CONCORD, N.H. (Legal Newsline) - A New Hampshire man has agreed to pay up to $40,000 in penalties for violations of the state's shoreland and wetland laws.
The Rockingham Country Superior Court approved the settlement between Michael Pantaleo and Attorney General Michael A. Delaney and Thomas S. Burack, commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services.
Pantaleo will pay $25,000 to the state with the remaining $15,000 permanently suspended provided he does not violate the settlement or state environmental laws again within a three year period following the entry of the settlement agreement.
Pantaleo is alleged to have violated the Comprehensive Shoreland Protection Act and state wetland laws when he constructed a retaining wall along Arlington Pond. Pantaleo further violated the laws by constructing a large stone patio, firepit, stairway and other structures within a protected zone established by the Shoreland Act.
All of the affected areas have been restored as part of the settlement, including the removal of all items that could not be approved by the Department of Environmental Services.
"Restoration is an important component of resolving all violations," Burack said. "We cannot allow a penalty for a violation to simply be a cost of doing business."