The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the Year Two Thousand and Seven.

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SECTION 1. The general court finds that:

(a) In 1990, the department of environmental protection adopted a regulation exempting activities within certain landlocked tidelands from the licensing requirements established by chapter 91 of the General Laws, which landowners relied on for the purchase and improvement of certain landlocked tidelands;
(b) The supreme judicial court has held that the department of environmental protection lacks statutory authorization for the exemption;
(c) Passage of this act, which authorizes the department of environmental protection to exempt certain landlocked tidelands from the licensing requirements established by said chapter 91 of the
General Laws, will promote the public interest by maintaining marketable titles and continuing the beneficial redevelopment and economic revitalization of such landlocked tidelands. Further, the redevelopment and revitalization facilitated by this exemption maintains and increases the public’s access to the waterfront. Any benefits to private parties from this authorization will be incidental to achieving these public purposes.

SECTION 2. Section 61 of chapter 30 of the General Laws as appearing in the 2006 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “grounds”, in line 16, the following words:- reduction of groundwater levels, impairment of water quality, increases in flooding or storm water flows.

SECTION 3.  Section 1 of chapter 91 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the definition of “Department” the following definitions:-

“Landlocked tidelands”, filled tidelands, which on January 1, 1984 were entirely separated by a public way or interconnected public ways from any flowed tidelands, except the portion of such filled tidelands which are presently located: (a) within 250 feet of the high water mark of flowed tidelands; or (b) within any designated port area under the Massachusetts coastal zone management program. A public way or ways shall also be defined as landlocked tidelands, except for any portion thereof which is presently within 250 feet of the high water mark of flowed tidelands.

“Public way”, a street, road or highway located on publicly owned land, open for use by the public and maintained and repaired by a public agency. 

SECTION 4. Section 18 of said chapter 91, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following 2 paragraphs:-

The department may adopt regulations that exempt landlocked tidelands from licensing under this chapter. Unless the department adopts regulations requiring licensing under this chapter, no license under this chapter shall be required for fill on landlocked tidelands, or for uses or structures within landlocked tidelands.

The proponent of any new use or structure, or modification of an existing use or structure, within landlocked tidelands who is otherwise required to file an environmental notification form pursuant to section 62A of chapter 30 shall comply with the requirements of this paragraph.  The environmental notification form, and the environmental impact report, if the latter is required, shall include a discussion of the project’s impact on the public’s right to access, use and enjoy tidelands as protected by this chapter, and shall identify and commit to taking measures to avoid, minimize, or mitigate any adverse impact on such rights set forth herein.  The environmental notification form, and the environmental impact report, if the latter is required, shall also include a discussion of the project’s impact on groundwater levels if the project is located in an area where low groundwater levels have been identified by a municipality as a threat to building foundations, and shall identify and commit to taking measures to avoid, minimize, or mitigate any adverse impact on groundwater levels.  Measures ordered by the secretary of the executive office of energy and environmental affairs pursuant to this section shall be set forth in a certificate on the environmental notification form, or in a certificate on the environmental impact report, if the latter is required.  Within 30 days after the issuance of a certificate under this paragraph, the proponent shall file with the department of environmental protection a completed form notifying the department that work will be conducted within landlocked tidelands, and shall attach the Massachusetts environmental protection agency certificate to the form.  The proponent shall comply with all obligations set forth in the certificate pursuant to this section and the department may enforce such conditions consistent with this chapter.

SECTION 5.  The eleventh paragraph of section 18 of chapter 91 of the General Laws, inserted by section 4, shall apply to all fill, uses and structures, whether existing before, on or after the effective date of this act. 

SECTION 6.  The twelfth paragraph of said section 18 of said chapter 91, inserted by said section 4, shall only apply to proponents who file environmental notification forms after the effective date of this act.

SECTION 7.  Regulations of the department of environmental protection exempting landlocked tidelands from licensing before the effective date of this act are hereby validated and confirmed as if this act had been in effect when such regulations were issued. Any fill, use or structure developed pursuant to such regulations shall not be subject to challenge on the ground that the department of environmental protection lacked the authority to issue such regulations.