LARIMER COUNTY RURAL AREA ROAD STANDARDS

Chapter 8 – Environmental and Agricultural Design GuidelinesSection 8.3 Preliminary Review Stage8.3 PRELIMINARY REVIEW STAGEDuring the Preliminary Design process, and before the Preliminary Review stage, a DetailedEnvironmental Report should be produced based upon further field and research mapping andanalysis of needed permits and mitigation mandated by local, state and federal agencies. Thereport should contain the following at a minimum:A. Detailed definition of habitatB. Final inventory of resourcesC. Expected effects to these resourcesD. Known mitigation requirements1. Mandated or simply appropriate2. Erosion Control Plan3. Re-seeding specifications4. Wetland mitigation planE. Required permits or notifications of intent and their statusAn example Environmental Checklist is included in this chapter. The final section of thechecklist should be completed and included in the Final Environmental Report to assure allrequirements for resource inventory, permit acquisition, and mitigation plans are included.8.4 FINAL DESIGN STAGEThe final design stage requires all mitigation plans to be finalized and to become part of the finalconstruction plans for the project. At this point decisions should be made about inclusion of anyor all parts of the mitigation requirements in the general construction bidding package. Somerequirements may involve aspects that require a special consultant. This could involve aspectsof the project such as re-seeding or wetland reconstruction.All required environmental permits, as described in the preliminary design stage, should be inhand and all required environmental screenings and letters from local, state and federalagencies received. Before construction begins all required notices of intent to beginconstruction should be sent with appropriate lead times to comply with regulatory requirements.For instance, a Corps of Engineers 404 permit requires a pre-construction notification (PCN)letter from 30 to 45 (NW26 only) days before construction is to begin. The State StormwaterConstruction Permit application must be sent at least 10 days before construction begins.8.5 CONSTRUCTION STAGEDuring the construction phase of the project, a designated agent should assure that allmitigation requirements are completed satisfactorily and construction activities areaccomplished in compliance with all permit (such as NPDES) requirements. Constructionactivities involving environmental mitigation requirements must be inspected on a regular basis.The Owner’s Engineer, or a designated consultant, should assure compliance with anyenvironmental requirements of the construction contract. Any deficiencies should be reported tothe Owner’s Engineer immediately and steps taken to correct the situation.Larimer County Rural Area Road Standards Page 8-3October 22, 2007