Land & Water Bureau Organization

The Bureau of Land & Water Quality administers land and water quality protection programs. The Bureau is organized into five divisions: two regulatory divisions, a science division, and a planning division. 

• Organizational charts.
• Office locations.

being merged into a single division called the Division of Water Quality Management.

Environmental Assessment    

The Division of Environmental Assessment is responsible for overall monitoring and evaluation of the quality of Maine's surface waters and groundwater. See "monitoring and assessement". Specific responsibilities include:

• Directing lake restoration and protection activities;
• Directing marine pollution monitoring;
• Groundwater assessment studies and developing a comprehensive groundwater protection program;
• Providing biological and geological expertise to the Department as needed;
• Directing programs to achieve statutory water quality standards;
• Conducting river and stream studies and waste assimilation studies;
• Coordinating a statewide volunteer lake monitoring program in cooperation with the Congress of Lakes Association; and
• Providing technical assistance to the Bureau and to municipalities.

Staff are located at the main office in Augusta.

Land Resources Regulation   

The Division of Land Resouces Regulation is responsible for licensing, enforcement and/or oversight pursuant to the following laws:

• Site Location of Development Law (Site Law)
• Natural Resources Protection Act (NRPA)
• Performance Standards for Excavations for Borrow, Clay, Topsoil or Silt (borrow pit law)
• Performance Standards for Quarries (Quarry Law)
• Stormwater Management Law
• Erosion and Sedimentation Control Law (Erosion Law)
• Administering the Shoreland Zoning Program

Licensing personnel are located in the Augusta, Portland, and Bangor offices. Enforcement personnel are located in Portland, Bangor, and Presque Isle regional offices, as well as the main office in Augusta.

Water Quality Management    

The Division of Water Quality Management is responsible for:

• Licensing and enforcement activities under Maine's Protection and Improvement of Waters statutes. These require:
  • Licensing of over 3,000 publically and privately owned wastewater discharges in the State. 
  • Certification of compliance with Maine water quality requirements
  • Administration of the Maine Waterway Development and Conservation Act, which requires a permit for the construction or    reconstruction of any hydropower project.
  • Administration of the Maine Dam Registration, Abandonment, and Water Level Act which empowers the Department to    hold hearings and set water levels for certain water bodies controlled by dams.  

Licensing staff are located in the Portland, Bangor, Presque Isle regional offices and at the main office in Augusta.

• Administration of grant and loan programs, including:
  • Grant and loan programs for municipal wastewater abatement projects. These programs provide funds for planning, design and construction of municipal wastwater abatement projects.
  • Small Community Grants Program to correct malfunctioning septic systems.
  • Overboard Discharge Grants Program to eliminateboard discharges.
  • Providing technical assistance, grants, and guidance on CSO abatement projects.
  • Boat pump-out program.

Watershed Management

The Division of Watershed Management is responsible for administering several programs focusing on non-permitting approaches to resource protection. Activities include:

• Conducting watershed planning activities at local and regional levels;
• Developing, reviewing, and implementing Best Management Practices (BMPs);
• Administering grants programs to provide funds for non-profit groups to carry out or implement watershed management plans, or to implement BMPs;
• Providing training for contractors, consultants, municipal officials and state agency staff through the Nonpoint Source Training & Resource Center;
• Conducting application reviews and providing technical assistance for the Bureau and local governments;
• Coordinating with federal and state agencies and local governments on wetland policy issues; and
• Coordinating Coastal Zone Management activities (other that licensing and enforcement).

Staff are located in the Portland, Bangor and Presque Isle regional offices and at the main office in Augusta.