An Act to amend and reenact § 46.1-299, as amended, of the Code of Virginia, relating to devices signalling intention to turn or stop and rules therefor.
Volume 1968 Law 99
Volume | 1958 |
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Law Number | 638 |
Subjects |
Law Body
CHAPTER 638
An Act to amend and reenact §§ 62-94.1, 62-94.3 and 62-94.4 of the Code
of Virginia, relating to the impoundment of surface waters. rH 429]
Approved April 1, 1958
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§ 62-94.1, 62-94.3 and 62-94.4 of the Code of Virginia be
amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 62-94.1. Definitions — (1) Except as modified below, the definitions
contained in Title 1 shall apply in this chapter.
(2) “Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Water Resources.
(8) “Impounding structure” means a man-made device, whether a
dam across a watercourse or other structure outside a watercourse, used
or to be used for the authorized storage of flood waters for subsequent
beneficial use.
(4) “Watercourse” means a natural channel having a well defined bed
and banks and in which water flows when it normally does flow. For the
purposes hereof they shall be limited to rivers, creeks, streams, branches,
and other watercourses which are nonnavigable in fact and which are
wholly within the jurisdiction of the State.
(5) “Riparian land” is land which is contiguous to and touches a
watercourse. It does not include land outside the watershed of the water-
course. Real property under common ownership and which is not separated
from riparian land by land of any other ownership shall likewise be deemed
riparian land, notwithstanding that such real property is divided into tracts
and parcels which may not bound upon the watercourse.
(6) “Riparian owner” is an owner of riparian land.
(7) “Average flow” means the average discharge of a stream at a
particular point and normally is expressed in cubic feet per second. It may
be determined from actual measurements or computed from the most accu-
rate information available.
(8) “Diffused surface waters” are those which, * resulting from
precipitation, * flow down across the surface of the land until they reach
a watercourse, after which they become parts of streams.
(9) “Flood waters” means water in a stream which is over and above
the average flow.
(10) “Court” means the circuit court of the county or corporation
pone Me the city in which an impoundment is located or proposed to be
located.
§ 62-94.3. When flood waters may be captured and stored by riparian
owners.—Water in watercourses which is over and above the average flow
of the stream may, upon approval, be captured and stored by riparian
owners for their later use under the following conditions:
(1) As a result of the capture and storage of such waters, there will
be no damage to others.
(2) The title to the land on which the impounding structure and the
impounded water will rest are in the person or persons requesting the
authority.
(3) All costs incident to such impoundment, including devices above
and below for indicating average flow, will be borne by the person or
persons requesting the authority.
(4) For impoundments with a capacity of more than fifty acre-feet
of storage all construction is approved by a registered civil engineer or a
registered agricultural engineer. For those with capacities of fifty acre-
feet, or less, of storage all construction will be approved by a registered
civil engineer or a registered agricultural engineer or by some other com-
petent person.
(5) Those requesting the authority will insure that the flow below
the impoundment is equal to:
(a) at least the average flow when the flow immediately above the
-impounding structure is greater than the average flow, or
(b) at least the flow immediately above the impounding structure
when that flow is equal to or less than the average flow.
(6) If needed, provision will be made in the impounding structure for
an adequate spillway and for means of releasing water to maintain the
required flow downstream.
(7) If for purposes of irrigation, the quantity of water stored (exclu-
sive of foreseeable losses) will not exceed that required for a period of
twelve months to irrigate the cleared acreage owned by those participating
in the undertaking and lying in the watershed of the stream from which
the water is taken.
(8) All structures and equipment incident to such impoundment will
be maintained in safe and serviceable condition by the owners and all parts
thereof in a watercourse will be removed when no longer required for the
purpose.
(9) Priority to the right to store flood waters, as outlined, will go to
upstream riparian owners.
_ (10). Those impounding flood waters will, upon request, provide appro-
priate information concerning the impoundment to the Commissioner and
State Water Control Board.
§ 62-94.4. Application for leave to store flood waters; notice to inter-
ested persons and to State Water Control Board.—Any riparian owner, or
riparian owners, desiring to store flood waters under the conditions speci-
fied in § 62-94.3 may apply for leave so to do to the circuit court of the
county or corporation court of the city wherein the impounding structure
is proposed to be built. Such application shall be made by petition filed in
the clerk’s office of the court. It shall set forth the name and address of
the riparian owner, or owners, the purpose of the proposed impoundment,
the desired storage capacity and the basis on which determined, the stream
and the point on it from which flood waters are proposed to be taken, the
estimated cost of the project, and an agreement to abide by the provisions
of § 62-94.3. It shall be accompanied by a plat or sketch of the riparian
property which he or they own and on which is shown the site of the
impounding structure and the area to be flooded by the impounded water.
The plat or sketch shall include data sufficient to permit the location of the
property on the official highway map of the county or a map of the city
or town where appropriate. It shall also be accompanied by a plan of the
proposed impounding structure on which appears the approval of the plan
by a registered civil engineer or registered agricultural engineer, (or other
competent person for storage capacities of fifty acre-feet or less) and agree-
ment thereto by the riparian owner. All interested persons shall be given
notice of such application by publication in accordance with §§ 8-71
and 8-72 of the Code. A copy of the petition, together with a copy of the
plat and a copy of the plan, shall be sent by registered mail to the Com-
missioner who shall forthwith notify the State Water Control Board thereof.