2013 Maryland Code
ENVIRONMENT
§ 14-506 - Permit for construction of facility -- Impact statement required; advisory comments from certain State departments; county action prerequisite to processing application, etc

§14-506.

(a) Upon the filing of an application and prior to deciding whether or not to grant the permit, a statement of the economic, fiscal, and environmental impact of the proposed facility shall be prepared by one or more appropriate parties selected by the Secretary after receiving the advisory comments of the Secretaries of Natural Resources, Business and Economic Development, and Transportation and the Director of Planning. The statement shall be prepared and filed within six months after selection of the appropriate party or parties. The statement, with written background and supporting material, shall be available to the public. The time for filing the statement may be extended by the Secretary for up to but not more than an additional 12 months for good cause.

(b) The statement shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

(1) An inventory of existing economic and environmental conditions at the project site and in the immediate area;

(2) A project description of what is to be constructed, and the manner and construction schedule and the method of construction;

(3) A complete description of the proposed facility including at least its anticipated size, effluent load, and production levels;

(4) An assessment of the probable economic, fiscal, and environmental impact of the project upon the natural environment of the project site coastal area and the immediate area;

(5) Recommendations for minimizing any adverse economic, fiscal, or environmental impacts;

(6) An evaluation of the need for the facility and the relative merit of other possible sites; and

(7) In the case of a refinery, a description of the manner of transportation of the feed stock and the product of the crude oil.

(c) The application shall not be processed further nor shall the analysis required be undertaken until the county government wherein the facility is proposed to be located or wherein the pipeline will terminate, has certified to the Department that all local land use classifications, including zoning, special exceptions, variances or conditional uses, necessary for the location and operation of the proposed facility have been or will be granted. If the county government in its discretion stays the certification and so notifies the Department that it will continue its stay until the analysis is completed then, and only in that event may the application be processed and the analysis prepared as set forth under this subtitle.