§ 1002. Definitions

Wherever used or referred to in this chapter, unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context:

(1) "Artificial regulation of stream flow" means the intermittent or periodic manipulation of water levels and the intermittent or periodic regulation of discharge of water into the stream below the dam.

(2) "Banks" means that land area immediately adjacent to the bed of the stream, which is essential in maintaining the integrity thereof.

(3) "Bed" means the maximum area covered by waters of the stream for not less than 15 consecutive days in one year.

(4) "Board" means the Natural Resources Board.

(5) "Cross section" means the entire channel to the top of the banks.

(6) "Dam" applies to any artificial structure on a stream, or at the outlet of a pond or lake, that is utilized for holding back water by ponding or storage together with any penstock, flume, piping, or other facility for transmitting water downstream to a point of discharge, or for diverting water from the natural watercourse to another point for utilization or storage.

(7) "Department" means the Department of Environmental Conservation.

(8) "Instream material" means:

(A) all gradations of sediment from silt to boulders;

(B) ledge rock; or

(C) large woody debris in the bed of a watercourse or within the banks of a watercourse.

(9) "Person" means any individual; partnership; company; corporation; association; unincorporated association; joint venture; trust; municipality; the State of Vermont or any agency, department, or subdivision of the State; any federal agency; or any other legal or commercial entity.

(10) "Watercourse" means any perennial stream. "Watercourse" shall not include ditches or other constructed channels primarily associated with land drainage or water conveyance through or around private or public infrastructure.

(11) "Secretary" means the Secretary of Natural Resources, or the Secretary's duly authorized representative.

(12) "Berm" means a linear fill of earthen material on or adjacent to the bank of a watercourse that constrains waters from entering a flood hazard area or river corridor, as those terms are defined in subdivisions 752(3) and (11) of this title.

(13) "Large woody debris" means any piece of wood within a watercourse with a diameter of 10 or more inches and a length of 10 or more feet that is detached from the soil where it grew. (Added 1965, No. 37, § 2; amended 1975, No. 150 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 1981, No. 222 (Adj. Sess.), § 24; 1983, No. 193 (Adj. Sess.), § 9, eff. April 27, 1984; 1987, No. 67, § 10; 1987, No. 76, § 18; 1997, No. 106 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. April 27, 1998; 2003, No. 115 (Adj. Sess.), § 18, eff. Jan. 31, 2005; 2009, No. 110 (Adj. Sess.), § 13, eff. March 31, 2011; 2011, No. 138 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. May 14, 2012.)