Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 18, September 16, 2024
(a) General permit 10B authorizes the
following activities in freshwater wetlands, transition areas, and/or State
open waters:
1. Construction of one or more
new road crossings necessary to gain access to an otherwise inaccessible,
developable, upland site, including attendant features such as shoulders,
sidewalks and embankments;
2.
Expansion, widening, or upgrading of one or more existing paved or unpaved
roads, including attendant features such as shoulders, sidewalks and
embankments; and
3. Activities
necessary to reduce horizontal curves in an existing paved road to comply with
New Jersey Department of Transportation safety regulations.
(b) The Department shall issue a
general permit 10B authorization only if all applicable requirements at
N.J.A.C. 7:7A-5.7
and
20.3 are met and:
1. The applicant
demonstrates in accordance with (d) below that there is no alternative onsite
location and/or configuration for the road crossing that would provide access
to the developable upland with less adverse environmental impact; and
2. The total area of freshwater wetlands,
transition areas, and/or State open waters disturbed under general permit 10B
shall not exceed one-quarter of an acre.
(c) Activities under general permit 10B shall
minimize environmental impact as follows:
1.
The applicant shall design the crossing to ensure that fish passage is
unimpeded during times when the water level is at its lowest, unless the
applicant demonstrates that the water body is unsuitable for habitation by fish
and will remain so for the foreseeable future. The applicant shall ensure fish
passage by maintaining the existing gradient and bottom contours of the water
body to the extent possible, and by using arches, culverts, or other structures
that will ensure fish passage;
2.
The applicant shall install cross drains or other devices to ensure that the
crossing does not alter the hydrology of the freshwater wetlands and/or State
open waters on either side of the crossing;
3. The amount of rip-rap or other energy
dissipating material used shall be the minimum necessary to prevent erosion,
and shall not exceed 200 cubic yards of fill below the top of bank or high
water mark, unless a larger amount is required in order to comply with the
Standards for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control in New Jersey at N.J.A.C. 2:90;
and
4. The cartway, shoulder, and
side slopes of the roadway shall be the minimum necessary for the crossing and
shall not exceed the limits in the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs'
Residential Site Improvement Standards at N.J.A.C. 5:21. If the project is not
a residential development, the cartway, shoulder, and side slopes of the
roadway shall be the minimum necessary for safety.
(d) In evaluating whether there is an
alternative onsite location and/or configuration for a road crossing under (b)1
above, the Department shall make the presumptions at (d)1 through 5 below.
However, these presumptions may be rebutted based on site-specific or unusual
circumstances:
1. Disturbance of a
non-transition area upland would have less adverse environmental impact than
disturbance of a transition area, State open water or freshwater
wetland;
2. Disturbance of a
transition area would have less adverse environmental impact than disturbance
of a freshwater wetland or State open water;
3. Disturbance of a freshwater wetland would
have less adverse environmental impact than disturbance of a State open
water;
4. Expansion or upgrading of
an existing and currently serviceable drive or crossing would have less adverse
environmental impact than placement of a new crossing; and
5. Placement of a new crossing in an area
that is already significantly disturbed would have less adverse environmental
impact than disturbance of a previously undisturbed wetland and/or State open
water.
(e) Mitigation
shall be performed for all permanent loss and/or disturbance of 0.1 acres or
greater of freshwater wetlands or State open waters. Mitigation shall be
performed for permanent loss and/or disturbance of less than 0.1 acres of
freshwater wetlands or State open waters unless the applicant demonstrates to
the Department that all activities have been designed to avoid and minimize
impacts to wetlands. For purposes of this subsection, "minimize" means that the
project is configured so that most or all of it is contained in the uplands on
the site, and that the wetlands are avoided to the greatest extent possible. An
applicant is not required to reduce the scope of the project or to consider
offsite alternatives to comply with this requirement.
1. The mitigation shall meet the substantive
and procedural requirements at N.J.A.C. 7:7A-11 and shall be submitted to the
Department for review and approval no later than 90-calendar days prior to the
initiation of regulated activities authorized by this general permit.
