Aquatic Plant Management Permitting Overview
Aquatic plant management falls within the jurisdiction of the Wetlands Protection Act (WPA) which protects wetlands and the public interests they serve. The act regulates many types of work within a resource area and/or within 100 feet of the resource area. A municipality’s conservation commission administers the WPA, while the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) oversees administration of the law and provides technical assistance.
Key Steps in the Permitting Process
The following is a very high-level overview of the permitting process.
- A Notice of Intent (NOI) is the filing type most commonly required for aquatic plant management projects, which is inclusive of a project narrative to explain the proposed work, maps to illustrate the location of the resource area and the proposed work, and the associated NOI forms. This is where having survey and plant data available will be important.
- Aquatic plant management NOIs are usually within the category of Ecological Restoration Limited Projects (more information on this process can be found within the WPA regulations).
- If your project falls within a mapped Priority or Estimated Habitat from the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program, there will be additional filing requirements with their program to ensure the species present at that location are protected. You can verify if your project location is within a mapped habitat but referring to the Natural Heritage Data layers on MassMapper.
- Each municipality may have its own filing requirements as well as any applicable town bylaws.
- The NOI will be filed with the conservation commission and MassDEP simultaneously.
- You’ll attend a public hearing with your conservation commission to present your project and respond to any questions. Assuming all requirements are met, the commission with issue a permit, called an Order of Conditions (OOC), typically with special conditions to be followed. OOCs are usually valid for 3-5 years, and can often be extended beyond the initial expiration date.
The applicant, landowner, any aggrieved person, abutter, group of 10 citizens, or MassDEP may appeal the local commission's decision to MassDEP.
Important Considerations and Resources
It is important to note that this process can take months to complete. Additionally, if your waterbody falls within multiple municipalities, you need to file a permit in all of those municipalities.
MassDEP offers a website to utilize for Wetland Notice of Intent Lookup, which provides the public access to NOI file numbers and MassDEP’s comments (once available).
For more information about aquatic plant management permitting, we recommend consulting with your local conservation agent.