SECTION 1. Notwithstanding any general or special laws to the contrary, coastal resiliency projects are hereby exempt from regulation under the Wetlands Protection Act of M.G.L. c.131, §40 for work in land subject to coastal storm flowage and said projects shall otherwise be regulated as a limited project for work in other coastal wetland resource areas under the Wetlands Protection Act and its implementing regulations.

Section 2. Section 62A of Chapter 30 of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following after the words “sixty-six” in the last sentence, “and a coastal resiliency project as defined in Section 61 of Chapter 30 provided that an Order of Conditions or a Determination of Applicability is issued allowing said coastal resiliency project.”

Section 3. For purposes of implementing the above provisions in Section 1, the following definitions apply: 

Coastal Resiliency Projects include structures or placement of fill for the primary purpose of protecting existing and proposed structures, utilities, transportation systems or infrastructure from the impacts of current or future coastal flooding including, but not limited to, rising sea levels and/or storm surge.

Structure means any man-made object which exists or is proposed and which is intended to remain in place in, on, over, under or adjacent to the Ocean or within land subject to coastal storm flowage as defined in the Department of Environmental Protection regulations at 310 CMR 10.04, as may be amended. Structures shall include, but are not limited to, any seawall, bulkhead, riprap, revetment, breakwater, roadway, building, dike, berm, retaining wall or barrier.

Fill means any unconsolidated material that is confined or expected to remain in place in land or in a waterway, except for: material placed by natural processes not caused by the owner or any predecessor in interest; material placed on a beach for beach nourishment purposes; and dredged material placed below the low water mark for purposes of subaqueous disposal.

Section 4. For purposes of regulating coastal resiliency projects as a limited project, the Department of Environmental Protection is hereby authorized to promulgate regulations, after public hearing and comment, to effect the purposes of this Act. Prior to public hearings on said regulations, the Department shall consult with representatives of urban and rural coastal municipalities, environmental organizations, MassDOT and representatives of utilities and urban coastal land owners.