Section NR 328.33 - Definitions In this subchapter:
(1) "Bank erosion control structure" means a structure with defined shape, size, form and utility constructed and maintained for the purpose of protecting a streambank from erosion.(2) "Biological materials" means living or organic materials that are 100% biodegradable such as native grasses, sedges, forbs, shrubs and trees; live stakes and posts; non-treated wood for staking; jute netting; fiber rolls and mats, erosion control blankets and turf reinforcement mats composed of natural fibers; logs; root wads; tree revetments; and branches. Note: Temporary breakwaters, with non-biodegradable elements, are considered a permissible element during the plant establishment phase of a biological erosion control project.
(3) "Biostabilization" means a structure that relies solely on biological materials and may include bank reshaping. Biological bank erosion control structures include but are not limited to native vegetation, fiber rolls, fiber mats, live stakes, brush mattresses, fascines, branch packing, erosion control blankets, turf reinforcement mats, brush layering, encapsulated soil lifts, or revegetation by seeding.(4) "Commercial marina" has the meaning in ch. NR 326.(5) "Department" means the department of natural resources.(6) "Grading" means the physical disturbance of the bank by the addition, removal or redistribution of soil.(7) "Inert materials" means those materials that slowly degrade, such as chemically treated wood, stone, stainless and galvanized steel, plastics and synthetic polymers.(8) "Integrated bank treatment" means a structure that combines 2 separate treatments: structural treatment with inert materials for toe protection at the base of the bank and biostabilization on the upper portion of the bank.(9) "Municipal marina" has the meaning in ch. NR 326.(10) "Ordinary high water mark" means the point on the bank or shore up to which the presence and action of water is so continuous as to leave a distinct mark either by erosion, destruction of terrestrial vegetation or other easily recognizable characteristic.(11) "Navigable waterway" means any body of water with a defined bed and bank, which is navigable under the laws of the state. In Wisconsin, a navigable body of water is capable of floating the lightest boat or skiff used for recreation or any other purpose on a regularly recurring basis. Note: This incorporates the definition at s. 30.01(4m), Stats., and current case law, which requires a watercourse to have a bed and banks, Hoyt v. City of Hudson, 27 Wis. 656 (1871), and requires a navigable waterway to float on a regularly recurring basis the lightest boat or skiff, DeGayner & Co., Inc. v. DNR, 70 Wis. 2d 936 (1975); Village of Menomonee Falls v. DNR, 140 Wis. 2d 579 (Ct. App. 1987).
(12) "Replacement" means a degree of structural changes to the bank erosion control structure by which some or all of the structure is removed and recreated. For seawalls, any replacement of a portion of the seawall down to or at the footing of the structure is considered replacement. For riprap, replacement of filter fabric or replacement of the base substrate is considered replacement.(13) "Riparian" means an owner of land abutting a navigable waterway.(14) "Riprap" means a layer or layers of rock, including filter material, placed on the bed and bank of a navigable waterway to prevent erosion, scour or sloughing of the existing bank.(15) "Seawall" means an upright structure that is steeper than 1.5 feet vertical to one foot horizontal and that is installed parallel to the bank to prevent the sliding or slumping of the land and to protect the adjacent upland from the action of surface water. Seawalls are commonly constructed of timber, rock (including gabions), concrete, steel or aluminum sheet piling, and may incorporate biological components. Biostabilization structures steeper than 1.5 feet vertical to one foot horizontal, such as encapsulated soil-lifts are not considered seawalls.(16) "Structural treatment" means a system of non-living materials with a specific configuration installed as a means of bank stabilization including, but not limited to, riprap, tree revetments, logs, rootwads, dormant post, jacks, coir logs, bulkheads, and stream barbs.(17) "Toe" means the break in slope at the foot of a bank where it meets the streambed.(18) "Wetland" means an area where water is at, near or above the land surface long enough to be capable of supporting aquatic or hydrophytic vegetation and which has soils indicative of wet conditions.Wis. Admin. Code Department of Natural Resources § NR 328.33
CR 06-126: cr. Register July 2007 No. 619, eff. 8-1-07. Common law doctrine of avulsion secures to the waterfront property owner the ability to reclaim land suddenly lost to erosion, AG ex rel Becker v. Bay Boom Wild River and Fur Company, 172 Wis. 363 (1920).