Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 310 CMR - DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Title 310 CMR 10.00 - Wetlands Protection › Additional Regulations for Inland Wetlands › Section 10.54 - Bank (Naturally Occurring Banks and Beaches)

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
(1)
Preamble
. Banks are likely to be significant to public
				or private water supply, to ground water supply, to flood control, to storm
				damage prevention, to the prevention of pollution and to the protection of
				fisheries and wildlife habitat. Where Banks are composed of concrete, asphalt
				or other artificial impervious material, said Banks are likely to be
				significant to flood control and storm damage prevention.
Banks are areas where ground water discharges to the surface
				  and where, under some circumstances, surface water recharges the ground
				  water.
Where Banks are partially or totally vegetated, the
				  vegetation serves to maintain the Banks' stability, which in turn protects
				  water quality by reducing erosion and siltation.
Banks may also provide shade that moderates water
				  temperatures, as well as providing breeding habitat, escape cover and food, all
				  of which are significant to the protection of fisheries. Banks which drop off
				  quickly or overhang the water's edge often contain numerous undercuts which are
				  favorite hiding spots for important game species such as largemouth bass
				  (Micropterus salmoides).
The topography, plant community composition and structure,
				  and soil structure of banks together provide important food, shelter, migratory
				  and overwintering areas, and breeding areas for wildlife. Topography plays a
				  role in determining the suitability of banks to serve as burrowing or feeding
				  habitat. Soil structure also plays a role in determining the suitability for
				  burrowing, hibernation and other cover. Bank topography and soil structure
				  impact the bank's vegetative structure, as well. Bushes and other undergrowth,
				  trees, vegetation extending from the bank into the water, and vegetation
				  growing along the water's edge are also important to a wide variety of
				  wildlife. A number of tubers and berry bushes also grow in banks and serve as
				  important food for wildlife. Finally, banks may provide important shelter for
				  wildlife which needs to move between wetland areas.
Banks act to confine floodwaters during the most frequent
				  storms, preventing the spread of water to adjacent land. Because Banks confine
				  water during such storms to an established channel they maintain water
				  temperatures and depths necessary for the protection of fisheries. The
				  maintenance of cool water temperatures during warm weather is critical to the
				  survival of important game species such as brook trout (Salvelinus
				  frontinalis), rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus Mykiss) and brown trout (Salmo
				  trutta). An alteration of a Bank that permits water to frequently and
				  consistently spread over a large and more shallow area increases the amount of
				  property which is routinely flooded, as well as elevating water temperature and
				  reducing fish habitat within the main channel, particularly during warm
				  weather.
(2)
Definition, Critical Characteristics and Boundary
.
(a) A Bank is the portion of the land surface
				which normally abuts and confines a water body. It occurs between a water body
				and a vegetated bordering wetland and adjacent flood plain, or, in the absence
				of these, it occurs between a water body and an upland.
A Bank may be partially or totally vegetated, or it may be
				  comprised of exposed soil, gravel or stone.
(b) The physical characteristics of a Bank,
				as well as its location, as described in 310 CMR 10.54(2)(a), are critical to
				the protection of the interests specified in 310 CMR 10.54(1).
(c) The upper boundary of a Bank is the first
				observable break in the slope or the mean annual flood level, whichever is
				lower. The lower boundary of a Bank is the mean annual low flow
				level.