FARMINGTON – The owner of a property on Horne Hill Road has been fined for harvesting about 44 acres of a 500-acre parcel in violation of the state’s forest practice rules.

Tracy Gordon of Strong has reached a settlement with the Maine Forest Service, Maine Department of Conservation, said Paul Larrivee, a regional enforcement coordinator for the service.

“He didn’t think he had cut it as hard as he had and did not intend to create a clear-cut,” Larrivee said. “But, he was the most cooperative landowner that I’ve ever worked with. He wanted to do what he had to do.”

A routine inspection of the harvesting revealed a 44-acre-clear cut that did not have an adequate separation zone or a harvest plan prepared by a licensed forester prior to the harvest as required by the state’s forest practices rules governing the size and management of clear-cuts, Larrivee said.

The piece in question was cut almost three years ago, Gordon said.

“A lot of it was fir on wet land and when you cut fir most of it blows over with roots sticking up. I’d rather cut it hard rather than have blown over trees,” Gordon said of his close to 30 years’ experience cutting trees.

Gordon said he did work with a forester but their plan did not include that part, he said.

“If it had, I would have been OK.”

Gordon was contacted by the forestry department earlier this year and has since had his forester file an after-the-fact plan.

In a settlement deal, Gordon also agreed to pay a $4,000 penalty. Along with the penalty, Larrivee said he would need to hire a private forester to create an after-the-fact forest plan and to certify to the Maine Forest Service that the area is regrowing. Much of the area has already started to regenerate, he added.

He will also need to maintain a separation zone, equal to the size of the clear-cut or 44 acres, around the clear-cut area until the regrowth occurs.

“Gordon has taken full responsibility for the violation and has taken steps to reduce the likelihood of a repeat violation,” Larrivee said.

“When landowners harvest to the minimum requirements of the Forest Practices Act but fail to leave enough of the right trees, it can result in the unintentional creation of clear-cuts and forest practice rule violations,” he said.

The Maine Forest Service employs 10 district foresters who are available to answer questions about harvesting timber. Seeing more harvesting being done often by landowners who may not know all the rules and regulations, the staff is available to answer questions, he added. For information, call 1-800-367-0223.

“Our goal is to improve the management of Maine’s forests,” said Maine Forest Service Director Alec Giffen. “Our agency focuses on educating and informing landowners to reduce the possibility of such violations. When violations do occur, however, we do have a responsibility to uphold the law.”