Water Resources and Economic Development.

Dear Streamflow Supporters –

Thank you for your support of statewide streamflow regulations.  I anticipated that I would not contact this distribution list until April at which time we would have a final draft of the proposed state regulations.  Unfortunately I need your help immediately.

Next Thursday, February 24^th, the Commerce Committee will be holding a public hearing regarding Bill 1020 – An Act Concerning Water Resources and Economic Development.

This bill, would require the streamflow regulation process to completely start over.  Even more alarming, the bill would prevent the passage of any regulations that truly provided protection to our streams.   In essence – real protection would only be given where withdrawals do not occur – which of course does not provide protection at all!

It is obvious now, that despite repeated bluffing that “we are almost there”, those opposed to the passage of streamflow regulations apparently do not wish to compromise.  Instead they are proposing this new legislation which would completely ignore the work done over the past five years, and, in particular, the intensive collaborative efforts that have occurred between the environmental groups, water utilities, businesses and other stakeholders over this past twelve months.  We cannot afford to go back to the drawing board on this issue.

I have copied the text of the bill below.  It is also available to be viewed at http://www.cga.ct.gov/2011/TOB/S/2011SB-01020-R00-SB.htm.

THIS IS A VERY BAD BILL AND WE NEED EVERYONE’S HELP TO OPPOSE IT.

If you can attend the hearing we desperately need you to do so – we apparently did not make our voice clear enough during the last round of streamflow regulation discussion and now we are in danger of losing our chance to garner protection for our rivers.  We need to make our presence known at this meeting – the Commerce Committee needs to know that the citizens of Connecticut do value our streams and we do wish for them to be afforded protection.

Please encourage your members to contact their elected officialsand the members of the Commerce Committee via email, letter or phone as soon as possible.

PUBLIC HEARING DETAILS:

The Commerce Committee  will hold the public hearing following a 10:00 A.M. committee meeting on Thursday, February 24, 2011 in Room 1D of the Legislative Office Building (LOB) in Hartford.  Please submit 40 copies of written testimony to Committee staff one hour prior to the start of the hearing in Room 1D of the LOB.  Sign-up for the hearing will begin at 9:00 A.M. in Room 1D of the LOB.  The first hour of the hearing is reserved for Legislators, Constitutional Officers, State Agency Heads and Chief Elected Municipal Officials.  Speakers will be limited to three minutes of testimony.  Unofficial sign-up sheets have no standing with the Committee.

I greatly appreciate your willingness to support the protection of our state’s beautiful rivers!  Please pass this message on to anyone who might be able to help!

Thank you,

Meg

Meghan Ruta
Water Protection Manager
Housatonic Valley Association
PO Box 28, 150 Kent Road S.
Cornwall Bridge, Connecticut 06754
Phone 860.672.6678    Fax 860.672.0162
http://www.hvatoday.org

AN ACT CONCERNING WATER RESOURCES AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. Section 26-141b of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2011):

(a) The Commissioner of Environmental Protection shall, on or before December 31, [2006] 2012, [and after consultation and cooperation] in concurrence with the Department of Public Health, the Department of Economic and Community Development, the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Public Utility Control, and after consultation and cooperation with an advisory group convened by the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, and any other agency, board or commission of the state with which said commissioner shall deem it advisable to consult and after recognizing and providing for the needs and requirements of public health, flood control, industry, public utilities, water supply, public safety, agriculture and other lawful uses of such waters and further recognizing and providing for stream and river ecology, the requirements of natural aquatic life, natural wildlife and public recreation, and after considering the natural flow of water into an impoundment or diversion, and being reasonably consistent therewith, shall adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, establishing flow regulations for all river and stream systems. Such flow regulations shall: (1) Apply to all river and stream systems within this state; (2) preserve and protect the natural aquatic life, including anadromous fish, contained within such waters; (3) preserve and protect the natural and stocked wildlife dependent upon the flow of such water; (4) promote and protect the usage of such water for public recreation; (5) be based, to the maximum extent practicable, on natural variation of flows and water levels while providing for the needs and requirements of public health, flood control, industry, public utilities, water supply, public safety, agriculture and other lawful uses of such waters; and (6) be based on the best available science, including, but not limited to, natural aquatic habitat, biota, subregional basin boundaries, areas of stratified drift, stream gages and flow data, locations of registered, permitted, and proposed diversions and withdrawal data reported pursuant to section 22a-368a, locations where any dams or other structures impound or divert the waters of a river or stream and any release made therefrom, and any other data for developing such regulations or individual management plans. Such flow regulations [may] shall not require any public water system, as defined in subsection (a) of section 25-33d, to comply with reservoir release requirements that will cause a reduction in safe yield, available supply or margin of safety to levels that are not sufficient to meet the public health, safety, agricultural and economic development needs of the state and shall provide special conditions or exemptions including, but not limited to, an extreme economic hardship or other circumstance, an agricultural diversion, a water quality certification related to a license issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, [or] as necessary to allow a public water system, as defined in subsection (a) of section 25-33d, to comply with the obligations of such system as set forth in the regulations of Connecticut state agencies or where compliance requires the expenditure of resources for the development of new sources of water supplies or storage which is not technically feasible or financially viable. Any flow management plan contained in a resolution, agreement or stipulated judgment to which the state, acting through the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, is a party, or the management plan developed pursuant to section 3 of public act 00-152*, is exempt from any such flow regulations. Flow regulations that were adopted pursuant to this section and sections 26-141a and 26-141c prior to October 1, 2005, shall remain in effect until the Commissioner of Environmental Protection adopts new regulations pursuant to this section.

(b) The commissioner shall conduct a screening of all basins in Connecticut, in consultation with the commissioner of Public Health, using existing data and resources to classify rivers and streams, or segments thereof, according to their current and proposed future use, and establish priorities for compliance with flow regulations for any dam or other structure that impounds or instantaneously diverts a river or stream. In establishing such priorities for compliance, said commissioners shall solicit input from appropriate state agencies and stakeholders and consider the potential impacts of compliance with the flow regulations on economic development, brownfields remediation, the adequacy of public water supplies to meet the current and future public health and safety needs of the communities served, the ability of water companies to maintain an adequate margin of safety, as determined by the Department of Public Health, the impact on water rates and the anticipated environmental benefits from compliance. For purposes of this section, rivers and streams adjacent to or immediately downstream of public water supply sources, or located in areas of significance for economic development shall not be classified in a manner that would prevent human alteration of the natural stream flow consistent with the continued use of such public water supply sources, or the economic development.

Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2011) The Department of Public Utility Control shall provide ratemaking mechanisms that allow for the timely recovery of costs of compliance with the flow regulations proposed pursuant to section 26-141b, as amended by this act, and shall amend existing regulations to allow a water company to include in such company’s rate base new facilities and improvements to facilities necessary to comply with the flow regulations and to allow the affected water company to implement a rate surcharge for such costs of compliance until such time as the company files its next general rate case.

Statement of Purpose:

To require that the Commissioner of Environmental Protection adopt certain regulations in concurrence with the Departments of Public Health, Economic and Community Development and Agriculture and to prevent certain economic development efforts from being affected by regulations concerning public water supplies.

[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]

Source: http://www.cga.ct.gov/2011/TOB/S/2011SB-01020-R00-SB.htm