Sec. 1. 12 MRSA §6072, sub-§3, as enacted by PL 1977, c. 661, §5, is amended to read:

3. Municipal approval. In any municipality with a shellfish conservation program under section 6671, the commissioner may not lease more than 2 acres of the intertidal zone within the municipality issue an aquaculture lease within municipal boundaries without the written consent of the municipal officers.

Sec. 2. 12 MRSA §6072, sub-§7-A, śC, as enacted by PL 1987, c. 453, §1, is amended to read:

C. Will not unreasonably interfere with fishing or other uses of the area, including potentially viable fisheries, taking into consideration the number and density of aquaculture leases in an area;

SUMMARY

This bill provides that in a municipality with a shellfish conservation program, the Commissioner of Marine Resources may not issue an aquaculture lease within municipal boundaries without the written consent of the municipal officers. It also provides that a criterion that must be met before the commissioner may grant a lease is that the proposed project not unreasonably interfere with potentially viable fisheries.