Section 90. Siting criteria check list

The following criteria will be considered by the commission in determining whether, and upon what condition to issue any permit for a boat mooring facility. In addition, the commission may consider other factors relevant to a specific project or application.

Criteria	Undesirable	Desirable
Water Depth	Less than 3 ft. mlw	Greater than 3 ft. mlw
Salinity	Suitable for shellfish growth	Unsuitable for shellfish growth
Water Quality	Approved, conditionally approved or seasonally approved for shellfish harvesting	Closed for direct marketing of shellfish. Little or no potential for future productivity
Designated Shellfish Grounds	Private leases or public oyster ground in proximity	No private leases or public ground within affected area. No potential for future productivity
Maximum Wave Height	Greater than 1 ft.	Less than 1 ft.
Current	Greater than 1 knot	Less than 1 knot
Dredging	Requires frequent dredging	Does not require frequent maintenance
	No suitable site for dredged material	Suitable site for all dredged material
Flushing Rate (Tidal Exchange)	Inadequate to maintain water quality	Adequate to maintain water quality
Proximity to Natural or Improved Channel	Greater than 50 ft. to navigable water depths	Less than 50 ft. to navigable channel
Threatened or Endangered Species	Present as defined in existing chapters, or project has potential to affect habitat	Absent; project will not affect
Adjacent Wetlands	Cannot maintain suitable buffer	Suitable buffer to be maintained
Navigation & Safety	Water body difficult to navigate or presently overcrowded conditions exist	Navigation not impeded
Existing Use of Site	Presently used for skiing, crabbing, fishing, swimming or other potentially conflicting uses	Not presently used for skiing, fishing, swimming or other recreational use
Submerged Aquatic Vegetation	Present	Absent
Shoreline	Bulkheading Required	Shoreline protected
Stabilization		by natural or planted vegetation or riprap
Erosion Control Structures	Groins and/or jetties necessary	No artificial structures needed
Finfish Habitat Usage	Important spawning and nursery area	Unimportant area for spawning or nursery for any commercially or recreationally valuable species

Historical Notes

Derived from VR450-01-0047 § 9, Volume 04, Issue 21, eff. August 17, 1988.

Statutory Authority

§§ 28.2-201 and 28.2-1204 of the Code of Virginia.