Code of Practice for Outfall Structures on Water Bodies
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Code of Practice for Outfall Structures on Water Bodies September 2003 Made under the Water Act and the Water (Ministerial) Regulation Consolidated to include amendments of December 1, 2006 in force as of February 15, 2007 Office Consolidation © Published by Alberta Queen’s Printer Queen’s Printer Bookstore 5th Floor, Park Plaza 10611 - 98 Avenue Edmonton, AB T5K 2P7 Phone: 780-427-4952 Fax: 780-452-0668 E-mail: [email protected] Shop on-line at www.qp.alberta.ca ALBERTA ENVIRONMENT CODE OF PRACTICE FOR OUTFALL STRUCTURES ON WATER BODIES [made under the Water Act and the Water (Ministerial) Regulation] September 2003 Table of Contents Section Definitions 1 Bound by the Code of Practice 2 Notice to the Director 3 Notice where the outfall structure activity is not completed within time period 4 Emergency 5 Plans 6 Maps and class of water bodies 7 Pre-Construction 8 Construction methods and conditions 9 Restricted activity periods 10 Certification 11 Reporting 12 Record keeping and information availability 13 Monitoring of outfall structure 14 Code of Practice review and amendment 15 Schedules 1 Notice to the Director 2 Plans Part 1, Design and Construction Standards Part 2, Requirements for Information and Written Specifications for Plans of Outfall structure activity 1 3 Construction Conditions Part 1, Class A Water Bodies Part 2, General Conditions for Outfall Structure Activities in Class B, C and D Water Bodies Part 3, Class B Water Bodies – Isolation Method Part 4, Class C Water Bodies – Isolation Method Part 5, Class D Water Bodies (Uncoded water bodies) 4 Qualified Aquatic Environment Specialist's Written Specifications 5 Water Act Code of Practice Management Area Maps Definitions 1(1) All definitions in the Water (Ministerial) Regulation and in section 1 of the Water Act apply except where expressly defined in this Code of Practice. (2) In this Code of Practice: (a) “carry out” when used in the context of an outfall structure activity includes to commence or continue an outfall structure activity; (b) “class” means the class of a water body that is specified in section 7, or that is designated by a class symbol on a map that is listed in Schedule 5; (c) “Department” means the Department administered by the Minister; (d) “emergency” means a situation where there is an imminent risk to the aquatic environment, public health or safety, or an imminent risk of structural failure of an outfall structure; (e) “fish” means fish used for domestic, sport and commercial purposes, and fish of special concern, including but not limited to rare, endangered, threatened or vulnerable species; (f) “isolation method” means an outfall structure construction technique in which there is an excavation of an area in the bed or banks of a water body, and isolation of the surface water in the water body from the excavation area, including but not limited to a flume, dam and pump, high volume pump bypass and two stage coffer dams; 2 (g) “map” means a water management area map listed in Schedule 5, and includes the legends and special conditions on a map; (h) “mapped water body” means a water body that appears on a map that is listed in Schedule 5; (i) “open method” means an outfall structure construction technique in which there is an excavation of an area in the bed or bank of a water body, that is not isolated from surface water in the water body; (j) “outfall structure” means a pipe or structure in, on, under, or adjacent to a water body, that is constructed for the discharge of: (i) precipitation that has fallen and been collected, or (ii) liquid and water-carried wastes, to a water body, and includes any associated structure that is required for the installation, maintenance or protection of the outfall structure; (k) “outfall structure activity” means the placement, construction, installation, maintenance, replacement or removal of all or part of an outfall structure, or any activity associated with that placement, construction, installation, maintenance, replacement or removal; (l) “plan” means a plan specified in section 6; (m) “productive capacity” means the natural capability of habitats that comprise the aquatic environment to produce healthy fish that are safe for human consumption, or to support or produce the naturally occurring diversity of aquatic organisms upon which fish depend; (n) “professional engineer” means a Professional Engineer or Registered Professional Technologist (engineering), registered with the Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta; (o) “qualified aquatic environment specialist” means a person who: (i) possesses: (A) a post-secondary degree in biological sciences; (B) a technical diploma in biological sciences; or (C) educational equivalencies, 3 (ii) has a detailed knowledge of the aquatic environment, including fish and fish habitat, management and assessment, and (iii) is currently experienced with: (A) fisheries and aquatic environment assessment methods; and (B) the determination of mitigation measures required to maintain the productive capacity of the aquatic environment, including fish habitats in Alberta that may be adversely affected by the carrying out of an outfall structure activity in and adjacent to the water, bed and shore of water bodies; (p) “restricted activity period” means the time period set out in this Code of Practice during which, generally, no outfall structure activity is permitted; (q) “this Code of Practice” means the Code of Practice for Outfall Structures on Water Bodies, published by the Department, as amended or replaced from time to time; (r) “uncoded water body” means a water body that appears on a map listed in Schedule 5, and that has no class symbol specified on the map; (s) “unmapped water body” means a water body that does not appear on a map listed in Schedule 5; (t) “UTM coordinates” means coordinates that use the Universal Transverse Mercator grid to identify or plot the specific location of a site or object; and (u) “water body” means, for the purpose of this Code of Practice, a water body with defined bed and banks, whether or not water is continuously present, but does not include fish bearing lakes. Bound by Code of Practice 2 Any person who carries out an outfall structure activity shall comply with the requirements set out in this Code of Practice. 4 Notice to the Director 3(1) For the purposes of section 4 of the Water (Ministerial) Regulation, a person who carries out an outfall structure activity must provide notice to the Director, in writing, at least 14 calendar days before any outfall structure activity is carried out, or within a time specified in writing by the Director. (2) The written notice under subsection (1): (a) must contain all the information specified in Schedule 1, unless otherwise specified in writing by the Director; and (b) authorizes a person to carry out the outfall structure activity in accordance with this Code of Practice for the period of time specified in the notice. (3) The outfall structure activity must be conducted in accordance with the information contained in the written notice provided to the Director under subsection (1). (4) The person carrying out an outfall structure activity shall provide the Director with written notice in accordance with subsection (1), regarding any change to the information contained in the original notice. Notice where the outfall structure activity is not completed within time period 4(1) Where notice is provided in accordance with section 4(1) of the Water (Ministerial) Regulation and section 3 of this Code of Practice, and the outfall structure activity has not been completed within the time period specified in the notice, the notice is no longer valid, and a person who carries out an outfall structure activity must provide a new notice prior to carrying out the outfall structure activity. (2) The new notice under subsection (1) must contain: (a) the new date for the commencement or continuation of the outfall structure activity; (b) the information specified in clause (i) of Schedule 1, as applicable; and (c) any information that has changed from the information provided in the original notice. 5 Emergency 5(1) Where there is an emergency that makes it impossible for a person who carries out an outfall structure activity to provide notice in accordance with section 3, a person who carries out an outfall structure activity must: (a) take appropriate measures to deal with the emergency; and (b) immediately inform the Director by telephone at 1 800 222-6514 of the emergency. (2) Information under subsection (1)(b) must contain: (a) the information specified in clauses (a), (b), (d), (e) and (f) of Schedule 1; (b) the legal description of the land on which the outfall structure is located; (c) any other information regarding the nature of the emergency that is available to the person carrying on the outfall structure activity at the time; and (d) any other information requested by the Director. (3) Within 30 days of completion of the measures required to resolve the emergency, the person who carries out an outfall structure activity must provide the Director with the following information: (a) information specified under clause (c) in Schedule 1; (b) a description of the construction methods and conditions as described in section 8 and Schedule 3, as applicable, that were used in carrying out the outfall structure activity; and (c) a description of measures taken to meet the applicable requirements of Part 1 of Schedule 2, section 9 and Schedule 3 of this Code