Who to Contact – Private or Commercial Development, Local Road Construction

	Cheshire:	271-6670 Inland Wetlands Commission, Mark Kasinskas, Environmental Planner
	Hamden:	287-2646 Conservation and Inland Wetlands Commission, John Raccio Jr. or Geri Tobin, Inspection Officers
	Meriden:	630-4081 Inland Wetland and Watercourse Commission, Jim Andersen
	New Haven:	946-6353 City Plan Commission, Joy Ford, Planner
	North Haven:	239-5321 ext 730 Inland Wetlands Commission, Zoning/Land Use
	Plainville:	793-0221 Inland Wetlands Commission
	Southington:	276-6248 Conservation Commission, Robert VanGeons or Bob Nerney Southington Planning and Zoning Commission (if floodplain issue)
	Wallingford:	294-2093 Inland Wetlands Commission, Brent Smith, Environmental Planner

Who to Contact – State or Federally Sponsored Construction or Development

(860) 424-3019 CT Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Management, Inland Water Resources, Wetlands Section

Who to Contact – State Highway Projects

(860) 594-2924 CT Department of Transportation, Office of Environmental Planning, Division of Water Resources, Steven Ladd, P.E., Supervising Transportation Planner. For copies of studies and environmental documents required by statute, contact Judith.Cantwell@po.state.ct.us

What is a wetland and how are its boundaries defined?

Connecticut statutes define wetlands as “land…which consists of any of the soil types designated as poorly drained, very poorly drained, alluvial, and flood plain by the National Cooperative Soil Survey…US Soil Conservation Service.” See CGS §22a-38. Watercourses are defined in the same section of statute as “rivers, streams, brooks, waterways, lakes, ponds, marshes, swamps, bogs, and all other bodies of water natural or artificial, public or private, which…border upon…” the State.   All of these land types are regulated by CTDEP or local wetland agencies.

The wetland boundaries for a specific location are surveyed by a certified soil scientist. If you want to know if a wetland has been surveyed, ask your local Inland Wetlands Commission to show you the Wetlands Inventory Map of the town. Also contact the Natural Resources Conservation Service for information about soil types. They have completed general soil surveys for the entire state.

Visit their website on CT Soils for more information.

Typical Problems to Report

• Fill activity, from leaf disposal to dirt and construction debris
• Dredge activity, from fence post digging to home foundation construction
• Erosion of upland soil into a wetland from a construction site

The construction debris shown here was dumped in a healthy wetland/watercourse ecosystem between I-91 and The Game in North Haven. An otter and red-tailed hawk were seen just to the right of this scene on the day the picture was taken. In the early 1980's the Soil and Water Conservation Service wrote to the town of North Haven and said that the area's wetlands were low in value because they were located near proposed retail development (Sports Authority, movie theater, etc.).

Click on picture for larger image

Wetland Laws and Regulations

The statutory and regulatory framework for wetlands protection in Connecticut is located at Connecticut General Statutes (CGS) Section (§) 22a-36 to 22a-45a.

CT statutes require municipal regulation of activities affecting the wetlands and watercourses within the territorial boundaries of the municipalities. See CGS §22a-42. The CTDEP must exercise general supervision of the administration and enforcement of wetlands regulations by state agencies and by municipalities. See CGS §22a-39. If a municipal wetlands agency fails to perform its responsibilities according to state statutes or local regulations, the CTDEP may take action to correct the problem. The CTDEP will exhaust every opportunity to work with the municipality to resolve the problem before taking action.

For CT statutes affecting tidal wetlands, see CGS §22a-28 to 22a-35.

Each municipality has adopted regulations for wetlands and watercourses protection. Contact the Town Clerk or agency contact above for a copy or the regulations.

More Information

CT Soils

Natural Resources Conservation Service -- Soil Survey Information

USEPA Wetlands Page

US Army Corps of Engineers Progrommatic General Permit for CT

Wetland Mitigation (Replacement)

US Fish and Wildlife Service -- Voluntary Habitat Restoration in Cooperation With Private Landowners