(1) The Board shall ascertain that any timber harvested on the parcel being subdivided has been harvested in compliance with rules adopted pursuant to 12 M.R.S.A. § 8869, Subsection 14. If a violation of rules adopted by the Maine Forest Service to substantially eliminate liquidation harvesting has occurred, the Planning Board must determine prior to granting approval for the subdivision that five years have elapsed from the date the landowner under whose ownership the harvest occurred acquired the parcel.
(2) For the purposes of this subsection, "liquidation harvesting" has the same meaning as in 12 M.R.S.A. § 8868, Subsection 6, and "parcel" means a contiguous area within one municipality, township or plantation owned by one person or a group of persons in common or joint ownership.
(3) The Planning Board may request technical assistance from the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Bureau of Forestry, to determine whether a rule violation has occurred, or the Board may accept a determination certified by a forester licensed pursuant to 32 M.R.S.A. Ch. 76.
(a) If the Bureau agrees to provide assistance, it shall make a finding and determination as to whether a rule violation has occurred.
(b) If the Bureau notifies the Planning Board that it will not provide assistance, the Board may require a subdivision applicant to provide a determination certified by a licensed forester.
