(a)  Whenever any person, firm, industry, company, corporation, city, town, municipal or state agency, fire, district, club, or other individual or group commences any activity set forth in § 2-1-21 without first having obtained the approval of the director, or violates any rule or regulation of the director, the director has the power by written notice to order the violator to cease and desist immediately and/or restore the freshwater wetlands, buffers, floodplains, or other jurisdictional areas to their original state insofar as possible. Any order or notice to restore freshwater wetlands, buffers, floodplains, or other jurisdictional areas is eligible for recordation under chapter 13 of Title 34 and shall be recorded in the land evidence records in the city or town where the property subject to the notice is located and any subsequent transferee of the property is responsible for complying with the requirements of the order or notice. If the violator and/or subsequent transferee is ordered to restore the freshwater wetlands, buffer, floodplain, or other jurisdictional area to the original state, and the violator and/or subsequent transferee does not complete the restoration within a reasonable time following the order of the director, the director has the authority to order the work done by an agent of the director’s choosing, and the person, agent, or subsequent transferee is liable for the cost of the restoration. If the violator and/or subsequent transferee does not conform to the director’s order, the director may bring prosecution by complaint and warrant and the prosecution shall be made in the district court of the state. The director, without being required to enter into any recognizance or to give surety for cost, may institute the proceedings in the name of the state. It is the duty of the attorney general to conduct the prosecution of all proceedings brought by the director.

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Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 2-1-24

  • Buffer: means an area of undeveloped vegetated land adjacent to a freshwater wetland that is to be retained in its natural undisturbed condition, or is to be created to resemble a naturally occurring vegetated area. See Rhode Island General Laws 2-1-20
  • Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the 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.
  • Director: means the director of the department of environmental management or his or her duly authorized agent or agents. See Rhode Island General Laws 2-1-20
  • 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.
  • Floodplain: means that land area adjacent to a river or stream or other body of flowing water which is, on the average, likely to be covered with flood waters resulting from a one-hundred (100) year frequency storm. See Rhode Island General Laws 2-1-20
  • Freshwater wetlands: includes , but is not limited to, those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or groundwater at a frequency and duration to support, and that under normal circumstances do support a prevalence of vegetation adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. See Rhode Island General Laws 2-1-20
  • Jurisdictional area: means the following lands and waters, as defined herein except as provided for in § 2-1-22(k), that shall be subject to regulation under this chapter:

    (i)  Freshwater wetlands;

    (ii)  Buffers;

    (iii)  Floodplains;

    (iv)  Areas subject to storm flowage;

    (v)  Areas subject to flooding; and

    (vi)  Contiguous areas that extend outward:

    (A)  Two hundred feet (200?) from the edge of a river or stream;

    (B)  Two hundred feet (200?) from the edge of a drinking water supply reservoir; and

    (C)  One hundred feet (100?) from the edge of all other freshwater wetlands. See Rhode Island General Laws 2-1-20

  • person: may be construed to extend to and include co-partnerships and bodies corporate and politic. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-6
  • town: may be construed to include city; the words "town council" include city council; the words "town clerk" include city clerk; the words "ward clerk" include clerk of election district; the words "town treasurer" include city treasurer; and the words "town sergeant" include city sergeant. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-9
  • Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.

(b)  The director may obtain relief in equity or by prerogative writ whenever relief is necessary for the proper performance of duties under § 2-1-18 — § 2-1-27.

(c)  Any person who violates an order of the director shall be punished by a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500), or by imprisonment not exceeding thirty (30) days, or by both, and every person is deemed guilty of a separate and distinct offense for each day during which the violation is repeated or continued.

(d)  [Deleted by P.L. 2015, ch. 218, § 1].

History of Section.
P.L. 1971, ch. 213, § 1; P.L. 1974, ch. 197, § 2; P.L. 1976, ch. 89, § 1; P.L. 1977, ch. 116, § 1; P.L. 1980, ch. 406, § 10; P.L. 1988, ch. 231, § 1; P.L. 2015, ch. 218, § 1.