West Virginia Code 22-14-4 – General powers and duties of director; maximum fee established for certificates of approval and annual registration
The secretary has the following powers and duties:
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 22-14-4
- Certificate of approval: means the written approval issued by the secretary to a person who has applied to the secretary for a certificate of approval that authorizes the person to place, construct, enlarge, alter, repair or remove a dam and specifies the conditions or limitations under which the work is to be performed by that person. See West Virginia Code 22-14-3
- Dam: means an artificial barrier or obstruction, including any works appurtenant to it and any reservoir created by it, which is or will be placed, constructed, enlarged, altered or repaired so that it does or will impound or divert water and:
(A) Is or will be twenty-five feet or more in height from the natural bed of the stream or watercourse measured at the downstream toe of the barrier and which does or can impound fifteen acre-feet or more of water. See West Virginia Code 22-14-3
- Enlargement: means any change in or addition to an existing dam which: (1) Raises the height of the dam. See West Virginia Code 22-14-3
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Natural Resources Conservation Service: means the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the United States Department of Agriculture or any successor or predecessor agency, including the Soil Conservation Service. See West Virginia Code 22-14-3
- Owner: means any person who:
(1) Holds legal possession, ownership or partial ownership of an interest in a dam, its appurtenant works or the real property the dam is situated upon. See West Virginia Code 22-14-3
- Person: means any public or private corporation, institution, association, society, firm, organization or company organized or existing under the laws of this or any other state or country. See West Virginia Code 22-14-3
- Secretary: means the Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection. See West Virginia Code 22-14-3
- State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
(a) To control and exercise regulatory jurisdiction over dams as provided for in this article;
(b) To review all applications for a certificate of approval for the placement, construction, enlargement, alteration, repair or removal of any dam;
(c) To grant, modify, amend, revoke, restrict or refuse to grant any certificate of approval if proper or necessary to protect life and property as provided in this article;
(d) To propose, modify, repeal and enforce rules and issue orders, to implement and make effective the powers and duties vested in the secretary by the provisions of this article;
(e) To take any lawful action considered necessary for the effective enforcement of the provisions of this article;
(f) To establish and charge reasonable fees not to exceed $300 for the review of applications for certificates of approval and the issuance thereof and for assessment of an annual registration fee not to exceed $100 for persons holding a certificate of approval for existing dams. The secretary shall promulgate rules to establish a schedule of application fees and to establish annual registration fees: Provided, That no fee shall be assessed for dams designed and constructed by the natural resources conservation service for natural resources conservation districts;
(g) To employ qualified consultants or additional persons as necessary to review applications for certificates of approval and to recommend whether they should be approved, to inspect dams and to enforce the provisions of this article;
(h) To cooperate and coordinate with agencies of the federal government, this state and counties and municipalities of this state to improve, secure, study and enforce dam safety and dam technology within this state;
(i) To investigate and inspect dams as is necessary to implement or enforce the provisions of this article and when necessary to enter the public or private property of any dam owner. The secretary may investigate, inspect or enter private or public property after notifying the dam owner or other person in charge of the dam of an intent to investigate, inspect or enter: Provided, That where the owner or person in charge of the dam is not available, the secretary may investigate, inspect and enter without notice; and
(j) To prepare and publish within a reasonable time, criteria to govern the design, construction, repair, inspection and maintenance of proposed dams herein defined, and to review these criteria annually in order to consider improved technology for inclusion in such criteria.