38 M.R.S. § 470-A

This is the official text of 38 M.R.S. § 470-A, part of Maine’s M.R.S — part of the compiled statutory law of Maine, published by the state as "M.R.S." Browse the sections below, each linked to its official government source.

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38 §470-A. Definitions

Official statutory text

As used in this article, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. [PL 2001, c. 619, §1 (NEW).]

1. Nonconsumptive use. "Nonconsumptive use" means any use of water that results in the water being discharged back into the same water source within 1/4 mile upstream or downstream from the point of withdrawal such that the difference between the volume withdrawn and the volume returned is no more than the threshold amount per day. This also includes withdrawals from groundwater that are discharged to a subsurface system or to a hydraulically connected surface water body such that no more than the threshold amount is consumed. [PL 2001, c. 619, §1 (NEW).]

2. Water source. "Water source" means any river, stream or brook as defined in section 480‑B , any lake or pond classified GPA pursuant to section 465‑A or groundwater located anywhere in the State. [PL 2001, c. 619, §1 (NEW).]

3. Water withdrawal; withdrawal of water. "Water withdrawal" or "withdrawal of water" means the removal, diversion or taking of water from a water source. All withdrawals of water from a particular water source that are made or controlled by a single person are considered to be a single withdrawal of water. [PL 2001, c. 619, §1 (NEW).]

Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site

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About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the Open US Law dataset (Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine (Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.