Research and Reports

In last year’s annual report, the Council stated that most of Connecticut’s environmental goals were within sight.  “With significantly more effort,” the report concluded, “Connecticut will succeed.  With current effort, it will fail.”

As a follow-up, the Council analyzed the capital investments that will be required to meet the state’s goals for sewage-free rivers; conservation of farms, forests, forests and beaches; and a sustainable future where materials are recycled and energy is used efficiently.  The Council published its analysis as a special report, Dreams Deferred?, in early 2008.

The special report also analyzed trends in the staffing and operational demands of the DEP.  The Council embarked on this research in part because it found, following its investigations of individual complaints, that deficiencies in the DEP’s operations – from parks management to inland wetlands oversight to wastewater treatment regulation and enforcement – almost invariably could be traced to inadequate staffing.  The Council found that the DEP spends no more state taxpayer dollars on day-to-day operations, after adjusting for inflation, than it did in 1972.  The Council issued a set of recommendations for improving the operational capacity of the DEP and for a more detailed analysis of staffing requirements.

Reviewing State Projects

The Council is charged by statute to advise state agencies on their construction projects.  Generally, the Council does this when it reviews the Environmental Impact Evaluation for a capital project, or in response to complaints such as those raised below.

The Council was surprised to receive two Environmental Impact Evaluations in 2007 for projects that would use state funds to aid commercial development on more than 100 acres of prime agricultural land, including active farms.  Since 1983, state law has required all such capital projects to be reviewed and approved by the Commissioner of Agriculture prior to release of funding by the State Bond Commission, but these projects had not been reviewed.  The Council discovered that the Small Town Economic Assistance Program (STEAP) is unique among state grant programs in that projects are not reviewed for agricultural impacts prior to the decision to provide state funds.  The Council recommended legislation in 2008 that would make STEAP grants consistent with all other state programs.

Because of the Council’s long-term concern that the state’s ongoing effort to conserve open space land is moving too slowly to meet state goals, the Council spent considerable time recommending major changes to the DEP’s 2007 draft of The Green Plan: Guiding Land Acquisition and Protection in Connecticut 2007-2012.

Complaints

Connecticut residents who encounter problems with state environmental programs are encouraged to bring their complaints to the Council on Environmental Quality.  The Council is charged by statute to investigate these complaints and is further charged to identify deficiencies in state environmental programs and to recommend legislation for correcting them.   The numerous complaints of 2007 led to much Council action, including:

·    Transfers and exchanges of state land were the subject of several complaints in 2007 and prior years, but two recent corrective actions might prevent such problems in the future.  In January, citizens told the Council that a controversial development proposal in Madison had been aided by the DEP’s granting of an easement across state park land.  The Council investigated and found that, indeed, in 2000 the DEP had granted a larger access easement to the private property in exchange for a conservation easement on a small area in the rear of the property.  The transfer did not meet the requirements of the DEP’s own Land Exchange Policy which had been adopted in 1990.  Commissioner of Environmental Protection Gina McCarthy responded to the Council by saying that she would update the Land Exchange Policy and elevate it to the level of a directive.  At press time, this directive was nearly complete.

The General Assembly and Governor M. Jodi Rell also took action, through adoption of Public Act 07-213, to make sure that the state will not transfer land out of its ownership without public notice, public comment and, if warranted, a review of the natural resources present on the property.  The new law applies to most property transfers except those specifically ordered by the General Assembly.  Public notices will appear in the Environmental Monitor published by the Council.

·    Inland wetlands are a perennial source of complaints.  In 2007, the Council continued to follow the DEP’s response to a 2005 complaint about unpermitted filling of wetlands and watercourses in Farmington.  From this response, the Council learned that the DEP is not staffed adequately to fulfill its oversight role as mandated by the Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Act.  Fortunately, the federal government required restoration of the Farmington property.

The Council hears repeatedly that municipal wetlands agencies desire more assistance from the DEP.  However, the DEP has only two staff people to oversee wetlands regulation across the state, and they must put a priority on training local commission members and staff.  The Council learned that many municipalities ignore the law that requires them to submit notices of all decisions to the DEP.  Many also ignore the statutory requirement to have at least one commission or staff member complete the DEP’s wetlands training program.  In 2007, a Council intern analyzed the statistical differences between the decisions made by local commissions that had trained members or staff and those that did not.  Commissions with trained members or staff permitted less destruction of wetlands, on average, than those without.  Despite these benefits of training, the DEP is not presently equipped to expand training and other services to municipalities.  The Council has estimated that at least six staff positions are needed to oversee and assist municipalities.

·    Advanced wastewater treatment plants, which are designed to receive, treat and discharge sewage from dense development where no sewers are present, have been the focus of scrutiny.  After investigating complaints from citizens, the Council concluded that changes are needed in the DEP program that regulates such systems.  The application fees are far too small, the program is underfunded, and the DEP has not had enough staff to review, inspect and take enforcement action against these systems. 

·    A large-scale composting facility proposed by the University of Connecticut in Mansfield generated complaints, and the Council invited university officials to discuss the composting plans at a public meeting.   The university is reevaluating the siting criteria and searching for alternative locations.

·    A telecommunications tower proposed in Woodstock prompted the Council to exercise its statutory authority to submit comments to the Connecticut Siting Council. The Council recommended that alternative locations be sought which would not affect the scenic value of Black Pond, which has a shoreline that is largely undeveloped and includes a state forest and public boat launch.  Since that time the Council has received other complaints about towers, which continue to proliferate.

·    The Council also heard concerns about uncontrolled wood smoke, pharmaceuticals in wastewater, the use of used tire particles in synthetic athletic fields and other potential pollution problems that could affect human health.

The Word From Southington

The Council periodically holds public forums in different parts of the state to learn what environmental topics are most on residents’ minds.  The information presented at these forums has been extremely useful to the Council

In May 2007, the Council heard from citizens and municipal officials at the Southington Town Hall.  State assistance in preserving open space and farmland topped the list of concerns.  This is consistent with the results of virtually every forum held by the Council across Connecticut over the past nine years.  Residents also raised sprawl as a major concern.  In fact, almost all of the other concerns, from affordable housing to siltation of waterways to bicycle safety, were related to this broad concern about land use and development.  Citizens raised questions about their towns’ abilities to regulate inland wetlands and watercourses, a concern that also is heard at every forum.  Also, the underfunding of several specific DEP programs was raised, as it often is at these forums.

________________

The Council heard many concerns from people across the state.  The Council worked to address them all, and truly appreciates the efforts people made to bring environmental problems to light. The Council looks forward to helping citizens and agencies solve new challenges in 2008.