A. Existing Agricultural Activities. The activities cease to be existing when the area on which they were conducted has been converted to a nonagricultural use or has lain idle both more than five years and so long that modifications to the hydrological regime are necessary to resume agricultural activities, unless the idle land is registered in a federal or state soils conservation program.

B. Maintenance or reconstruction of existing roads, paths, bicycle ways, trails, bridges, and associated storm drainage facilities; provided, that reconstruction does not involve significant expansion of facilities. Construction of curbs, gutters, sidewalks or other incidental improvements to existing roadways shall generally be considered to fall within this exemption when undertaken pursuant to best management practices to avoid impacts to critical areas.

C. Activities on improved portions of roads, rights-of-way or easements, provided there is no expansion of ground coverage.

D. Maintenance or reconstruction of existing regional storm drainage facilities; provided, that reconstruction does not involve expansion of facilities.

E. For the following utility line activities, when undertaken pursuant to best management practices to avoid impacts to critical areas:

F. A utility line (any pipe or pipeline that transports any gaseous, liquid, liquefiable or slurry substance, and any cable, line or wire for the transmission of electrical energy, telephone, and telegraph messages, and radio and television communication, not including activities which drain a wetland, but including pipes that convey drainage from one area to another) may be placed in an underground trench within a Category II, III or IV wetland or its buffer. There must be no resulting changes in preconstruction contours, and trench excavation materials that are temporarily sidecast must be stabilized to prevent erosion and sedimentation. All sidecast materials shall be replaced within the trench or removed after 90 days, unless an extension is granted by the Community and Economic Development Department. The trench shall be the minimum size required to construct the utility line. The top 12 inches of the trench shall be backfilled with topsoil from the trench excavation. Trenches in wetlands shall be backfilled with wetland topsoil from the excavation, and appropriate vegetation planted to restore the site to a nearly as practical the pretrenching condition. Trench excavation should be restricted to the dry season. All permits from other regulatory agencies must be obtained.

G. Reconstruction, remodeling, or maintenance of existing single-family residential structures and accessory structures; provided, that cumulative expansion of the building footprint does not increase by more than 25 percent from its size as of October 8, 1991 (the effective date of Pierce County Critical Areas Regulations), and that the new construction or related activity does not further intrude into the critical area or related buffer. The exemption shall not apply to reconstruction which is proposed as a result of structural damage associated with a critical area, such as slope failure in a landslide hazard area.

H. Reconstruction, remodeling, or maintenance of structures, other than single-family structures and accessory structures; provided, that such reconstruction, remodeling, or maintenance does not increase the floor area nor extend beyond the existing ground coverage. The exemption shall not apply to reconstruction which is proposed as a result of site or structural damage associated with a critical area, such as slope failure in a landslide hazard area.

I. Activities in artificial wetlands, except those artificial wetlands intentionally created from nonwetland areas created to mitigate conversion of wetlands.

J. Activities affecting Category IV wetlands which are less than 1,000 square feet where the wetland is found to provide no special habitat functions for wildlife or special status plants or plant communities, and the hydrological functions of the exempted wetland are replaced to the satisfaction of the City Engineer.

K. Activities in wetlands in areas managed according to a special area management plan or other plan adopted by the City and specifically designed to protect wetland resources.

L. Maintenance activities of landscaping and gardens in a wetland buffer, including, but not limited to, mowing lawns, weeding, harvesting and replanting of garden crops, pruning and planting of vegetation to maintain the condition and appearance of the site existing on February 1, 1992.

M. Activities designed for previously approved maintenance and enhancement of wetlands.

N. Placement of access roads, utility lines and utility poles across a Category IV wetland and/or a buffer for a Category IV wetland if there is no reasonable alternative.

O. Site investigative work necessary for land use application submittals such as surveys, soil logs, percolation tests and other related activities.

P. Emergency action necessary to prevent imminent threat or danger to public health or safety, or to public or private property, or serious environmental degradation. The Department shall review all proposed emergency actions to determine the existence of the emergency and reasonableness of the proposed actions taken.

Q. Activities undertaken to comply with the United States Environmental Protection Ecology Administrative Enforcement Order pursuant to the Model Toxins Control Act, including the following activities:

R. Control of noxious weeds that are included on the state noxious weed list. Control methods shall be subject to review and approval of an abatement plan by the Department that minimizes the impacts to the critical area and any associated buffers.

S. Activities undertaken on the site of an existing holding pond where the water flow and/or water table is controlled by a previously approved pump system.

T. Public storm water retention/detention facilities may be constructed within Category II, III and IV wetlands or their buffers; provided, that the following conditions are met: (1) no untreated storm water is released directly into the wetlands; (2) water levels are monitored annually to ensure that preexisting functions and values of the wetland are not significantly lost through fluctuations in wetland hydrology; (3) maintenance activity within the wetland is limited to removal of invasive vegetation and/or removal of sediment accumulation at inflow structures in a manner acceptable to the Community and Economic Development Department; (4) there is no loss of wetland area; (5) all construction activity is conducted in accordance with accepted BMPs; and (6) the storm water management activity shall not adversely affect the hydro-period of the wetland or adversely affect water quality.

Storm water conveyance facilities such as bio-swales, culverts, and open trenches, that are not designed to drain wetlands, may be placed within required buffers for Category I, II, III and IV wetlands, subject to meeting the conditions listed above. This conditional exemption would not apply in situations where there are threatened or endangered species, or sensitive plants, unless approved by the State Department of Fish and Wildlife or Department of Natural Resources, respectively. All permits from other regulatory agencies must be obtained.

U. A residential building permit for a lot which was subject to previous reports and assessments as required under this title; provided, that the previous reports and assessments adequately identified the impacts associated with the current development proposal.

V. The installation of an on-site sewage disposal system for a single- or two-family dwelling may be permitted within an aquifer recharge area, subject to the issuance of a permit by the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department (TPCHD) according to all Washington State Department of Health and Tacoma-Pierce County Board of Health requirements for on-site sewage disposal. The TPCHD shall verify and notify the applicant or applicant’s agent that the approval of the on-site sewage disposal system design complies with all Washington State Department of Health and Tacoma-Pierce County Board of Health requirements. The development shall otherwise be subject to all of the other requirements and restrictions of this title (including exclusion from other identified critical areas), the Lakewood Municipal Code, and other applicable state and federal law. [Ord. 362 § 3, 2004.]