Revision: June 11, 2012, midnight
CHAPTER 147
HB 1721 – FINAL VERSION
7Mar2012… 0992h
17May2012… 2234EBA
2012 SESSION
08/05
HOUSE BILL 1721
AN ACT relative to permitting for the replacement of sewage disposal systems and relative to oil spillage prevention, control, and countermeasure plans.
SPONSORS: Rep. Ritter, Rock 14; Rep. Groen, Straf 1; Sen. De Blois, Dist 18
COMMITTEE: Resources, Recreation and Development
This bill allows certain sewage disposal systems to be replaced after approval by the department of environmental services and requires the department of environmental services to adopt rules regarding requirements for oil spill prevention, control, and countermeasure (SPCC) plans.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
7Mar2012… 0992h
17May2012… 2234EBA
12-2741
08/05
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twelve
AN ACT relative to permitting for the replacement of sewage disposal systems and relative to oil spillage prevention, control, and countermeasure plans.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
147:1 Approval for Modifications to Sewage Systems. Amend RSA 485-A:38, II-a to read as follows:
II-a.(a) No construction or operational approval shall be required from the department prior to expanding, relocating, or replacing any structure that does not increase the load on a sewage disposal system, as long as all of the following conditions are met:
[(a)](1)(A) The lot is served by a sewage disposal system that received construction and operational approval from the department within 20 years of the date of the issuance of a building permit for the proposed expansion, relocation, or replacement[.]; or
(B) The lot is 5 acres or more in size.
[(b)](2) If the property is nonresidential, no waivers were granted in the construction or operational approval of any requirements for total wastewater lot loading, depth to groundwater, or horizontal distances to surface water, water supply systems, or very poorly drained soils.
[(c)](3) When applicable, the proposed expansion, relocation, or replacement complies with the requirements of the shoreland water quality protection act, RSA 483-B.
(b) An owner of a project that requires department approval to proceed because neither of the conditions of subparagraphs (a)(1)(A) or (B) are met, may either submit for approval a design for a new sewage disposal system or apply for a permit by rule for in-kind replacement under RSA 485-A:33, IV. Under either approach, once approval for the sewage disposal system is received from the department, work may commence on expanding, relocating, or replacing the structure. Construction of the sewage disposal system is not required to satisfy the requirements of this subparagraph.
147:2 Approval for Modifications to Sewage Systems. Amend RSA 485-A:38, II-a to read as follows:
II-a.(a) No construction or operational approval shall be required from the department prior to expanding, relocating, or replacing any structure that does not increase the load on a sewage disposal system, as long as all of the following conditions are met:
[(a)] (1)(A) The lot is served by a sewage disposal system that received construction and operational approval from the department within 20 years of the date of the issuance of a building permit for the proposed expansion, relocation, or replacement[.]; or
(B) The lot is 5 acres or more in size.
[(b)] (2) If the property is nonresidential, no waivers were granted in the construction or operational approval of any requirements for total wastewater lot loading, depth to groundwater, or horizontal distances to surface water, water supply systems, or very poorly drained soils.
[(c)] (3) When applicable, the proposed expansion, relocation, or replacement complies with the requirements of the shoreland water quality protection act, RSA 483-B.
(b) An owner of a project that requires department approval to proceed because neither of the conditions of subparagraphs (a)(1)(A) or (B) are met, may either submit for approval a design for a new sewage disposal system or apply for a permit for in-kind replacement under paragraph II-b. Under either approach, once approval for the new sewage disposal system is received from the department, work may commence on expanding, relocating, or replacing the structure. Construction of the sewage disposal system is not required to satisfy the requirements of this subparagraph.
147:3 New Paragraph; In-Kind Replacement by Permit by Rule. Amend RSA 485-A:38 by inserting after paragraph II-a the following new paragraph:
II-b.(a) For the purposes of subparagraph II-a(b), a sewage disposal system shall qualify for in-kind replacement through a permit by rule, provided all of the following criteria are met:
(1) The existing system receives only domestic sewage.
(2) There is no increase in sewage loading proposed for the replacement system.
(3) The bottom of the bed is located no less than 24 inches above the seasonable high water table.
(4) The system is located 75 feet or more from an abutter’s well unless there is a standard well release form recorded with the registry of deeds in accordance with RSA 485-A:30-b or there is an existing department waiver to the abutter’s well.
(5) The system is located 75 feet or more from the owner’s well unless there is an existing department waiver to the owner’s well.
(6) The existing system received prior construction and operational approval from the department and the replacement system will conform to the provisions of such approval, provided the department may by rule require a minimum septic tank size of 1,000 gallons.
(7) The system is not within 75 feet of any surface water, water supply well, or very poorly drained soil unless authorized by the prior departmental approval described in subparagraph (6).
(8) No new waivers to the department’s rules are requested.
(9) The system has not been previously replaced under a permit by rule in accordance with the provisions of this paragraph.
(b) Construction of the system may proceed upon the submission of an application to the department by a permitted designer under RSA 485-A:35 and receipt of construction approval from the department.
(c) The replacement system shall not be covered or placed in operation without final inspection and approval by an authorized agent of the department. All inspection by the department shall be accomplished within 7 business days after receipt of written notice from the installer that the system is ready for inspection. The installer shall provide the authorized agent of the department, at the time of the inspection, a copy of the previously approved plan bearing the state approval stamp and associated operational approval, and an existing conditions plan bearing the seal of the permitted designer performing work under the permit by rule.
(d) The applicant submitting the permit by rule application shall assume all liability and responsibility for the components of the design that are part of the system being replaced under the permit by rule.
(e) The installer constructing the system shall assume all liability and responsibility for the construction of the system components replaced under the permit by rule.
(f) For purposes of this paragraph, “in-kind” means a repair or replacement of an equivalent nature and in the same location.
147:4 New Paragraph; Rulemaking. Amend RSA 485-A:41 by inserting after paragraph IV the following new paragraph:
V. Adopt rules relative to the application for and granting of permits by rule for replacement of certain sewage disposal systems under RSA 485-A:38, II-b.
147:5 New Paragraph; Definitions; Oil Spillage. Amend RSA 146-A:2 by inserting after paragraph XIII the following new paragraph:
XIV. “Qualified facility” means a facility:
(a) That has had no single discharge exceeding 1,000 gallons or no 2 discharges each exceeding 42 gallons, other than discharges that are the result of natural disasters, acts of war, or terrorism;
(b) That has an aggregate aboveground oil storage capacity of 5,000 gallons or less, of which not more than 660 gallons is for storage of gasoline; and
(c) For which preparation of a spill prevention, control, and countermeasure (SPCC) plan does not necessitate the practice of engineering as defined in RSA 310-A:2, III.
147:6 New Paragraph; Rulemaking; Oil Spillage. Amend RSA 146-A:11-c by inserting after paragraph I the following new paragraph:
I-a. Requirements for facility owners to prepare, submit, and comply with a spill prevention, control, and countermeasure (SPCC) plan prepared in accordance with 40 C.F.R. part 112, provided that no such rules shall require the owner of a qualified facility, as defined in RSA 146-A:2, XIV, to engage a professional engineer to prepare or approve the SPCC plan for that facility.
147:7 Contingency. If HB 1415 of the 2012 legislative session becomes law, section 1 of this act shall take effect upon its passage and sections 2-4 of this act shall not take effect. If HB 1415 does not become law, section 1 of this act shall not take effect and sections 2-4 of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
147:8 Effective Date.
I Sections 1-4 of this act shall take effect as provided in section 7 of this act.
II. Sections 5-6 of this act shall take effect July 1, 2012.
III. The remainder of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
Approved: June 7, 2012
Effective Date: I. Sections 1-4 shall take effect as provided in section 7.
II. Sections 5-6 shall take effect July 1, 2012.
III. Remainder shall take effect June 7, 2012.