County Commissioner's Office

County Talk
By
Lamar Paris - Commissioner 

Q. Can I build a pond in Union County?
A.  The state has many regulations related to ponds and lakes, all of which must be permitted through the Environmental Protection Division in Atlanta. You can receive more specific information from the Building Inspection Dept. at 706-439-6045.

Q. What can be done to prevent people and developers from clear cutting the mountain sides?
A. State law exempts forestry and timber operations from county regulations related to property in the mountain protection area (land above 2200’ in elevation).  Therefore, as long as a forestry operation does not cut trees in the stream buffer, the county has no control over their projects.  However, if a forestry operation violates the buffer area along streams, then the property owners are prevented from selling the property for development for a three year period.

Q.  Is the value of property increased because it is located on a county road?
A.  There is not a clear cut answer to this question.  In some cases it is an advantage. However, in most subdivisions, the roads are private and it certainly has not seemed to affect their value either in sales or in tax assessments.  The county appraisers will tell you that when you compare sales prices, generally there is very little difference. 

Surprisingly, people also assume that a paved road places a much higher value on property than a gravel road.  However, unless it is a very long and/or bad gravel road, there is actually very little difference in value.  If you live on a gravel road and have to put up with the dust, it is certainly an issue to you.  Sales tend to increase on a road once it is paved and it generally seems to sell better, but the price does not change drastically.

Q. We heard that there is a new regulation related to placing a deck in the stream buffer. What does the county know about this?
A.  Apparently this is a new interpretation of the rule that has been adopted by the Environmental Protection Division.  Prior to this past year, anyone could place a deck in the stream buffer so long as it was a pervious surface (water would drain through it) and the canopy trees were not impacted.  However, that has been recently changed and now EPD tells us that their interpretation allows a maximum of 100 sq. ft. of deck in a buffer.

In addition, you can only have rubber tired equipment and can only do hand clearing/underbrushing work in a stream buffer.  No grading is allowed in this area.

Q. How wide are stream buffers?
A. It depends on what watershed they are in.  Most of the county falls in the Nottely River watershed and the stream buffers have been 50’ wide for several years, however, there will be some major changes to that very soon.  On the Butternut Creek watershed, the buffers are 25’ wide.  If you are developing property, you can not do anything in the buffer until your development has been stabilized and you have no silt run-off on your property.  Once stabilized, the buffer can be hand thinned without cutting any of the canopy trees (those that provide shade to the buffer.)  If you are a private home owner, you can thin and underbrush the buffer area when appropriate, but again you must leave the canopy trees.

All property owners are encouraged to leave as much vegetation as possible in the stream buffer to protect our water quality.

Q. What if I have a pasture cleared of trees with a creek flowing through it? Should I plant trees?
A.  Planting trees is always good for our environment, but planting trees or shrubs in a stream buffer where none exist is one of the best things you can do to protect and enhance water quality for future generations.  Stream temperatures can only be cooled by adding shade to existing stream buffers.  Also, the root systems of these plants help filter storm water runoff (rain) and protect stream bank erosion. Woody debris also adds valuable nutrients to the stream and attracts and provides a nesting place for insects and microscopic species that are vital to the trout population.  While it will take a few years for new trees to provide shade for a stream, they will be a valuable asset to the stream buffer almost immediately as they begin to help filter and clean storm water runoff. The more dense the plantings, the more they will provide increased water quality.

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