Terms Used In Vermont Statutes > Title 10 > Chapter 48 - Groundwater Protection

• Abandoned well: means any well or hole whose original purpose and use has been permanently discontinued or that is in such a state of disrepair that the well or hole has the potential for transmitting contaminants into an aquifer or otherwise threatens the public health or safety. See
• Adjoining property owner: means a person who owns land in fee simple, if that land:

• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• Agency: means the Agency of Natural Resources. See
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Aquifer: means a water bearing stratum of permeable rock, sand, gravel, or other alluvial soils. See
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Baseline: Projection of the receipts, outlays, and other budget amounts that would ensue in the future without any change in existing policy. Baseline projections are used to gauge the extent to which proposed legislation, if enacted into law, would alter current spending and revenue levels.
• Beneficial uses: means those uses included in each groundwater class. See
• Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. ^{Source: OCC}
• Board: means the Natural Resources Board. See
• Capability and Development Plan: means the Plan prepared pursuant to section 6042 of this title. See
• Commissioner: means the Commissioner of Environmental Conservation or the Commissioner's designated representative. See
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Department: means the Department of Environmental Conservation. See
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Development: means each of the following:

• District Commission: means the District Environmental Commission. See
• Domestic: when applied to a corporation, company, association, or copartnership shall mean organized under the laws of this State; "foreign" when so applied, shall mean organized under the laws of another state, government, or country. See
• Endangered species: means those species the taking of which is prohibited under rules adopted under chapter 123 of this title. See
• Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Existing settlement: means an area that constitutes one of the following:

• Farming: means farming as the term is defined in subdivision 6001(22) of this title. See
• Fissionable source material: means mineral ore that:

• following: when used by way of reference to a section of the law shall mean the next preceding or following section. See
• Groundwater: means water below the land surface, including springs. See
• Groundwater: means water below the land surface, but does not include surface waters within the meaning of subdivision 1251(13) of this title. See
• Hole: means any excavation, deeper than 20 feet with at least one horizontal dimension less than five feet. See
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Land use plan: means the plan prepared pursuant to section 6043 of this title. See
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Month: shall mean a calendar month and "year" shall mean a calendar year and be equivalent to the expression "year of our Lord. See
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Municipality: shall include a city, town, town school district, incorporated school or fire district or incorporated village, and all other governmental incorporated units. See
• Necessary wildlife habitat: means concentrated habitat that is identifiable and is demonstrated as being decisive to the survival of a species of wildlife at any period in its life, including breeding and migratory periods. See
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Person: shall include any natural person, corporation, municipality, the State of Vermont or any department, agency, or subdivision of the State, and any partnership, unincorporated association, or other legal entity. See
• Person:

• Person: means any individual, partnership, company, corporation, cooperative, association, unincorporated association, joint venture, trust, the State of Vermont, or any department, agency, subdivision, or municipality, the U. See
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Primary agricultural soils: means each of the following:

• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• Productive forest soils: means those soils that are not primary agricultural soils but that have a reasonable potential for commercial forestry and that have not been developed. See
• Public water supply: means a water supply system with 15 or more connections. See
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Secretary: means the Secretary of Natural Resources or the Secretary's designated representative. See
• Servicing: means developing of well yields, placing liners or seals, grouting, restricting the flow of flowing wells, repairing or closing wells, and installing or maintaining well pump systems. See
• Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
• Shoreline: means the land adjacent to the waters of lakes, ponds, reservoirs, and rivers. See
• Solid waste management district: means a solid waste management district formed pursuant to 24 V. See
• Spring: means a groundwater source where groundwater flows naturally to the surface of the earth and is collected with a developed structure that is designed to locate or extract groundwater. See
• State: when applied to the different parts of the United States may apply to the District of Columbia and any territory and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. See
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Stream: means a current of water that is above an elevation of 1,500 feet above sea level or that flows at any time at a rate of less than 1. See
• Strip development: means linear commercial development along a public highway that includes three or more of the following characteristics: broad road frontage, predominance of single-story buildings, limited reliance on shared highway access, lack of connection to any existing settlement except by highway, lack of connection to surrounding land uses except by highway, lack of coordination with surrounding land uses, and limited accessibility for pedestrians. See
• Subdivision: means each of the following:

• Surface water: means waters within the meaning of subdivision 1251(13) of this title. See
• Technical criteria: means the numerical parameters or scientific parameters that, when followed, will result in groundwater suitable for the uses defined in its class. See
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Tort: A civil wrong or breach of a duty to another person, as outlined by law. A very common tort is negligent operation of a motor vehicle that results in property damage and personal injury in an automobile accident.
• Town: shall include city and wards or precincts therein; "selectboard members" and "board of civil authority" shall extend to and include the mayor and aldermen of cities; "trustees" shall extend to and include bailiffs of incorporated villages; and the laws applicable to the inhabitants and officers of towns shall be applicable to the inhabitants and similar officers of all municipal corporations. See
• Village: shall mean an incorporated village. See
• Water resources: means groundwater or surface water. See
• Well: means any hole drilled, driven, bored, excavated, or created by similar method into the earth to locate, monitor, extract, or recharge groundwater where the water table or potentiometric surface is artificially lowered through pumping. See
• Well: means any hole deeper than 20 feet drilled, driven, or bored into the earth to locate, monitor, extract, or recharge groundwater or any hole deeper than 20 feet drilled, driven, or bored for the primary purpose of transferring heat to or from the earth's subsurface. See
• withdrawal: means the intentional removal by any method or instrument of groundwater from a well, spring, or combination of wells or springs. See
• Wood products manufacturer: includes sawmills; veneer mills; pulp mills; pellet mills; producers of firewood, woodchips, mulch, and fuel wood; and log and pulp concentration yards. See