18E.20.030 Exemptions.
This Section defines activities that are exempt from the provisions of all or part of this Title. Additional exceptions from the requirements of this Title are found in PCC 18E.40.030B*, Review Waiver Allowances. Prior to project initiation, the project proponent shall consult with Planning and Public Works to verify whether the proposal is fully or partially exempt.
A. Title 18E PCC. The following activities are exempt from this Title:
1. Interior or exterior reconstruction, remodeling, or maintenance of existing structures that do not result in an expansion of the building footprint or increase the building height. The exemption shall not apply to structures located in a flood hazard area or active landslide hazard area.
2. A one-time expansion of primary single-family residential structures that does not result in the loss of significant trees, or reconstruction of an existing building footprint, when the following criteria are met:
a. The structure is located outside any flood hazard or active landslide hazard area;
b. The expansion/reconstruction is no greater than 25 percent;
c. The expansion/reconstruction either extends away from the shoreline, critical area or related buffer, or occurs parallel to the shoreline, critical area and upon existing impervious surfaces; and
d. The expansion/reconstruction is not the result of structural damage associated with a critical area, such as slope failure in a landslide hazard area or flooding in a flood hazard area.
3. A residential building permit for a lot which was created through a land division action subject to previous reports and assessments as required under this Title; provided, the structure or proposed development is not located in a flood hazard area or active landslide hazard area; that the previous reports and assessments adequately identified the impacts associated with the current development proposal; there has been no material change in the potential impact to the critical area or required buffer since the prior review; and there is no new information available that is applicable to the review of the site or the particular critical area.
4. Maintenance of lawfully established landscaping and gardens within a regulated critical area or its buffer including but not limited to mowing lawns, weeding, removal of noxious and invasive species as identified by Pierce County, harvesting and replanting of garden crops, pruning and planting of vegetation to maintain the condition and appearance of such areas as they existed on October 26, 2018, and planting of indigenous native species.
5. An unpaved access path from a residential dwelling to a shoreline is allowed if:
a. The path width is limited to 4 feet;
b. No fill is placed in a flood hazard area;
c. The length of the path is minimized by keeping the path at a right angle to the shoreline to the degree feasible; and
d. No trees are removed.
6. Recreational activities such as hunting, hiking, fishing, and wildlife viewing that does not involve the construction of trails.
7. Enhancement actions that do not involve clearing, grading, or construction activities (e.g., re-vegetation with native plants and installation of nest boxes).
8. Minor vegetation removal for purposes of providing views and protecting overhead utility lines. Vegetation removal shall be limited to selective limbing of trees and removal of shrubs. Tree limbing shall be done consistent with the following illustration from Vegetation Management: A Guide for Puget Sound Bluff Property Owners.
An applicant who wishes to remove entire trees or more than minor amounts of shrub vegetation, or to introduce lawn or landscaped areas, shall complete review as set forth in PCC 18E.20.035, Review Waiver Allowances, and PCC 18E.40.030, Fish and Wildlife Habitat Conservation Area Review Procedures.
9. Existing agricultural activities established prior to February 2, 1992, that after that date do not cause permanent conversion of a critical area through actions such as filling, ditching, draining, clearing, grading, etc., provided that:
a. Existing agricultural activities and structures must still comply with the provisions of Chapter 18E.70 PCC, Flood Hazard Areas; and
b. Determination of an agricultural exemption status is limited to the specific area(s) upon which lawfully established agricultural activities are being conducted. A determination that an activity is exempt within one portion of a property does not necessarily extend to other portions of the property.
10. Removal by hand of manmade litter and control of noxious weeds that are included on the State noxious weed list (Chapter 16-750 WAC) or invasive plant species as identified by Pierce County. Control may be conducted by clipping, pulling, over-shading with native tree and shrub species, or non-mechanized digging. Alternative methods such as mechanical excavation, barrier installation, or herbicide use may be allowed upon approval by the Department and acquisition of any necessary permits.
11. Activities in artificial channels that are not in a mapped watercourse, flood hazard area, or active landslide area.
12. Activities on improved portions of roads, rights-of-way, or easements, provided there is no expansion of ground coverage, no reduction in flood storage, and no increase in flood elevations.
13. Site investigative work necessary for land use application submittals such as surveys, soil logs, percolation tests, and other related activities. Critical area impacts shall be minimized and disturbed areas shall be immediately restored.
14. 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.
15. Maintenance of individual cemetery plots in established and approved cemeteries.
16. Activities in artificial wetlands intentionally created from upland sites including but not limited to irrigation and drainage ditches, grass-lined swales, canals, detention facilities, wastewater treatment facilities, farm ponds, and landscape amenities; or those wetlands created after July 1, 1990, that were unintentionally created as a result of the construction of a road, street, or highway. Artificial wetlands intentionally created from upland to serve as mitigation are regulated. This is not applicable when the activity is located in a flood hazard area or active landslide hazard area.
17. Maintenance or reconstruction of existing private roads, driveways, on-site sewage systems, and wells; provided the activity is not located in a flood hazard area or active landslide hazard area, that reconstruction does not involve expansion of facilities, widening, or relocation. Mitigation sequencing is required for temporary impacts associated with reconstruction.
18. Public and private utility line work (new construction, maintenance, and repair) within improved surfaces (e.g., driveways, parking lots, concrete or asphalt surfaces, gravel roads and road shoulders, and hard surface-earthen rights-of-way, or easements) when the activity is not located in a flood hazard area or active landslide hazard area.
19. Wildfire – Defensible Space Activities in Areas mapped solely as Elk Herd Winter Range. Within existing lots of record located in wildland areas, the following Defensible Space Activities may take place within 30 feet of dwellings, barns, and commercial-use buildings:
a. Tree limb removal. Where understory shrubs are present below the tree, removal shall follow the guidelines of PCC 18E.40.070 – Appendix F, Wildfire – Defensible Space Guidelines. Where understory shrubs are not present, tree limbs may be removed to a height of 10 feet above the ground;
b. Interruption of continuous shrub vegetation by selective thinning as defined within PCC 18E.40.070 – Appendix F, Wildfire – Defensible Space Guidelines; and
c. Replacement of evergreen species with less flammable, native species as defined within PCC 18E.40.070 – Appendix F, Wildfire – Defensible Space Guidelines.
20. Maintenance or reconstruction of existing, lawfully established public facilities or substantial improvement of a building; provided, that reconstruction does not involve expansion of the facility. Mitigation sequencing is required for temporary impacts associated with reconstruction:
a. Roads, paths, bicycle ways, trails, bridges, replacement sewer facilities, and associated storm drainage facilities or other public rights-of-way; provided, that in a regulated floodplain there is no change to existing grade or the conveyance capacity of a hydraulic structure.
b. Flood control improvements such as, but not limited to, levees, revetments, floodwalls, regional storm drainage facilities, drainage structures, or channel capacity projects to protect public infrastructure and/or existing development when administered by Pierce County Planning and Public Works; provided, that the work shall:
(1) Not increase the height of the facility or linear length of the affected stream edge;
(2) Not expand the footprint of the facility waterward or into any landward aquatic habitat; and
(3) Use approved fish-friendly bioengineering techniques to the extent feasible.
21. Activities undertaken to comply with a United States Environmental Protection Agency superfund related order or a Washington Department of Ecology order pursuant to the Model Toxics Control Act, including the following activities:
a. Remediation or removal of hazardous or toxic substances;
b. Source control; and
c. Natural resource damage restoration.
B. Chapter 18E.50 PCC. The following uses or activities are exempt solely from the provisions of Chapter 18E.50 PCC, Aquifer Recharge and Wellhead Protection Areas:
1. Sewer lines and appurtenances.
2. Biosolids and sludge land application sites; provided, that these activities comply with the requirements established in Chapters 173-200, 173-216, and 173-304 WAC.
3. Single-family and two-family dwellings and associated accessory structures.