Let the Environmental Review Commission know WNC needs safe development standards for steep slope construction.
Notice of Public Meetingon Artificial Slope Construction in Mountainous Areas
PUBLIC MEETING:
The Commission Counselof the Environmental Review Commission (ERC) will hold a public meeting from 4:00p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Thursday 10 January 2008 in the Lecture Room of theSimpson Administration Building at Asheville Buncombe Technical CommunityCollege located at 340 Victoria Road, Asheville, North Carolina 28801. (This meeting may be rescheduled in the eventof hazardous weather conditions. Additional meetings may be scheduled at a future date.) The purpose ofthis meeting is to receive public comment on behalf of the ERC on proposedlegislation to regulate artificial slope construction in mountainous areas. Additional information about this meeting isset out in other sections of this notice.
BACKGROUNDINFORMATION:
The Environmental Review Commission (ERC) is an entity ofthe General Assembly of North Carolina. The ERC is established by G.S. 120.70-41 et seq. to serve as theprincipal legislative entity responsible for legislative oversight and study ofmatters related to protection of the environment and conservation of naturalresources. (Note that the ERC is a separateentity from the Environmental Management Commission (EMC), which is anexecutive branch agency within the Department of Environment and NaturalResources (DENR) responsible for implementation of various environmentallaws.)
During the 2007 Regular Session, the General Assemblyconsidered legislation to address issues related to artificial slopeconstruction in mountainous areas of the State (House Bill 1756). As a result of these discussions, language wasincluded in Senate Bill 1256 (the Studies Act of 2007) that would haveauthorized the ERC to study issues related to safe artificial slopeconstruction in mountainous areas, including: the need for and advisability ofestablishing minimum statewide management requirements for safe artificialslope construction in mountainous areas of the State; recordation
of natural hazards; environmental permit conditions andlimitations and land-use restrictions associated with real property located inmountainous and other areas of the State; and disclosure to prospectivepurchasers of real property of those hazards, conditions, and restrictions. Although Senate Bill 1256 was not enacted,the ERC plans to proceed with plans to study issues related to artificial slopeconstruction in mountainous areas of the State pursuant to G.S. 120-70.43.
MEETING PROCEDURES:
All personsinterested in the issue of artificial slope construction in mountainous areas areinvited to attend the public meeting. Theconduct of this public meeting will be determined by the Commission Counselbased on attendance and other factors. To the extent possible, the meeting willbe informal so as to promote dialogue among attendees. The Commission Counsel mayhowever determine that attendees who wish to be heard must make oral statementswithin a specified period of time and in a specified order. Any person who desires to comment isrequested, but is not required, to submit a written statement for inclusion inthe record of the public meeting. Written statements should be on standard size (8½" x 11")paper with sufficient margins for binding. The record of proceedings will remain open until 1 February 2008. To be included in the record, a writtenstatement must be received by the ERC by 1 February 2008.
Written statementsshould be sent to:
Jessica K. Bennett,Commission Clerk or email to: erc@ncleg.net
334 LegislativeOffice Building
300 North Salisbury Street
Raleigh, NorthCarolina 27603
ATTACHMENTS (1):
House Bill 1756 (Safe Artificial Slope Construction Act), 1stEdition
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Persons who have questionsabout the public meeting concerning artificial slope constructionin mountainous areas, or other matters related to the ERC, may contact theCommission Counsel or other Commission staff at (919) 733-2578 or by email at erc@ncleg.net.
