Indiana § 14-22-10-6 Liability for destruction of wild animals by pollutant

Indiana Statutes

§ 14-22-10-6 — Liability for destruction of wild animals by pollutant

Indiana § 14-22-10-6

Art. 22FISH AND WILDLIFE

Ch. 10Wildlife Regulation

This text of Indiana § 14-22-10-6 (Liability for destruction of wild animals by pollutant) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Ind. Code § 14-22-10-6 (2026).

Text

(a)A person who, whether or not the person has been issued a certificate of approval, license, permit, or other document of approval authorized by this article or any other Indiana law, discharges, sprays, or releases waste materials, chemicals, or other substances:

(1)either accidentally, negligently, or willfully;

(2)in any quantity, concentration, or manner onto or in any water of Indiana, the boundary waters of the state, or onto or in public or private land; and

(3)so that wild animals are killed as a result; is responsible for the kill.

(b)The director shall, in the name of the state, recover damages, including the cost of restoration, from the person. Upon receipt of the estimates of the damages caused, the director shall notify the person responsible within ninety (90) days af

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(a) A person who, whether or not the person
has been issued a certificate of approval, license, permit, or other
document of approval authorized by this article or any other Indiana
law, discharges, sprays, or releases waste materials, chemicals, or other
substances:
(1) either accidentally, negligently, or willfully;
(2) in any quantity, concentration, or manner onto or in any water
of Indiana, the boundary waters of the state, or onto or in public
or private land; and
(3) so that wild animals are killed as a result;
is responsible for the kill.
(b) The director shall, in the name of the state, recover damages,
including the cost of restoration, from the person. Upon receipt of the
estimates of the damages caused, the director shall notify the person
responsible within ninety (90) days after the kill to the wild animals,
and the director may enter into a proper and reasonable settlement with
the person. In determining the damages caused, the director may
consider the following:
(1) The direct value of the wild animals killed.
(2) The direct value of law enforcement costs, including wages of
investigating officers, cost of any materials used, and travel
expenses.
(3) The value of damage to habitat, including injured vegetation,
contaminated sediment, and dead invertebrate prey species.
(c) If the total sum of the values under subsection (b)(1), (b)(2), and
(b)(3) exceeds five thousand dollars ($5,000) in damages, the director
may consider the following in addition to the damages calculated under
subsection (b):
(1) The decreased value of the habitat for the number of years
necessary for the habitat to recover to predamaged conditions.
(2) The value of lost recreational fishing and hunting time,
including future decreased value for the number of years
necessary for the recreational use to recover to predamaged
conditions.
(d) If a settlement is not reached within a reasonable time, the
department shall initiate a proceeding under IC 4-21.5 and IC 14-10-2
to recover damages.
(e) The proceeds of a recovery shall be used to replace, as far as and
as promptly as possible, in whatever manner the director considers
proper, the wild animal population or habitat in the waters or lands in
question. If the improvement of the wild animal population or habitat
in question is not practicable, the proceeds shall be deposited into the
fish and wildlife fund.
[Pre-1995 Recodification Citation: 14-2-6-7.]