Homeowner's Page - Land & Water Quality

Contacts

• The on-call system

Home systems

• Safe Home Program. How much do you know about your drinking water?
• Septic System Inspection. Protect your investment by minimizing the risk of costly system replacement or repair (pamphlet) (pdf file)
• Septic Systems -- How They Work and How to Keep Them Working (pamphlet) (pdf file)
• Homeowner Stormwater Information from Think Blue (off-site)
• Well water safety (off-site)

Loans or grants

• Overboard discharge elimination program grants
• Small community grant program

Maintenance/improvements/actions to protect water quality

• Boating season checklist
• Buffer Handbook (and plant list)
• Certified Erosion Control Contractors
• Conservation Practices for Homeowners. Series of 20 fact sheets from DEP and the Portland Water District  profiling common conservation practices that homeowners can use to protect water quality.
• Gardening to Conserve Maine's Landscape: plants to use and plants to avoid (off-site) from Maine Cooperative Extension
• Guide to Forming Road Associations
• Information for Camp Owners. Opening and closing a camp, and the proper care and feeding of a camp road

Miscellaneous

• Fish Consumption Advisories (off-site)
• West Nile Virus - information for homeowners

Materials used around the home

• Antifreeze information page
• Homeowner information from BRWM. Flourescent bulbs, home heating oil, renovation concerns, household hazardous waste, mold, lead, and more
• Phosphorus-free fertilizer. Why use it and where to find it

Natural resources

• Estuaries & Coastal Waters
• Groundwater
• Lakes Page
• Rivers & Streams Page
• Wetlands

Programs

• Front Runner Gravel Maintenance Program
• LakeSmart. LakeSmart is an educational program that offers free opportunities for homeowners to learn how to manage their home and yard to protect the water quality of their lake.
• Stream Team Program.  A "stream team" is a group of people who have banded together to promote stewardship of their local stream.

Requirements

• Reporting a violation
• Erosion & Sedimentation Control Law
• Natural Resources Protection Act (NRPA) permits
• Shoreland Zoning
• Waste Discharge Law
  • Construction General Permit
  • Overboard Discharges
  • Sand/Salt

     

Threats to natural systems close to home

• Threats to wetlands
• Invasive plant fact sheets (off-site) from the Maine Natural Areas Program
• Invasive plants in wetlands
• Rocks, sand and dirt - why they are considered pollutants