Zoning By Law - Town of Ashburnham, Massachusetts

water bodies. Dry wells shall be used only where other methods are
infeasible, and shall be preceded by oil, grease, and sediment traps to
facilitate removal of contamination. All recharge areas shall be permanently
maintained in full working order by the owner.
h. A Special Permit shall be required for the rendering impervious of more
than 15%, or 2,500 square feet of any lot, provided that a system for
artificial recharge of precipitation to groundwater is developed, which shall
not result in degradation of groundwater.
3.34 Flood Plain District Regulations
a. In the Floodway, designated on the Flood Boundary and Floodway Map, the
following provisions shall apply:
1.) All encroachments, within the Floodway, including fill, new
construction, substantial improvements to existing structures, and other
development are prohibited unless certification by a registered
professional engineer or architect is provided by the applicant
demonstrating that an equal amount of compensatory flood storage area,
having an unrestricted hydraulic connection to the same waterway or
water body, is provided within the same property bounds.
Compensatory storage shall mean a volume not previously used for
flood storage on the same property and shall be incrementally equal to
the theoretical volume of flood water at each elevation, up to and
including the 100-year flood elevation, which would be displaced by the
proposed project.
2.) Any encroachment meeting the above standard shall comply with the
flood plain requirements of the State Building Code.
Except for structures designed for flood control or water storage
purposes, allowed or permitted uses shall not substantially reduce
natural water storage capacities nor substantially affect natural stream
flow.
Septic tanks, cesspools and leaching fields shall not be permitted.
Driveways and roads are permitted where alternative means of access
are impractical.
b. Subdivision Standards for the Flood Plain District
All subdivision proposals and other proposed new development shall be
reviewed by the Planning Board’s engineer at the applicants expense to
determine whether such proposals will be reasonably safe from flooding. If
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ASHBURNHAM ZONING BY-LAWS
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