Code of Maine Rules
06 - DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
096 - DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION - GENERAL
Chapter 305 - NATURAL RESOURCES PROTECTION ACT - PERMIT BY RULE
Section 096-305-8 - Shoreline stabilization

(1) This section applies to the establishment of vegetation adjacent to any protected natural resource and the installation of riprap along the shoreline of a great pond, freshwater wetland with over 20,000 square feet of open water, stream or brook.

(2) This section applies only to areas where erosion exists and vegetation is not present, as demonstrated by photographs submitted with the notification form.

(3) This section does not apply to riprap on any river as defined by 38 M.R.S.A. Section 436- A(11), the Mandatory Shoreland Zoning Act (information is available at the Town Office).

(4) This section does not apply to a riprap project that affects more than 100 feet of shoreline.

(5) This section does not apply to areas within any portion of a coastal sand dune system even if portions of these systems extend into the coastal wetland.

(6) This section does not apply to an activity that will not conform to the local shoreland zoning ordinance.

(1) Contact the local Code Enforcement Officer for information on local shoreland zoning requirements.

(2) A permit will be required from the US Army Corps of Engineers for riprap projects that include fill below the ordinary high water line of fresh waters or below the spring high tide line of tidal waters.

A copy of the PBR notification form and original photographs, not photocopies, should be submitted to the Corps of Engineers for these activities (US Army Corps of Engineers, 675 Western Avenue, Suite #3, Manchester, ME 04351. Tel. (207) 623-8367).

(1) The applicant is required to submit photographs of the entire shoreline area where this activity is proposed.

(2) Photographs showing the finished activity must be submitted within 20 days of the activity's completion. The photographs must be sent with a copy of the notification form or labeled with the applicant's name and the town in which the activity took place.

(3) A scaled drawing, including a cross section, of the proposed riprap installation. The drawing must clearly depict the extent of riprap proposed to be installed, such as the length along shore and height above the normal high water line.

It is not necessary to have the plan professionally prepared. However, it must be legible and drawn to a scale that provides a clear representation of distances and measurements on the plan.

(4) Professional design plans for riprap on streams and brooks when required pursuant to paragraph C(12) of this section.

(1) Riprap may be utilized only where eroded slopes exceed 3 horizontal feet to 1 vertical foot (approximately 33% slope), or where riprap is used to stabilize an existing stormwater outfall. Where eroded slopes are shallower than 3 horizontal to 1 vertical, vegetation must be used to control erosion.

(2) Riprap installed on the shoreline of a great pond or open water wetland may not extend higher than 2 feet above the normal high water line. Riprap installed on a river, stream or brook may not extend higher than 2 feet above the normal high water line, or to the elevation of the 100-year flood where mapped by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, whichever is higher.

(3) The following measures must be taken to prevent erosion of soil or fill material from disturbed areas into the resource:

(4) New soil may be brought to the site and soil amendments, such as fertilizer or lime, may be used to increase soil fertility provided:

(5) Rocks used for riprap may not be obtained from the shoreline (because they help prevent erosion) or below the normal high water line (because they provide habitat for aquatic life).

NOTE: On many slopes, slumping is caused by wave or water motion undercutting the bank. If riprap is placed only at the bottom of the slope, and the upper portions of the bank are graded and revegetated, the cost of the shoreline stabilization project can be reduced.

(6) The slope of the riprap may not be steeper than 1 horizontal to 1 vertical, nor shallower than 3 horizontal to 1 vertical.

(7) Riprap must be anchored at the base of the existing bank by placing the bottom row of rock in a trench excavated at least to a depth equal to the height of the largest rock, or the riprap must be pinned to underlying ledge.

(8) A layer of filter fabric and crushed stone must be placed under the riprap to prevent the washing of soil particles into the water.

(9) No fill material other than the riprap and crushed stone may be placed below the normal high water line.

(10) Riprap may not be placed in front of a retaining wall such that it extends further into the water.

(11) A buffer strip of undisturbed vegetation at least 25 feet wide must be established and maintained along the upland edge of any riprap placed for the protection of agricultural land.

(12) Design of riprap on stream or brook banks must be approved by either a Maine Registered Professional Engineer, the United States Natural Resources Conservation Service, or the local Soil and Water Conservation District. Evidence of this approval or plans stamped by a professional engineer must be submitted along with the Notification Form. With prior written agreement, the DEP may waive this standard for minor riprap activities on small streams.

(13) When riprap is necessary along a river, stream or brook, it must be combined with tree and shrub plantings to provide bank stabilization, shading of the water and cover for wildlife.

(14) If work is performed in a river, stream or brook that is less than three feet deep at the time of the activity and at the location of the activity, the applicant must provide for temporary diversion of flow to the opposite side of the channel while work is in progress.

(15) Wheeled or tracked equipment may not operate in the water. Equipment operating on the shore may reach into the water with a bucket or similar extension. Equipment may cross streams on rock, gravel or ledge bottom.

(16) Work below the high water line of agreat pond, river, stream or brook must be done at low water except as required for emergency flood control work.

(17) All excavated material must be stockpiled either outside the protected natural resource or on mats or platforms. Hay bales or silt fence must be used, where necessary, to prevent sedimentation. All excavated material must be removed to a location more than 75 feet from the protected natural resource, unless otherwise approved by the DEP, and properly stabilized with vegetation upon project completion.

(18) Disturbance of vegetation must be avoided if possible. If vegetation must be disturbed during the activity, similar types and amounts of vegetation must be re-established immediately upon completion of the activity and must be maintained.

(19) Non-native species may not be planted in disturbed areas.

(20) Riprap projects must be constructed in accordance with the plans or drawings submitted pursuant to subsections B(3) and (4) of this section, as applicable.

(1) Fill.

(2) Riprap. Heavy, irregularly-shaped rocks that are fit into place, without mortar, on a slope. Square or rectangular rocks with flat faces, such as quarry stone or manufactured blocks, do not qualify as "irregularly-shaped".

(3) Structure. Anything built for the support, shelter or enclosure of persons, animals, goods or property of any kind, together with anything constructed or erected with a fixed location on or in the ground. Examples of structures include buildings, utility lines and roads.