Two landowners have agreed to pay civil penalties for heavily cutting their timberlands without authorization.
Richard Riendeau agreed to pay $8,750 for a 79-acre heavy cut on his property in Brighton, while Doyon Enterprises LLC will pay $14,350 for heavy cutting on 177 acres of its property in Craftsbury. Richard Riendeau could not be reached for comment by press time. A representative from Doyon Enterprises declined to comment.
The cases were initiated in November and December 2011, respectively, although the cutting could have occurred before then. John Zaikowski, an attorney with the Department of Environmental Conservation, said that one or two heavy-cutting enforcement cases are typical in a year. No others are pending at this time, to his knowledge.
Zaikowski acknowledged that, even after the penalties, it’s likely both landowners netted a profit from their illegal logging. He said several considerations factor into penalty determinations, including the economic benefit that might have been derived, and potential or actual harm to the environment and public health. The state set up installment plans for both defendants, rather than demand immediate lump-sum payments.
The cases are not related, Zaikowski said, but just happen to have been resolved at the same time. Most cases are closed more quickly, but the agency’s operations had been delayed by a series of relocations after being flooded out of its Waterbury offices by Tropical Storm Irene.
Generally speaking, heavy cutting differs from clear cutting in terms of the intensity of the cut. Think of a clear cut as eliminating every single tree on a lot, Zaikowski said. Heavy cutting, on the other hand, often leaves some trees standing after a logging job — but the threshold that distinguishes a heavy cut from a lighter cut might differ from property to property.
Landowners must file a notice with the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation when they intend to heavily cut 40 acres or more. Both the Riendeau and Doyon cases were pursued by the Department of Environmental Conservation’s Compliance and Enforcement Division in response to complaints about the cutting.
