Agency of Natural Resources v. Hugh McGee & Eileen McGee

¶ 1. In this environmental enforcement action, the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) issued a violation and imposed a penalty of $10,000 against defendants Hugh McGee and Eileen McGee for placing unpermitted fill in a Class II wetland. Defendants appealed and, following a site visit and evidentiary hearing, the Environmental Division concluded that the land was not exempt, upheld the violation, and reduced the penalty to $3647. On appeal, defendants argue that the land is used for grazing horses and it therefore meets the requirements of the farming exemption in the wetlands regulations. We…