Title 38

Sections 490‑A to 490‑K apply to any excavation for borrow, clay, topsoil or silt, whether alone or in combination, including reclaimed and unreclaimed areas, if the total excavated area on a parcel is 5 or more acres or the total excavated area on adjacent parcels under a common…

The department shall administer and enforce the provisions of this article. [PL 1995, c. 700, §35 (NEW).] 1. Stop-work order. The department may order the owner or operator of a quarry that is not operating in compliance with this article to cease operations until the noncomplian…

Except as provided in section 484‑A, a person intending to create or operate an excavation under this article must file a notice of intent to comply before the total area of excavation on the parcel equals 5 or more acres excavated since January 1, 1970. Both reclaimed and unrecl…

An owner or operator must comply with the performance standards in section 490‑Z unless a variance from those performance standards is approved by the department. Except when prohibited by section 490‑Z, the department may grant a variance from the performance standards in this a…

1. Significant wildlife habitat and other protected areas. Affected land may not be located in, on or over a significant wildlife habitat or other type of protected natural resource, as defined in section 480‑B, or in an area listed pursuant to Title 12, section 12822. The depart…

A municipality may register for authority to enforce this article by adopting and submitting to the commissioner an ordinance that meets or exceeds the provisions of this article. The commissioner shall review that ordinance to determine whether that ordinance meets the provision…

The owner or operator must comply with the performance standards in section 490‑D unless a variance from those performance standards is approved by the department. Except where prohibited by section 490‑D, the department may grant a variance from the performance standards in this…

1. Review before expansion. Before expanding a quarry beyond an area that exceeds a total of 10 acres of reclaimed and unreclaimed land and before each additional 10-acre expansion, the owner or operator shall notify the regulator of the owner's or operator's intent to expand and…

Before expanding an excavation beyond an area that exceeds a total of 10 acres of reclaimed and unreclaimed land and before each additional 10-acre expansion, the owner or operator shall notify the regulator of an intent to expand and must request an inspection. In the same manne…

The department may grant a release from the requirements of this article to the owner or operator or a transferee after reclamation of the affected area as determined by the department. The department shall inspect the site before making this determination. The release will termi…

The regulator may periodically inspect a site, may examine relevant records of the owner or operator and may take samples and perform tests necessary to determine compliance with the provisions of this article.

Except as provided in section 490‑I, the department shall administer and enforce the provisions of this article. [PL 1993, c. 350, §5 (NEW).] 1. Stop-work order. The regulator may order the owner or operator that is not operating in compliance with this article to cease operation…

This section allows a municipality to register for authority to enforce this article by adopting and submitting to the commissioner an ordinance that meets or exceeds the provisions of this article. The commissioner shall review that ordinance to determine if that ordinance meets…

The owner or operator of an excavation being operated under this article must pay the regulator: [PL 1995, c. 700, §31 (AMD).] 1. Initial fee. A fee of $250 upon filing a notice of intent to comply under section 484‑A or 490‑C; 2. Annual fee. By March 1st of each year, an annual …

A person who purchases an excavation that is operated under a notice of intent to comply or who obtains operating authority of an excavation that operates under a notice of intent to comply must file within 2 weeks after the purchase or the obtaining of operating authority a noti…

This article may be known and cited as "the Maine Metallic Mineral Mining Act."

An excavation of less than 5 acres of land for clay, topsoil or silt must be conducted and reclaimed in accordance with the following standards. [PL 1995, c. 700, §34 (NEW).] 1. Stabilization and control. Sediment may not leave the parcel or enter a protected natural resource as …

As used in this article, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. [PL 2011, c. 653, §23 (NEW); PL 2011, c. 653, §33 (AFF).] 1. Advanced exploration. "Advanced exploration" means any metallic mineral bulk sampling or exploratory acti…

The department may grant a release from the requirements of this article to the owner or operator or a transferee after reclamation of the affected area as determined by the department. The department shall inspect the site before making this determination. The release will termi…

1. Administration; jurisdiction; rules. The department shall administer and enforce this article in all areas of the State, including the unorganized territory, in order to regulate mining. A. The provisions of articles 6, 7 and 8‑A, chapter 13 and section 420‑D do not apply to p…

1. Permit required. A person may not engage in mining without a permit issued by the department under this article. 2. Application procedure. An application for a mining permit must be submitted to the department in a format to be developed by the department. The application must…

1. Duration of permit. A mining permit issued by the department remains in effect until terminated or revoked by the department. The duration of other permits issued for the mining operation must be provided for in those permits. The department shall conduct annual reviews of the…

1. Performance standards. Standards adopted by the department through rulemaking must be performance-based to the extent feasible, and the department may require that the applicant implement control devices or measures necessary to achieve the performance standards. If the rules …

1. Duration of financial assurance. A permittee shall maintain financial assurance during mining operations until the department determines that all reclamation has been completed and during the post-closure monitoring period except that financial assurance must be reduced or rel…

1. Filing requirement. A permittee shall file with the department a mining and reclamation report on or before March 15th of each year, during the period the mine is operating, during suspension of mining operations and during the post-closure monitoring period. The mining and re…

1. Permittee required to correct violations. If the department determines that a permittee has violated this chapter, a rule adopted under this article, an order of the department or a mining permit issued under this article, the department shall require the permittee to correct …

As used in this article, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. [PL 1995, c. 700, §35 (NEW).] 1. Affected land. "Affected land" means all reclaimed and unreclaimed land, land that has or will have the overburden removed, land on w…

This article applies to any quarry, including reclaimed and unreclaimed areas, if the quarry is more than one acre in size, the total excavated area including adjacent parcels under a common owner or operator is more than one acre in size or underground production blasting is pro…

Except as provided in section 484‑A, a person intending to create or operate a quarry under this article must file a notice of intent to comply before the total area of excavation of rock or overburden on the parcel exceeds one acre excavated since January 1, 1970. Both reclaimed…

1. Significant wildlife habitat and other protected areas. Affected land may not be located in, on or over a significant wildlife habitat or other type of protected natural resource, as defined in section 480‑B, or in an area listed pursuant to Title 12, section 12822. The depart…

It is agreed between the signatory states that this compact shall apply to streams, ponds and lakes which are contiguous to 2 or more signatory states or which flow through 2 or more signatory states or which have a tributary contiguous to 2 or more signatory states or flowing th…

The State reaffirms its support of the cooperative approach to the abatement and control of water pollution as embodied in the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Compact. In view of the increases in population concentrations, the growing need of industry and agricultu…

The New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission, as heretofore created and in this subchapter referred to as the commission, shall be a body corporate and politic, having the powers, duties and jurisdiction herein enumerated and such other and additional powers as s…

The commission consists of 5 commissioners from each signatory state, each of whom must be a resident voter of the state from which the commissioner is appointed. The commissioners must be chosen in the manner and for the terms provided by law of the state from which they are app…

The commission shall annually elect from its members a chair and vice-chair and shall appoint and at its pleasure remove or discharge such officers. It may appoint and employ a secretary who is a professional engineer versed in water pollution and may employ stenographic or cleri…

It is recognized, owing to such variable factors as location, size, character and flow and the many varied uses of the waters subject to the terms of this compact, that no single standard of sewage and waste treatment and no single standard of quality of receiving waters is pract…

Each of the signatory states pledges to provide for the abatement of existing pollution and for the control of future pollution of interstate inland and tidal waters as described in Article I, and to put and maintain the waters thereof in a satisfactory condition consistent with …

The commission may develop standards for the training, educational and experience requirements for operating personnel necessary to the proper operation of sewage and other waste treatment plants. [PL 1969, c. 166, §4 (NEW).] The commission may administer programs of training and…

The commission, in cooperation with this State and such other states signatory to the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Compact as may participate, shall establish and maintain a water quality sampling and testing network. The network shall, to the fullest extent pra…

Unless otherwise conferred by law, the commission shall not have power to issue permits or licenses in connection with the discharge or treatment of wastes, or pass upon plans or specifications for particular waste treatment or collection equipment or facilities.

Nothing in this compact shall be construed to repeal or prevent the enactment of any legislation or prevent the enforcement of any requirement by any signatory state imposing any additional condition or restriction to further lessen the pollution of waters within its jurisdiction…

The signatory states agree to appropriate for the salaries, office, administrative, travel and other expenses such sum or sums as shall be recommended by the commission. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts obligates itself only to the extent of $6,500 in any one year, the State of …

Should any part of this compact be held to be contrary to the constitution of any signatory state or of the United States, all other parts thereof shall continue to be in full force and effect.

The commission is authorized to discuss with appropriate state agencies in New York state questions of pollution of waters which flow into the New England area from New York state or vice versa and to further the establishment of agreements on pollution abatement to promote the i…

This compact shall become effective immediately upon the adoption of the compact by any 2 contiguous states of New England but only insofar as applies to those states and upon approval by federal law. Thereafter upon ratification by other contiguous states, it shall become effect…

The Governor of this State is authorized and directed to execute a compact, on behalf of the State of Maine, with any one or more of the states of New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and New York, to be known as the New England Interstate Water Pollut…