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. Some recent issues brought to the Council’s attention include:

• Abuse of Preserved Lands. The Council worked closely with the General Assembly in 2006 to update state laws that protect preserved lands from destructive illegal activities. Public Act 06-89, An Act Concerning Encroachment on Open Space Lands, became effective in October 2006 and already has been put to use in defense of parks, forests and preserves. The bill’s roots were in a 2005 complaint to the Council. That year, representatives of the Farmington Land Trust described the deliberate destruction of large trees on one of its preserves and the lack of compensation available under the law. As described in last year’s annual report, the Council concluded that the relevant laws were very outdated and issued a special report, Preserved But Not Protected. The Council worked with the DEP, Attorney General, and numerous nonprofit conservation organizations to shape the recommended legislation. Analysis of the problem showed the Farmington case to be one of hundreds across Connecticut. The state itself was found to have dozens of illegal structures, roads and activities in its parks and forests. In Preserved But Not Protected, the Council recommended the hiring of land surveyors to document such encroachments in state parks and forests. The DEP was able to hire surveyors in early 2007. With surveyors at work and a meaningful law to serve as a deterrent to future encroachments, the citizens of Connecticut can look forward to greater protection of their parks and forests. Some additional work remains to be done, such as amending the law that allows people to re-open and pave discontinued roads that run through state parks and land trust preserves.

• Surplus State Lands. Current law does not provide for public notice when the state transfers land out of state ownership to a municipality or private landowner. The Council has documented occasions when undeveloped lands have been transferred with little or no environmental review. In 2006, the Council recommended legislation to provide for public notice and environmental review. The bill received unanimous approval in the State Senate but was not considered by the House of Representatives. The Council is working with numerous agencies and organizations on similar legislation in 2007.

• Wetlands.  A single citizen complaint led the Council to begin a detailed review of the DEP’s oversight of municipal regulation of inland wetlands. The DEP has only two staff persons in its Inland Wetlands Management section, and long delays in investigations are not unusual. The original complaint remains unresolved after two years. The Council concluded that the DEP’s Inland Wetlands Management section should have at least six staff persons to provide effective assistance to municipal wetlands commissions and to provide necessary oversight as required by law. The Council is continuing its review. At present, the Council is trying to determine why many municipalities ignore the statutes that require them to report permit and enforcement decisions to the DEP and to have at least one member or agent who has completed the DEP’s training program. The Council also is evaluating the effectiveness of the handful of local inland wetlands agencies that also serve as their municipalities’ zoning commissions.

• UConn, Drinking Water, and Local Rivers. When students returned to the University of Connecticut Storrs campus in September 2005, the additional demand for water from wells near the Fenton River caused the river, which was already low because of extended dry weather, to run dry. Several organizations, local officials and UConn representatives presented information to the Council about the problem. One proposed solution involved transferring more water from wells near the Willimantic River, which led to concerns about potential impacts to that river. In March 2006, the University completed its long-awaited Long-Term Impact Analysis of the University of Connecticut’s Fenton River Water Supply Wells on the Habitat of the Fenton River (PDF file). The University has committed itself to a plan to manage its drinking water supply in a comprehensive way to avoid negative impacts to the rivers. Relevant state agencies approved this plan in 2006. The University also is conducting further studies of the Fenton and Willimantic Rivers and their aquifers.

• No Public Hearings. Residents and officials of Rocky Hill were dismayed to learn that the DEP would not be holding a public hearing during its evaluation of a permit application for commercial activity in the Connecticut River floodplain. The Stream Channel Encroachment Line permit program is unusual in not providing for a public hearing even if one is requested. The old statute that guides that program predates most other environmental laws and does not allow for a hearing. The Council joined with the town and other organizations in recommending an update to that law. Legislation was introduced but has not yet been adopted by the General Assembly.

• Trees again. The Council has repeatedly received complaints about tree removal on rights-of-way along state roads. In some instances, the cutting was done illegally by nearby landowners. In some instances, the nearby landowners obtained permits from the Department of Transportation (DOT), but local officials were not notified. The Council recommended to the DOT that it require all permit applicants to present evidence that they have notified the appropriate municipal officials of their plans. The DOT assured the Council that it follows the notification procedures for very large trees as required by state law, though not necessarily for trees less than eighteen inches in diameter, and also has implemented additional review procedures for sensitive areas.

The Council periodically holds public forums in different parts of the state to learn what aspects of the environment are most on residents’ minds. The information presented at these forums has been extremely useful to the Council. For example, at a forum in Torrington in late 2005, several officials and citizens cited the widespread problem of road sweepings. When sand and debris are swept from the roads by cities and towns, there are insufficient places to dispose of them that are environmentally acceptable. If left on the roads, the sand and debris pollute rivers and streams. The Council communicated repeatedly with the DEP and DOT on this matter, and commended the DOT for adopting an anti-icing strategy in 2006 that resulted in much less sand on the roads and in Connecticut’s waterways.

In February 2006, the Council heard from numerous citizens and public officials at the Simsbury 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 aquifer protection to rare species conservation to deer overpopulation, were related to this 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.

Students from Farmington attended and presented persuasive evidence in support of expanding the state’s bottle-deposit law.

Reviewing State Projects

The Council is also 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 above. One such project was a sewer expansion project in New Hartford. Because the DEP does not have enough money in its Clean Water Fund to correct all existing sewage problems, the Council questioned the wisdom of providing state funds to accommodate new development outside of the town center. Plans for that project have been revised.

The Council commented on a project in 2006 that could result in a loss of state park acreage in Rocky Hill, and recommended that the project include a plan to purchase replacement land.

The Council has been documenting for some years the failure of Connecticut to meet its recycling goals. The impact of that failure was made clear in 2006 when the DEP released a draft Solid Waste Management Plan that showed hundreds of thousands of tons of garbage being hauled out of Connecticut by truck. If recycling goals had been met, then Connecticut’s in-state disposal capacity would be adequate. The Council submitted detailed comments and recommended a new goal for improving waste reduction and recycling so that Connecticut will no longer need to export garbage by truck. In December 2006, the DEP issued its final Plan, which adopted such a goal. Meeting the goal will require a well-focused effort over many years.

The Council heard many concerns in 2006 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 2007.