Numerous sewage treatment plants throughout New England are at maximum capacity and overflow during periods of heavy rain, sending untreated sewage into Long Island Sound. Millions of people live in New England and Long Island. Heavy rain storms such as Irene have caused scores of sewage treatment plants to overflow, sending untreated waste down to
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The Wood-Pawcatuck Protection Act seeks to provide funding for protection of the Pawcatuck River and other streams in Connecticut and Rhode Island, the Associated Press reports, and an official with the Watershed Association spoke in support of the legislation on Tuesday, April 17.
Citizens Campaign for the Environment is applauding the CT House for passing the Sewage Right to Know Act (SB 88) today, which would require the state to notify the public whenever sewage overflows contaminate local waterways and communities.
Citizens Campaign for the Environment is applauding the CT Senate for passing the Sewage Right to Know Act yesterday, which would require the state to notify the public whenever sewage overflows contaminate local waterways. Click on this environmental headline for more on this story.
A crucial flood monitoring system used for 46 years on the Connecticut River in Middletown was shut down Friday because of a lack of federal funding, according to a meteorologist from the National Weather Service.
Long Island Sound should become the 14th National Marine Sanctuary, Sen. Richard Blumenthal said Friday, joining areas such as the Stellwagen Bank off Massachusetts Bay and the Florida Keys in a special protected status for ecological and cultural resources.
“For example, the Quinebaug & Shetucket Rivers National Heritage Corridor Advisory Committee completed its required mission over a decade ago but it’s still in our statute books. The tasks of the Bi-State Farmington River Watershed Advisory Committee are being performed by the Farmington River Coordinating Committee.
Chairman of the Southeastern Connecticut Water Authority disagrees with a Jan. 24 editorial, “An important step for regional policy,” that contends that the Southeastern Connecticut Council of Governments (SCCOG) legislative proposal, resulting in significant control over the Southeastern Connecticut Water Authority (SCWA), would be beneficial.
The agency launches improved website for beach advisories and closures WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced that it will provide $9.8 million in grants to 38 states, territories and tribes to help protect the health of swimmers at America’s beaches. The agency also launched an improved website for beach advisories and
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Exide Group Inc., under orders from the state DEEP to remove the lead that was leaked from its Post Road factory for 30 years, has been conducting informational meetings with residents and town officials in preparation for a formal hearing before the DEEP in either February or March for permits for its plan. The Connecticut Post reports.
The town of Southington is about to embark on an expensive project, courtesy of a federal mandate requiring the state to address high levels of phosphorus in its rivers and streams.
The residents of North Mianus have settled their protracted lawsuits against the Town of Greenwich over who should pay for the installation of sewers in that area of town. Greenwich Patch reports.
Construction of a fish bypass in the Naugatuck River could finally begin this spring. It has been in the works for 14 years. The Board of Selectmen last week voted on two final components that were holding up the project. The New Haven Register reports.
One of the largest wetlands-restoration efforts in a Connecticut urban area is under way along the West River between Route 1 and Chapel Street, where three new self-regulating tide gates soon will restore more natural salinity to 50 acres of lush tidal marsh. The New Haven Register reports.
47 sewage treatment plants reported spills to the DEEP during two 2011 storms and their aftermath. But sewage spills into the Sound are not as rare as a once-in-a-generation storm such as Irene.
With President Obama set to unveil his annual budget plan next month, U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has urged the Office of Management and Budget Director to include more federal funding for water and sewer infrastructure in the President’s final FY 2013 budget. Senator Gillibrand called for allocating at least $2.1 billion for the federal clean water program and $1.4 billion for drinking water improvement programs in this year’s blueprint – a significant increase from last year’s FY 2012 budget.
2012 is the Year of the Dragon – apparently a sign that is unafraid of challenges and willing to take risks. That is something we need in Stamford, writes Karen DeFalco of the North Stamford Concerned Citizens for the Environment. We’re looking forward to collecting a huge amount of water quality data this year that, if confronted with an open mind, should have a tremendously positive impact on our community. Click on this environmental headline for more of this dispatch from DeFalco.
While power outages during Tropical Storm Irene and the October snowstorm left much of the state in the dark, they had a less-publicized but possibly more damaging result — millions of gallons of raw sewage spilled into waterways throughout Connecticut when backup power systems failed at waste treatment plants. The Hartford Courant reports.
One of the biggest challenges facing the Bridgeport region is the sewer system. Bridgeport’s system is in need of updating, Trumbull needs to find a way to lower its sewage costs, and Monroe doesn’t have one at all.
The Quinebaug River has a legacy of pollution. Historically, the Quinebaug, and its numerous tributaries, played an important role in the industrial development of Connecticut and Massachusetts with its mills and dams.
