3108. GENERAL TECHNICAL PROVISIONS

3108 GENERAL TECHNICAL PROVISIONS 3108.1 Utilities and Finishes. The applicant shall apply the following minimum standards to all proposed development on a development site located wholly or partially inside a flood hazard area: Installation or replacement of any electrical systems, equipment, and components; heating, ventilating, air conditioning, and plumbing appliances; plumbing fixtures; duct systems; and other service equipment shall be performed so that the systems are elevated above the DFE or designed to prevent water from entering or accumulating inside the components during flooding. New and replacement sanitary sewage systems and gas and oil supply systems shall be designed: (1) To minimize or eliminate infiltration of flood waters into the systems; and (2) So that discharges from the systems into flood waters and onsite waste disposal systems are located to avoid impairment to them or contamination from them during flooding. All new or replacement water facilities and systems shall be designed, located, and constructed to minimize or eliminate flood damage and the infiltration of flood waters. Flood-resistant building materials and installation methods for flooring and interior and exterior walls and wall coverings shall be used below the DFE in accordance with the August 2008 version of FEMA Technical Bulletin 2, Flood Damage-Resistant Materials Requirements. All electrical outlets located below the DFE shall be of the ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) type. All buildings, structures, storage tanks, and appliances and components therein shall be firmly anchored in accordance with ASCE 24 to prevent flotation, collapse, or lateral movement during a flood. 3108.2 Placement. For all development on a development site located partially inside a flood hazard area, every proposed structure shall be placed or designed and constructed to minimize impact upon the flow and height of flood water. 3108.3 Additions. All additions to residential and nonresidential structures located wholly or partially inside flood hazard areas shall comply with the elevation and dry floodproofing requirements of 12-J DCMR (“District of Columbia Existing Building Code”). 3108.4 Historic Preservation. DOEE, in coordination with the Historic Preservation Office (HPO), shall review any permit application for repair or rehabilitation to historic structures wholly or partially inside a flood hazard area. If relief from any of the Floodplain Management Regulations becomes necessary for continued designation as a historic structure, the applicant shall submit either a variance petition or a code modification application as described in § 3116 and § 3117, respectively. 3108.5 Accessory Structures. For a development site located wholly or partially inside a flood hazard area: Accessory structures that are smaller than six hundred square feet (600 sq. ft.) must be elevated, dry floodproofed, or wet floodproofed to at least the DFE; and An accessory structure shall not be converted to a residential use. 3108.6 Elevation Certificates. For any elevated structure, the applicant shall submit to DOEE for review and approval an elevation certificate, which shall be prepared and sealed by a registered design professional using the latest FEMA Elevation Certificate Form and submitted and verified by DOEE: As part of the initial application for a building permit as described in § 3106.4(j); Upon placement of the lowest floor and before further vertical construction, and construction shall not continue further until this elevation certificate has been reviewed and approved; and Before the final building inspection or before the issuance of a conditional certificate of occupancy for core and shell, whichever is earlier. Occupancy shall not begin until this elevation certificate has been reviewed and approved pursuant to the flood resistant provisions of the D.C. Building Code, 12-A DCMR § 110.3. 3108.7 Dry Floodproofing. When dry floodproofing is requested for development on a development site: The applicant shall submit to DOEE for review and approval a floodproofing certificate, which shall be prepared and sealed by a registered design professional and submitted and verified by DOEE: As part of the initial application in support of a building permit as described in § 3106.4(k); Before the final inspection, the issuance of a certificate of completion, or the issuance of the first certificate of occupancy for an occupied space at grade or above, whichever is earlier; and Using the latest FEMA Floodproofing Certificate Form. Occupancy shall not begin until DOEE has reviewed and approved the floodproofing certificate. The property owner shall be responsible for maintenance of the dry floodproofing system and shall record that responsibility in a declaration of covenants. The property owner must properly maintain that system as demonstrated by: (1) Annually deploying the dry flood proofing system and documenting the deployment with a timestamped photo to be kept on file for five (5) years; and (2) Conducting any maintenance, as specified in the floodproofing plans approved by DOEE, and preserving documentation of any maintenance conducted on site for at least five (5) years after that maintenance is conducted. A property owner shall submit a flood emergency operations plan and inspection and maintenance plan that complies with the requirements of ASCE 24 along with all other required documentation in this chapter as part of the initial permit application to DOEE for approval. Dry floodproofing shall be limited to areas where the flood velocities adjacent to the structure are less than or equal to five feet per second (5 ft./sec.) during the design flood. If the specific regulatory flood velocity for a development site in a flood hazard area has not been provided in the FIS and FIRM, then the applicant shall provide the following data to establish those velocities for DOEE’s review and approval: Available reports or studies from federal or District agencies or other sources related to flood velocity; or A hydrologic and hydraulic (H&H) analysis prepared and sealed by a District-registered professional engineer. 3108.8 Enclosures. Any enclosure shall be designed and constructed to allow for the automatic entry and exit of floodwaters for the purpose of equalizing hydrostatic forces on exterior walls. Designs shall be in accordance with ASCE 24 and Appendix G 12-A DCMR. Design and construction of flood openings shall meet the following criteria: (a) There shall be at least two (2) flood openings on different sides of each enclosed area; (b) For the substantial improvement of residential structures wholly or partially mapped in flood hazard areas having space below the DFE that has only one exterior wall, there shall be at least two (2) flood openings on one (1) side or on different sides of each enclosed area; (c) The total net area of all flood openings shall be at least one square inch (1 sq. in.) for each one square foot (1 sq. ft.) of enclosed area, or the flood openings shall be engineered flood openings that are designed and certified by a licensed professional engineer to automatically allow entry and exit of flood waters; (d) The bottom of each flood opening shall be one foot (1 ft.) or less above the higher of either the interior floor or grade or the exterior grade immediately below the opening; (e) Any louvers, screens, or other covers for the flood openings shall allow the automatic flow of floodwaters into and out of the enclosed area; and (f) Interior partitions and load-bearing walls shall have openings to allow water to readily reach every enclosed area. SOURCE: Final Rulemaking published at 32 DCR 6547, 6560 (November 15, 1985): as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 35 DCR 962, 963 (February 12, 1988); as amended by Notice of Final Rulemaking published at 57 DCR 10779 (November 19, 2010); as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 72 DCR 006821 (June 20, 2025). District of Columbia Municipal Regulations Environment 20 DCMR § 3108