulting in the very low hazard classification be maintained
throughout the life of the dam, and
3. A requirement that the owner demonstrate
in writing the very low hazard classification in the manner prescribed by
subsection (A)(6) every five years.
I. An owner shall immediately commence
repairs necessary to safeguard human life and property and prevent failure or
improper operation of a very low hazard potential dam. The owner shall notify
the Department as soon as reasonably possible and in all cases within 10 days
of commencing the required repairs.
J. The Department may periodically inspect
construction to confirm that it is proceeding according to the approved design
and that proper construction quality assurance is being exercised by the
owner's engineer. The owner, or the owner's engineer under the direction of the
owner, shall remedy any unsatisfactory condition using the
contractor.
K. The owner shall
provide the Department access to the dam site for purposes of inspecting all
phases of construction, including the foundation, embankment and concrete
placement, inspection and test records, and mechanical installations.
