does not cover a significant number and acreage of small wetlands that do not 

 drain or connect with lakes or streams. 



The Board of Environmental Protection (BEP) administers four of the seven 

 laws. These include: Protection and Improvement of Waters, Site Location of 

 Development Act, Solid Waste Management Act, and the Oil Discharge and 

 Prevention Control Act. Under Protection and Improvement of Waters, the BEP 

 has licensing authority over all discharges of waste waters into Maine waters 

 (this includes all aquatic systems except those that are confined and retained 

 completely upon the property of one party and do not drain into or connect 

 with any other waters of the State). Besides being licensed, any discharge 

 must receive "best practicable treatment" and must not lower the quality of 

 any classified body of water below its classification level or any 

 unclassified body of water below the classification level that the BEP expects 

 to adopt (see appendix B) . 



The Site Location of Development Act requires the Board to "...control the 

 location of those developments substantially affecting local environment in 

 order to ensure that such development will be located in a manner which will 

 have a minimal adverse impact on the natural environments or their 

 surroundings." This includes projects >20 acres (8 ha) and those covering 

 more than 60,000 sq ft. This act requires persons proposing such development 

 in an organized township to obtain a permit from the BEP. The permit will be 

 either granted or denied depending upon several criteria, two of which are 

 that no adverse effect on the natural environment will occur and that the 

 proposed development will be built on soil types that are suitable to the 

 nature of the undertaking. The Land Use Regulation Commission administers 

 this law in unorganized townships. 



Administered by the BEP, the Solid Waste Management Act includes certain 

 criteria developed to protect ground and surface water resources. The major 

 criteria include: (1) all refuse must be placed at least 5 feet (1.5 m) above 

 the level of groundwater, (2) site sloping must be less than 15%, (3) site 

 boundary limits must not be closer than 300 feet (92 m) to a classified body 

 of water, (4) site boundary limits must not be closer than 1000 feet (305 m) 

 to the nearest residence or potable water supply, and (5) surficial material 

 must consist of well-graded granular material containing from 15% to 40% fine 

 sands and must be relatively free of cobbles. This act is designed to protect 

 all freshwater aquatic habitats from runoff from solid waste in organized 

 townships . 



The Oil Discharge Prevention and Pollution Control Act is designed (1) to 

 protect the coast of Maine from damage caused by oil spillage, by prohibiting 

 the unlicensed discharge of oil (coastal waters extending 12 miles, 19 km, 

 seaward), and (2) to regulate the manner in which transfers of oil are 

 conducted. Although the BEP holds the major responsibility for decision- 

 making with regard to licenses and conditions and violations of this act, 

 several other State agencies are involved in administering it. The Division 

 of Oil Conveyance Services of the Department of Environmental Protection is in 

 charge of administering licenses, cleaning up oil spills, and research and 

 development. Enforcement is the duty of the State Attorney General. The 

 Department of Marine Resources (MDMR) and U.S. Coast Guard must be consulted 

 for advice before any anchorage regulation is adopted. 



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