The Connecticut General Assembly passed environmental
legislation in effect as of October 1 in the following areas:
Reduced Mercury Emission Testing
Requirements
Public Act No. 13-58 reduces the frequency of mercury emissions
testing for certain emissions units that generate electricity,
combust coal and comply with the applicable requirements for eight
consecutive calendar quarters.
CEPA Intervention
Public Act No. 13-186 requires that intervention petitions filed
pursuant to the Connecticut Environmental Protection Act, C.G.S.
Section 22a-14, et seq., plead specific facts setting forth the
claimed unreasonable pollution, impairment or destruction of a
natural resource. These factual allegations must be sufficient to
allow the decision-making authority to determine whether it has
jurisdiction over the claims asserted.
Coastal Management
Public Act No. 13-179 mandates that the Connecticut Department of
Energy and Environmental Protection (the DEEP) issue certificates
of permission for certain coastal activities completed prior to
January 1, 1995, without a permit, certificate or emergency
authorization, if they are substantially compliant with applicable
standards and criteria. In addition, the act authorizes the
DEEP's issuance of certificates for substantial maintenance of,
and minor alterations or amendments to, activities completed prior
to January 1, 1995, when there is substantial compliance with
applicable standards and criteria; C.G.S. Section 22a-363b had
previously limited this authority to activities completed prior to
June 24, 1939. The act also allows for the fortification of certain
coastal properties in the event of hurricane or tropical storm
warnings, adds a provision encouraging the use of confined aquatic
disposal cells for dredged materials, expands the statutory
statement of policies concerning coastal land and water resources
to include structural erosion and sedimentation solutions
protecting commercial and residential structures, and addresses the
availability and use of sand and gravel for beach nourishment and
habitat restoration.
Public Act No. 13-179 invalidates DEEP civil penalty orders for
certain violations, when they have been in place for more than 15
years without the DEEP taking judicial action to enforce
them.
Dam Safety
Public Act No. 13-197 shifts the burden of dam inspection from the
DEEP to the dam owner and requires that dam owners register with
the DEEP before October 1, 2015, if the dam's failure may
endanger life or property. The act requires that the DEEP be
notified upon transfer of ownership of any dam and mandates that
owners of high- or significant-hazard dams and similar structures
develop and implement an emergency action plan to be filed with the
DEEP.
Solid Waste Removal and Recycling
Public Act No. 13-285 adds additional reporting requirements for
scrap metal processors seeking exemption from solid waste facility
permitting, provides certain exemptions from requirements imposed
on collectors of solid waste, imposes deadlines by which certain
commercial food wholesalers and distributors must recycle organic
materials, and allows municipalities to exempt certain recycling
equipment from property tax.
Clean Water Fund Priority List
Public Act No. 13-15 modifies the criteria for the DEEP's
prioritization of water quality projects to include consideration
of measures mitigating impacts from a rise in sea level.
Radiation and Radioactive Materials
Public Act No. 13-205 allows the DEEP to issue cease and desist
orders, to suspend or revoke certain registrations, to issue orders
to correct or abate violations, and to seek an injunction for
certain violations of laws governing radiation and radioactive
materials. The act establishes a hearing process for parties
aggrieved by an order to correct or abate a violation. The act
allows for the imposition of fines and/or imprisonment for
criminally negligent violations of certain laws pertaining to
radiation and radioactive materials.
Felony Violations of Environmental Laws
Public Act No. 13-258 classifies certain hazardous and solid waste
violations as class D felonies; classifies violations of certain
water pollution control, gasoline discharge and mercury emissions
requirements as class C felonies; and subjects municipalities to
perjury and false statement charges for false representations
regarding a water diversion.
Environmental Land Use Restrictions
Public Act No. 13-308 establishes a Notice of Activity and Use
Limitation, a new category of land use restriction intended to be
self-implementing and to facilitate the completion of remediation
activities. The DEEP is to develop forms and regulation specific to
this category of land use restriction.
Miscellaneous Revisions of Environmental
Laws
Public Acts Nos. 13-205 and 13-209 make technical revisions to
specified environmental statutes, removing obsolete provisions,
revising certain notice requirements, removing certain DEEP
reporting obligations, repealing the Mid-Atlantic States Air
Pollution Control Compact and revoking the DEEP's statutory
mandate to promulgate certain regulations.
In addition, Public Act No. 13-42 requires that mattress producers
form a mattress recycling council, whose purpose, in part, is to
create a recycling plan for discarded mattresses in Connecticut.
The plan must be submitted to the DEEP for its approval no later
than July 1, 2014. Of potential relevance to municipalities
authorities, Public Act No. 13-222 designates certain municipal
stormwater authorities as quasi-public, and Public Act No. 13-247
allows municipalities to authorize a statutorily created water
pollution control authority to recommend to the municipality a levy
on taxable real property to defray costs relating to stormwater
control systems.
The Connecticut General Assembly is next in session in February
2014.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
