The content of a Drainage Maintenance Services application file is defined by articles R.181-12 et seq. of the environment code. Authorization requests may, after examination on a case-by-case basis, be subject to environmental assessment. An impact study, the content of which is defined by article R.122-5 of the environment code, is then necessary.
In all cases, the content of the file is proportionate to the importance of the Drainage Maintenance Services project and the environmental sensitivity. It should, at a minimum, include the following:
An impact study (the impact study, if necessary, replaces the impact study);
The justification of the project considers the overall operation of the farm: choice of plots to be drained, development, management, etc.
- A diagnosis of the wetlands on the plots to drain
- Avoidance, reduction, or compensation measures (ERC sequence);
- Monitoring and evaluation measures.
Provisions of the SDAGE and the SAGEs
Drainage Maintenance Services projects must comply with the following provisions of the SDAGE Loire-Bretagne 2016-2021:
Discharges from agricultural Drainage Maintenance Services systems cannot be carried out in groundwater or directly in watercourses. They require the installation of buffer basins or any other effective equivalent device (see provision 3B-3).
The preservation of wetlands requires limiting their drainage as much as possible.
Owners of projects impacting a wetland seek another location to avoid degrading the wetland. In the absence of an alternative, after reducing the impacts of the project, when its implementation leads to the degradation or disappearance of wetlands, the compensation primarily aims to restore the functionalities associated with these areas (see provision 8B1).
The SAGEs, in their regulations, may contain rules concerning drainage projects, more particularly about the preservation of wetlands.
Other regulations
Agricultural Drainage Maintenance Services projects may be subject to other regulations, in particular the uprooting of hedges, the turning of meadows, the destruction of protected species, etc.
Sizing and design of buffer basins
The reference adopted at the departmental level is the technical guide for the establishment of artificial wetland buffer zones (IRESTEA/ONEMA-Jan 2015) which recommends a storage capacity of 30 m³/drained.
The design of the buffer basins must allow sufficient purification of the water returned to the environment. In particular, it is necessary to:
- Provide sufficient residence time (appropriate leakage rate);
- Allow the revegetation of the basins (provide for the permanent maintenance of a volume of water for the development of hygrophilous vegetation);
- Ensure the safety of people, in particular by planning a gently sloping part of the bank.
Devices other than buffer basins can considere. In this case, the petitioner must show their effectiveness in the file.
Monitoring and evaluation
There are no plans to limit the duration of authorizations granted for drainage networks, except in special cases. The petitioner must therefore provide monitoring and evaluation measures to ensure the proper functioning of the facilities over time. These measures must include in the declaration file or the authorization request.
- More specifically, provisions should make for:
- Maintenance of buffer devices: cleaning of basins, maintenance of vegetation, etc.
- Monitoring of all facilities to ensure that operation is by the project;
- Assessment of the quality of the water returned to the environment: visual examination and possibly quality measurements.
The follow-up can lead to modifying the installations according to the results observed. Any modification must first submit to the DDT.
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