Vermont Statutes Annotated

Vt. Stat. Ann. tit. 10, § 1423 (2026)

Water resources and shoreland use plan

✓ current as of May 2026

Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section VT-LEGlegislature.vermont.gov JustiaTitle on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

(Cite as: 10 V.S.A. § 1423)

§ 1423. Water resources and shoreland use plan

(a) The Secretary shall make studies, establish policies, and make plans for the efficient use, conservation, development, and protection of the State’s water resources and:

(1) On the basis of these studies and plans, make recommendations to State agencies relative to their water resources activities.

(2) Locate and maintain information relating to the State’s water resources. The Secretary shall collect pertinent data available from State, regional, and federal agencies, the University of Vermont, Vermont State Colleges, local units of government, and other sources.

(3) Public shorelands in which the existing use is exclusively as a public water supply and public shorelands in which the potential use may be as a public water supply shall be classified on that basis.

(4) Serve as a clearinghouse for information relating to water resources including referring citizens and local units of government to the appropriate sources for advice and assistance in connection with particular water use problems.

(b) The Secretary shall prepare a comprehensive plan relating to water resources as a guide for the preparation of a State, regional, or municipal land use or development plan. The plan shall be based on the classification of waters pursuant to chapter 47 of this title. The plan shall to the extent possible give consideration to any existing regional or municipal plans that are compatible with the interests of the State. The primary purpose of the plan shall be for the preventive control of pollution, giving due consideration to necessary development and growth. The plans shall be governed by the following general standards:

(1) Domestic uses shall be generally preferred.

(2) Uses not inherently a source of pollution within an area shall be preferred over uses that are or may be a pollution source.

(3) Areas in which the existing or potential economic value of public, recreational or similar uses exceeds the existing or potential economic value of any other use shall be classified primarily on the basis of the higher economic use value.

(4) Use locations within an area tending to minimize the possibility of pollution shall be preferred over use locations tending to increase that possibility.

(5) Use dispersions within an area shall be preferred over concentrations of uses or their undue proximity to each other.

(6) Particular attention shall be given to safe and healthful conditions for the enjoyment of aquatic recreation; the demands of water traffic, boating, and water sports; the capability of the water resource; requirements necessary to ensure proper operation of septic tank disposal fields near navigable waters; building setbacks from the water; preservation of shore growth and cover; conservancy uses for low lying lands; and shoreland layout for residential and commercial developments.

(c) [Repealed.] (Added 1969, No. 281 (Adj. Sess.), § 13; amended 1973, No. 147 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 1989, No. 265 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 1989, No. 265 (Adj. Sess.), § 10(b), eff. March 1, 1994; 2003, No. 115 (Adj. Sess.), § 35, eff. Jan. 31, 2005; 2015, No. 97 (Adj. Sess.), § 22.)

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 3 cases, 2009–2019 · leading case: In re Morrisville Hydroelectric Proj. Water Quality (VT Nat. Resources Council, VT Council of Trout Unlimted & Agency of Nat. Resources, Appellants), 2019 VT 84 (Vt. 2019).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

In re Morrisville Hydroelectric Proj. Water Quality (VT Nat. Resources Council, VT Council of Trout Unlimted & Agency of Nat. Resources, Appellants), 2019 VT 84 (Vt. 2019). “Section 1423 authorizes ANR to prepare a shoreland use plan and to consider “Areas in which the existing or potential economic value of public, recreational or similar uses exceeds the existing or potential economic value of any other use shall be classified primarily on the…”

Morrisville Hydroelectric Proj Water Quality (Vt. Super. Ct. 2017). · cites it 3× “§ 1421 and 10 V.S.A. § 1423(b)(3), to consider economic and social issues when issuing the [§ 401 certification].”

Svendsen Docket Extension Variance (Vt. Super. Ct. 2009). “10 V.S.A. §§ 1423, 1425. Ultimately, the State’s delegation of authority over shorelands is limited.”

— Vt. Stat. Ann. tit. 10, § 1423(b)(3) — 2 cases

Morrisville Hydroelectric Proj Water Quality (Vt. Super. Ct. 2017). “§ 1421 and 10 V.S.A. § 1423(b)(3), to consider economic and social issues when issuing the [§ 401 certification].”

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.