An Act Concerning Significant Wildlife Habitat and Wetlands of Special Significance
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 0261
Committee: Natural Resources
Sponsors: KOFFMAN, PERRY
Amends: 38 MRSA §480-Q

Legislative Document 
No. 261 
H.P.200 
House of Representatives, January 18, 2005 
An Act Concerning Significant Wildlife Habitat and Wetlands of 
Special Significance 
Submitted by the Department of Environmental Protection pursuant to Joint Rule 204. 
Reference to the Committee on Natural Resources suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative KOFFMAN of Bar Harbor. 
Cosponsored by Senator PERRY of Penobscot. 
Printed on recycled paper 
7J1~ 
7?7·17Id£~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec.!. 38 MRSA ~480-B. sub-~2-B. as enacted by PL 1989, c. 
838, §3, is amended to read: 
2-B. 
Forest 
management 
activities. 
"Forest 
management 
acti -vi ties" means 
timber 
stand 
improvement, 
timber harvesting 
activities, forest products harvesting and regeneration of forest 
stands. 
For the purposes of this definition, "timber harvesting 
activities" 
means 
timber 
harvesting, 
the 
construction 
and 
maintenance of roads used primarily for timber harvesting and 
other activities conducted to facilitate timber harvesting. 
For 
the purposes of this definition, "timber harvesting" means the 
cutting or removal of timber for the primary purpose of selling 
or processing forest products. 
Sec. 2. 38 MRS A ~480-B. sub-§lO. as amended by PL 1999, c. 
401. Pt. 
BB, §17, is repealed and the following enacted in its 
place: 
10. 
Significant wildlife habitat. 
"Signif icant \Olildlife 
habitat" means: 
A. 
The following areas to the extent that they have been 
mapped by the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife or 
are within any other protected natural resource: 
habitat, 
as 
defined 
by 
the 
Department 
of 
Inland 
Fisheries 
and 
wildlife, for species appearing on the official state or 
federal lists of endangered or threatened animal species; 
high and moderate value deer wintering areas 
and travel 
corridors as defined by the Department of Inland fisheries 
and Wildlife; high and moderate value waterfowl and wadin.9 
bird habitats, 
including 
nesting 
and 
feeding 
areas 
as 
defined by the Department of Inland fisheries and Wildlife L 
critical spawning and nursery areas for Atlantic salmon as 
defined by the Atlantic Salmon Commission; 
and Shorebird 
nesting, 
feeding 
and 
staging 
areas 
and 
seabird 
nesting 
islands as defined by the Department of Inland fisheries and 
Wildlife; and 
B. 
Significant vernal 
pool 
habitat 
as 
defined 
by 
the 
Department 
of 
Inland 
Fisheries 
and 
Wildlife 
and 
in 
conformance with criteria adopted by the department. 
In an 
area in which regulated activities consist solely of forest 
~anagement activities, significant vernal pool habitat is Q9 
defined and identified by the Department of Inland Fisheries 
and 
Wildlife. 
For 
purposes 
of 
this 
subsection 
only, 
"identified" means identified in a specific location by the 
Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. 
Page l-LR0583(1) 
Sec. 3. 38 MRSA §480-Q. sub-§17. 1f1fE and F. as enacted by PL 
1(,)',15, c. 575, §L are amended to read: 
read: 
E. 
The activity does not take place in a wetland containing 
or consisting of peat land dominated by shrubs, sedges and 
sphagnum moss: aBe 
F. 
The 
entire activity constitutes 
a 
single, 
complete 
Sec. 4. 38 MRSA §480-Q. sub-§17, 1f1fG, H and I are enacted to 
G. 
The activity does not occur ln a wetland containing a 
natural 
community 
that 
is critically imperiled, 
SI, 
or 
imperiled, 
S2, 
as 
defined by 
the 
Natural 
Areas 
Program 
established in Title 12, section 544: 
2R 
H. 
The activity does not occur in a significant wildlife 
habitat: and 
1. 
The activitol does not occur in a wetland area that is 
inundated with 
floodwater 
during 
a 
lOa-olear 
flood event 
based 
on 
flood 
insurance 
mi;!ps 
Qroduced 
bol 
the 
Federal 
EmergencJ,' 
Management 
Agencol 
or 
other 
site-sQecific 
information. 
SUMMARY 
This bill adds a clarification of "timber harvesting" within 
tho 
definition 
of 
"forest 
management 
activities" 
to 
improve 
consistency between the natural resources protection laws and the 
Maine Revised Statutes, Title 12, section 8868. 
This bill removes lanquaqe in the definition of "siqnificant 
wildlife habitat" in the natural resources protection laws that 
requires significant vernal pools to be identified in a specific 
location. 
Instead, 
significant vernal 
pool 
habitat 
would 
be 
required 
to 
meet 
specific 
criteria 
to 
be 
considered 
as 
"significant 1"ildlife habitat." 
Criteria for identification of 
siqnificant vernal 
pools 
and 
associated management 
areas 
are 
established through rule. 
The bill adds 
a limitation to the existing exemption for 
minor alterations in freshwater wetlands by providing that the 
exemption would not be available if the proposed activity would 
occur 
in 
a 
wetland 
containing 
a 
natural 
community 
that 
is 
critically imperiled, SL or imperiled, S2, 
as defined by the 
Natural Areas Program, in a significant wildlife habitat or in a 
wptland area that is inundated with floodwater during a IOO-yeal 
flood event.