As used in sections 23-65g to 23-65o, inclusive:

(1) “Commercial forest practices” means any forest practices performed by a person other than the owner of the subject forest land for remuneration, or which, when performed, yield commercial forest products;

(2) “Commercial forest products” means wood products harvested from a tract of forest land in excess of fifty cords or one hundred fifty tons or twenty-five thousand board feet, whichever measure is appropriate, in any twelve-month period;

(3) “Commercial forest practitioner” means any person who engages in commercial forest practices;

(4) “Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection;

(5) “Department” means the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection;

(6) “Forest land” means that portion of a parcel of land which constitutes a total of at least one contiguous acre on which there is no structure, maintained landscape area, accessway or other improvement and which is (A) occupied in random distribution by trees having a minimum diameter of three inches as measured from a point on the trunk which is four and one-half feet above the ground such trees comprising at least seven and one-half square feet of basal area and the crowns of such trees occupying no less than fifteen per cent of the total area; or (B) which is planted with at least five hundred trees per acre and is not maintained for Christmas tree or nursery stock production;

(7) “Forest practice” means any activity which may alter the physical or vegetative characteristics of any forest land which is undertaken in connection with the harvest of commercial forest products unless such harvest is undertaken pursuant to the conversion of forest land to other uses and such conversion has been approved by (A) the planning commission, zoning commission, or combined planning and zoning commission, and (B) if the forest land includes any wetland or if the municipality within which the land is located regulates forest practices under section 23-65k, the inland wetlands agency of the municipality;

(8) “Forest practitioner” means any person who engages in forest practices;

(9) “Person” means any individual, firm, partnership, association, corporation, limited liability company, company, organization or legal entity of any kind, including any political subdivision of the state and including any state agency;

(10) “Tree” means a woody perennial plant usually having one self-supporting stem or trunk which has a definitely formed crown and is normally expected to attain a mature height of over twenty feet.

(P.A. 86-257, S. 1, 6; P.A. 91-335, S. 1; P.A. 95-79, S. 103, 189; P.A. 98-228, S. 7; P.A. 99-225, S. 17, 33; P.A. 11-80, S. 1.)

History: P.A. 91-335 entirely replaced section with new definitions re forest practices; P.A. 95-79 redefined “person” to include a limited liability company, effective May 31, 1995; P.A. 98-228 amended Subdiv. (7) to exclude from the definition of “forest practices” certain approved activities undertaken to convert forest land; P.A. 99-225 amended Subdiv. (7) to clarify when approval of an inland wetlands agency is required to exempt certain activities from the definition of “forest practices”, effective June 29, 1999 (Revisor's note: In 2001 the word “inclusive” and the preceding comma were inserted following the reference to Sec. 23-65o in the introductory clause to correct an omission in the codification of P.A. 91-335); pursuant to P.A. 11-80, “Commissioner of Environmental Protection” and “Department of Environmental Protection” were changed editorially by the Revisors to “Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection” and “Department of Energy and Environmental Protection”, respectively, effective July 1, 2011.