Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 321 CMR - DIVISION OF FISHERIES AND WILDLIFE › Title 321 CMR 11.00 - Nature Preserves › Section 11.02 - Definitions

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
For the purposes of
				321 CMR
				11.00 the following words and phrases shall have the
				following meanings:
Alcoholic Beverage
means that
				definition provided in M.G.L. c. 138.
Articles of Dedication
means the
				documents that create the nature preserve which are filed with the Secretary of
				the EOEEA, that include the nomination form with the justification of
				qualification of the parcel, attachments to the nomination, and the protection
				plan for the nature preserve.
Biodiversity
means the full range of
				variety and variability within and among living organisms and the ecological
				complexes in which they occur, and encompasses ecosystem or community
				diversity, species diversity, and genetic diversity.
Camping
means the utilization of any
				piece of equipment for sleeping, including but not limited to, a sleeping bag,
				blanket, hammock, tent, tarp, motor or recreational vehicle, trailer,
				watercraft, or structure, for the purpose of occupying a piece of land or water
				for transient and temporary outdoor living.
Controlled Substance
means that
				definition provided in M.G.L. c. 94C, § 1.
Council
means the Nature Preserve
				Council constituted under M.G.L. c. 131, § 10B, and including agency
				Associate Members as provided for in
				321 CMR
				11.03.
DCR
means the Department of
				Conservation and Recreation.
DFW
or
Division
means the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife
				within the Department of Fish and Game.
Environmental Monitor
means the twice monthly publication of EOEEA that provides notice of all
				submissions received by EOEEA under M.G.L. c. 30, §§ 62 through 62H.
				It contains descriptions of proposals and notices of matters before the
				Secretary.
EOEEA
means the Executive Office of
				Energy and Environmental Affairs of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Managing Agency
means the agency with
				management responsibility for the area dedicated or under consideration for
				dedication as a nature preserve.
Native
, in reference to species, means
				a species which either occurs, or has occurred, within Massachusetts; provided
				that the original occurrence of such species is not the result of a deliberate
				or accidental introduction by humans into Massachusetts nor an introduction
				elsewhere which spread into Massachusetts.
Natural Community
means a recurrent
				group of native plants and animals that share particular environmental
				requirements and which naturally occur together and which are recognized as
				such a community by the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program.
Natural Condition
of an area means
				that the vegetation has the composition and structure similar to that likely to
				have been found in the vicinity of the site before European settlement.
				Successional plant communities are included if they are biologically
				appropriate to the site, even if they must be managed to remain in the
				preferred successional stage. Land forms in such areas should be relatively
				unaltered by impacts of post European settlement activities.
Natural Heritage and Endangered Species
				Program
means the program within the Division of Fisheries and
				Wildlife responsible for the inventory, research, and protection of rare plant
				and animal species and natural communities, and the maintenance of computerized
				and manual records of rare species and natural community locality
				information.
Nature Preserve
means any area
				dedicated according to the provisions of M.G.L. c. 131, § 10A, and
				321 CMR
				11.00.
Nature Preserve System
means the
				collection of lands, waters, shores, and interests therein dedicated as a
				nature preserve under M.G.L. c. 131, § 10A, and
				321 CMR
				11.00.
Nongame Advisory Committee
means the
				committee established under M.G.L. c. 131, § 5B.
Permit
means written permission from
				the managing agency for visitor use of a nature preserve in accordance with
				321 CMR
				11.00, the articles of dedication of the particular
				nature preserve, and the provisions of any applicable general or special
				law.
Prescribed Burning
means the open
				burning of plant life under controlled conditions which limits the fire to a
				predetermined area and which accomplishes environmentally beneficial objectives
				including, but not limited to, habitat management and the prevention or control
				of wildfire.
Protection Plan
means a plan prepared
				by the managing agency and agreed to by the Council to guide management
				activities on a nature preserve.
Quality
in reference to a natural
				community means, but is not limited to, its vegetation structural
				characteristics, species composition, age, and degree of
				disturbance.