Memorandum
 
Memorandum

                                                  

 

To:              Mike Wildgen, City Manager

From:          Rich Barr, Fire Marshall and Toni Ramirez Wheeler, Staff Attorney

Cc:              Chief Jim McSwain, David Corliss and Debbie Van Saun, Assistant City Managers

Re:              Amendments to Chapter 8, Article 2 of the City Code (Blasting Regulations)

Date:           July 21, 2004

 

We are in the process of drafting an ordinance for the City Commission’s consideration that amends the blasting regulations found in Chapter 8, Article 2 of the City Code.  The blasting that occurred earlier this summer in the Fox Chase South subdivision prompted staff to review existing regulations and recommend changes.  A brief description of the major recommendations follows:

 

·                    Require written notification (of intent to blast and with the contractor’s name and other important information) to property owners and utility companies within 1500 feet of the blast site to be sent by certified mail.  The current code provides notice be given in writing but does not specify the method.

·                    Require notice to residents and property owners within 500 feet of the blast site of the opportunity to have a pre-blast survey to be sent by certified mail.  The current code provides notice be given in writing but does not specify the method.

·                    Require the contractor to post in a conspicuous location near the site, a weather-protected copy of the blast plan and pertinent contractor information, including a copy of the permit.  Under the current code, contractors are not required to post such information.  This new requirement is designed to provide interested parties with more information about the blasting operation.

·                    Require the contractor to pay for a person qualified and experienced in blasting operations, who is independent of the contractor, to be at the blast site when the contractor blasts within 500 feet of a structure.  This third-party will oversee the contractor’s operations.    

·                    Define “structure” to include pipelines and large electrical transmission lines.  Whether pipelines and large transmission lines are considered structures under the existing code is vague.  The amendment will make clear that they are. 

·                    Require the Blasting Plan to include a scaled drawing (at the contractor’s expense), produced by the City’s GIS Coordinator, accurately showing dimensions and distances to houses, buildings or other structures within 1500 feet of the blast site.  Under the existing code, a scaled map is required showing the dimensions and distances to structures within 500 feet of the blast site.  If the map is produced by the GIS Coordinator, the Fire Marshall will have assurance of its accuracy and will not need to verify the measurements on the map.

·                    Continue to require seismographic monitoring of blasts within 500 feet of structures to be provided by an independent firm, approved by the City and reporting directly to the Fire Marshall.  Authorize the contractor to provide the seismographic monitoring of blasts occurring at a distance greater than 500 feet of structures.  The monitoring is critical within 500 feet of the structures and should be provided by a firm independent of the contractor. 

·                    Authorize blasting to occur within 100 feet of any structure or building (up to the limits recommended by the U.S. Bureau of Mines Table of Scaled Distances) with written authorization from the property owner.  Under our current regulations, blasting may not occur within 100 feet of a structure, even though a property owner may not object to the blasting. 

·                    Authorize the revocation of a blasting permit if the permittee or any agent of the permittee violates sections 8-207.56 through 8-207.59 of the City Code:

 

8-207.56: Notification of the quantity and location of explosive materials at the site;

8-207.57: Insurance requirements;

8-207.58: Personnel qualifications;

8-207.59: Blasting plan & notifications, pre-blast surveys, ground vibration, distance from structures, blast records.

 

Additional grounds for the City to revoke a permit will include:

 

1.      The City has evidence that any person handling or using explosive materials is under the influence of drugs or alcohol while handling or using the explosive materials; and

2.      The City has evidence the Permittee misrepresented information on the permit application.

 

An appeal process will be included in this section.  Further, the Fire Marshall will have the authority to delay reissuing a permit for a period.  

Currently, there is no express code authority to revoke a permit. 

 

·                    The Application for An Explosives and Blasting Permit Checklist will be inserted into the Code (See attached.)

 

We will forward the draft ordinance to the Fire Code Board of Appeals for review.  Staff will convene the board in late August, if schedules will permit it, or early September, for consideration of the ordinance.  We will advise the Commission of the date and time of the scheduled meeting as soon as it is available. 

 

We will also distribute the draft ordinance to the Lawrence Association of Neighborhoods (LAN), the City’s Neighborhood Contact List (developed by Neighborhood Program Specialist Cindy Nau), developers in the community, and other interested parties for review and comment.