Sec. 25-204. Resource inventory. Statement of objectives. Map. Notice and
hearing. River corridor protection plan. (a) A river committee shall prepare a written
inventory of all resources within the local drainage basin of the river for which the
committee was established. Such resources shall include fish and wildlife; endangered
and threatened species, species of special concern and essential habitat identified by
the commissioner pursuant to chapter 495; tidal and inland wetlands; unique natural
phenomena; scenic areas; forest lands; agricultural lands, as defined in section 22-26bb
and which are identified by the Commissioner of Agriculture in an inventory which said
commissioner shall provide to the committee; and archaeological and other historic
resources. The inventory shall specify which such resources render the river corridor
exceptionally valuable and suitable for designation. In addition, the inventory shall
identify existing uses within the river corridor, including agriculture, public and private
water-supply, power generation, waste assimilation, residential, commercial, industrial
uses, recreation and water-based transportation and other water-dependent uses, for
the purpose of determining whether any such uses are compatible with protection and
preservation of the river corridor's resources. In preparing the inventory a river committee shall utilize all relevant available information, including the state rivers assessment
data base and wetland maps prepared pursuant to sections 22a-30 and 22a-42a.
(b) After completing an inventory pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, a river
committee shall prepare a written statement identifying those resources in the local
drainage basin of the river for which the committee was established, particularly those
resources which ranked high in the state rivers assessment data base, which should be
protected or preserved and which degraded areas in such basin should be restored and
preserved for their resource value. Such statement shall also identify any existing uses
which are compatible with protection and preservation of such resources. Such statement
shall be known as the river committee's statement of objectives.
(c) After completing an inventory prepared pursuant to subsection (a) of this section
and a statement of objectives prepared pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, the
river committee shall prepare a map consistent with such inventory, which defines the
boundaries of the river corridor to be preserved under the river corridor protection plan
prepared pursuant to subsection (f) of this section.
(d) Upon completion of an inventory, statement of objectives and map pursuant to
subsections (a), (b) and (c) of this section, the river committee shall publish in a newspaper having substantial circulation in the affected area at least thirty days' notice of a
public hearing to be held in one of the municipalities represented on the committee. Such
hearing shall provide an opportunity for public comment regarding such documents
and the committee shall also provide for the submission of written comments to such
committee regarding such documents. After considering all comments received, the
river committee shall revise said documents as appropriate and submit them to the commissioner and the secretary. Within ninety days of receiving the revised documents, the
commissioner shall provide written comments to the river committee and shall furnish
a copy of such comments to the secretary. The secretary shall coordinate a review of
the revised documents by all other relevant state agencies and regional planning organizations established pursuant to section 8-31a and, within ninety days of receiving such
revised documents, shall provide written comments thereon to the river committee and
shall furnish a copy of such comments to the commissioner. After considering all comments received from the commissioner and the secretary, the river committee shall adopt
an inventory, statement of objectives and map and shall publish, in a newspaper having
substantial circulation in the affected area, notice of the adoption of the inventory, statement of objectives and map.
(e) After adoption pursuant to subsection (d) of this section of an inventory, statement of objectives and map, the river committee shall prepare a report on all federal,
state and municipal laws, plans, programs and proposed activities which may affect the
river corridor defined in such map. Such laws shall include regulations adopted pursuant
to chapter 440 and zoning, subdivision and site plan regulations adopted pursuant to
section 8-3. Such plans shall include plans of conservation and development adopted
pursuant to section 8-23, the state plan for conservation and development, water utility
supply plans adopted pursuant to section 25-32d, coordinated water system plans
adopted pursuant to section 25-33h, the comprehensive energy plan adopted pursuant
to section 16a-7a, municipal open space plans, the commissioner's fish and wildlife
plans, the master transportation plan adopted pursuant to section 13b-15, plans prepared
by regional planning agencies pursuant to section 8-31a, and publicly-owned wastewater
treatment facility plans. State and regional agencies shall, within available resources,
assist the river committee in identifying such laws, plans, programs and proposed activities. The report to be prepared pursuant to this section shall identify any conflicts between
such federal, state, regional and municipal laws, plans, programs and proposed activities
and the river committee's objectives for river corridor protection and preservation as
reflected in the statement of objectives. If conflicts are identified, the river committee
shall notify the applicable state, regional or municipal agencies and such agencies shall,
within available resources, attempt with the river commission to resolve such conflicts.
(f) (1) After adoption of an inventory, statement of objectives and map pursuant to
subsection (d) of this section, the river committee shall prepare a river corridor protection
plan. The river committee shall publish in a newspaper having a substantial circulation
in the affected area at least thirty days' notice of a public hearing to be held in one of
the municipalities represented on the committee. Such hearing shall provide an opportunity for public comment regarding the plan and the committee shall also provide for the
submission of written comments on the plan. The committee shall send a copy of such
notice to the chief elected official of each municipality located wholly or partially in
the subregional drainage basin in which the subject river corridor is located and shall
send such notice by certified mail, return receipt requested, to each person who owns
property adjacent to the river segment which is the subject of the river corridor proposed
for designation under section 25-205. After considering all comments received, the river
committee shall revise said documents as appropriate and submit them to the commissioner and the secretary. Within ninety days of receiving the revised documents, the
commissioner shall provide written comments to the river committee and shall furnish
a copy of such comments to the secretary. The secretary shall coordinate a review of
the revised documents by all other relevant state agencies and regional planning organizations established pursuant to section 8-31a and within ninety days of receiving such
documents shall provide written comments thereon to the river commission and shall
furnish a copy of such comments to the commissioner. After considering all comments
received from the commissioner and the secretary, the river committee shall revise the
river corridor protection plan as appropriate and shall publish in a newspaper having a
substantial circulation in the affected area notice of the availability of the response to
comments and the revised plan.
(2) A river corridor protection plan shall set forth a strategy for achieving the protection and preservation objectives contained in the statement of objectives adopted pursuant to subsection (d) of this section and for reconciling existing incompatible uses with
resource preservation. Such plan shall make recommendations for the modification of
municipal plans of conservation and development and zoning, subdivision, site plan
and wetlands regulations as necessary to allow implementation of the river corridor
protection plan and to assure that each member municipality similarly preserves that
portion of the river corridor under its jurisdiction. Such plan shall recommend that applicable municipal regulations be modified to prohibit mining, moving of earth and dredging, other than dredging to maintain existing uses, within the river corridor. Such plan
may set out guidelines for disturbing vegetation within the river corridor and identify
areas where clear-cutting should be prohibited; may recommend municipal adoption of
programs to minimize pollution or development of the river corridor and maximize
voluntary private preservation efforts; shall consider land and water uses which may
be compatible with river protection, including hydropower, agriculture, recreation and
waste discharges and may recommend appropriate revisions of any state or regional
plans of development or municipal plans of conservation and development or open space
plans. Such plan shall include a time schedule for state and municipal implementation
of such regulatory modifications and programs.
(3) A river corridor protection plan shall include the results of an instream flow
study if the commissioner deems it necessary. An instream flow study shall be conducted
in accordance with the commissioner's guidance and shall document water flow in the
river corridor for the purpose of determining whether there is sufficient flow to allow
withdrawals of water consistent with the resource protection and preservation objectives
of the river corridor protection plan.
(P.A. 94-150, S. 5; P.A. 95-335, S. 24, 26; P.A. 96-180, S. 94, 166; P.A. 03-140, S. 22; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6,
S. 146(e); P.A. 04-189, S. 1.)
History: P.A. 95-335 amended Subsecs. (e) and (f) to change "plan of development" to "plan of conservation and
development", effective July 1, 1995; P.A. 96-180 amended Subsec. (f) to correct a statutory reference, effective June 3,
1996; P.A. 03-140 replaced "16a-35m" with "16a-7a" in Subsec. (e), effective July 1, 2003; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6
replaced Commissioner of Agriculture with Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective July 1, 2004;
P.A. 04-189 repealed Sec. 146 of June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, thereby reversing the merger of the Departments of Agriculture
and Consumer Protection, effective June 1, 2004.
Sec. 25-205. Approval of river corridor protection plan. Designation of protected river corridor by General Assembly. (a) A river corridor protection plan
adopted by a river committee pursuant to section 25-204 shall be submitted to the legislative bodies of the towns participating in such committee for their approval. Following
the approval of all of such legislative bodies, a river committee may apply to the commissioner for approval of a map adopted pursuant to subsection (d) of section 25-204 and
a river corridor protection plan prepared pursuant to subsection (f) of said section. An
application under this section shall include, in addition to such map and plan, the inventory and statement of objectives adopted pursuant to subsection (d) of section 25-204, the
report prepared pursuant to subsection (e) of said section and the response to comments
prepared pursuant to subsection (f) of said section. The river committee shall submit a
copy of the application to the secretary.
(b) In deciding whether to approve such a map and plan, the commissioner shall
consider: (1) Whether such inventory, statement of objectives, map, response to comments and plan were completed in accordance with the requirements of section 25-204, (2) whether the inventory accurately identifies all resources, especially those of
exceptional value, in the local drainage basin, (3) whether the river corridor protection
plan would, if implemented, protect and preserve such resources particularly those resources of exceptional value and those resources ranked high in the state rivers assessment data base, (4) whether such plan would, if implemented, reconcile existing incompatible uses with resource protection and preservation and allow for uses which are
compatible therewith, (5) whether the river corridor identified in the map prepared pursuant to subsection (c) of section 25-204 comprises sufficient river area and shoreland
to implement the river protection plan, (6) whether the river committee adequately responded to public comments on the river corridor protection plan, (7) the comments
submitted to the secretary pursuant to subsection (d) of section 25-204 and (8) other
information the commissioner deems relevant.
(c) If the secretary finds that any provision of a river corridor protection plan submitted to him in accordance with subsection (a) of this section conflicts with a program,
policy or proposed activity of any state agency, he shall act in coordination with the
commissioner, the affected state agency and any other interested persons to attempt to
resolve the conflict. If the secretary recommends modifications to the map or the river
corridor protection plan to resolve any such conflicts, the commissioner shall not approve the plan until it has been revised in accordance with the secretary's recommendations.
(d) The commissioner's approval of a map and river corridor protection plan shall
be in writing and shall be filed with the chief elected official of each member municipality and the river committee. If the commissioner denies such approval, the river committee may submit a revised map or river corridor protection plan.
(e) Any revision to a river corridor protection plan approved or rejected by the
commissioner pursuant to this section shall be prepared and submitted in accordance
with the requirements of sections 25-200 to 25-210, inclusive, for the original submittal
provided that approval of the General Assembly shall not be required for revision of a
plan for a river corridor previously designated pursuant to this section. A revision of an
approved river corridor protection plan shall not be effective until such revision has
been approved by the commissioner in accordance with the provisions of this section.
(f) The commissioner may periodically review an approved map and approved river
corridor protection plan and recommend revisions. The river committee shall review
an approved map and plan at least once every five years after their approval, and shall
revise such map or plan as appropriate and in accordance with the requirements of
section 25-204.
(g) Upon approval of a map and river corridor protection plan pursuant to this section, the commissioner shall recommend to the joint standing committee of the General
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to the environment that the General
Assembly enact a law designating the river corridor which is the subject of such map
and plan and providing for the protection and preservation of such corridor in accordance
with the provisions of sections 25-200 to 25-210, inclusive. At any time prior to designation of the river corridor by law, any municipality, by vote of its legislative body, may
withdraw from the river committee and, after such designation, the provisions of sections
25-200 to 25-210, inclusive, shall not apply to such municipality. A vote for withdrawal
shall not be taken until after a public hearing on a proposed withdrawal at which parties
in interest and citizens shall have an opportunity to be heard. Notice of the time and
place of such hearing shall be given in a newspaper or newspapers having a substantial
circulation in such municipality at least fifteen days before such hearing. The map and
river corridor protection plan shall be filed for public inspection in the office of the town
or city clerk of the municipality holding said hearing at least ten days before such hearing.
(P.A. 94-150, S. 6.)
Sec. 25-206. Consistency of state and municipal land use laws and plans with
designated river corridor protection plan. Authority of Connecticut Siting Council
and Department of Environmental Protection re activities within designated river
corridors. (a) Within thirty days of designation of a river corridor, the river committee
shall file the approved map and approved river corridor protection plan in the office of
the town clerk of each member municipality.
(b) Within one year of designation of a river corridor, each member municipality
shall amend its zoning, subdivision, site plan and wetlands regulations, its municipal
plan of conservation and development and any other applicable laws or plans in accordance with the recommendations of the approved river corridor protection plan. The river
committee shall assist member municipalities in adopting any such amendments, and
on behalf of a member municipality may petition the commissioner for an extension of
the one-year deadline specified in this subsection for amending applicable laws. Before
adopting any such amendment, a member municipality shall submit the proposed
amendment to the commissioner, and such proposed amendment shall not be adopted
unless the commissioner finds in writing that it is consistent with the approved river
corridor protection plan.
(c) After a member municipality has completed amending applicable laws and plans
pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, no zoning variance or other exception to
any such amended law shall be granted unless the zoning board of appeals for such
municipality, in consultation with the river committee, finds in writing that it is compatible with the approved river corridor protection plan.
(d) (1) Every major state plan other than the state plan for conservation and development, to the extent that it affects a designated river corridor, shall be consistent with
the approved river corridor protection plan for such corridor, and any state plan which
is inconsistent with such approved river corridor protection plan shall be modified accordingly. Such modifications shall be made in consultation with the commissioner at
the next scheduled revision of such plan.
(2) If the commissioner finds that the state plan for conservation and development
is inconsistent with an approved river corridor protection plan for a designated river
corridor, he shall apply to the secretary for a revision pursuant to section 16a-32.
(3) Every regional plan of development adopted pursuant to section 8-35a, to the
extent that it affects a designated river corridor, shall be consistent with the approved
river corridor protection plan for such corridor and any regional plan of development
which is inconsistent with such approved river corridor protection plan shall be modified
accordingly. Such modifications shall be made in consultation with the commissioner.
(4) Every municipal plan of conservation and development adopted pursuant to
section 8-23, to the extent that it affects a designated river corridor, shall be consistent
with the approved river corridor protection plan for such corridor and any municipal
plan of conservation and development which is inconsistent with such approved river
corridor protection plan shall be modified accordingly. Such modifications shall be
made in consultation with the commissioner.
(5) The commissioner may notify any applicable federal agency of the designation
of a river corridor and may take any other appropriate action to assure consideration of
such designation in federal programs or activities.
(e) (1) Neither the commissioner nor the Connecticut Siting Council shall issue a
permit or other approval for any activity within a river corridor designated under section
25-205 unless the commissioner or the council, as the case may be, determines that such
activity would not adversely affect any of the resources protected pursuant to the plan
for such corridor.
(2) A member municipality may submit written testimony to the commissioner and
may appear by right as a party to any hearing before the commissioner concerning any
permit or other license to be issued by the commissioner for an activity proposed within
a designated river corridor and may appeal any decision of the commissioner concerning
such permit or other license to the superior court in accordance with the provisions of
section 4-183.
(P.A. 94-150, S. 7; P.A. 95-335, S. 25, 26.)
History: P.A. 95-335 amended Subsec. (b) and Subdiv. (4) of Subsec. (d) to change "plan of development" to "plan of
conservation and development", effective July 1, 1995.
Sec. 25-207. Structures and uses existing at time of designation of river corridor. For purposes of sections 25-200 to 25-210, inclusive, any structure or related facility
including, but not limited to, a parking lot, septic system, pool or surfaced area, including,
but not limited to, a paved, bricked, graveled walk or driveway, or a lawn or other
landscaped area or a waste discharge authorized under chapter 446k, which exists within
a designated river corridor on the date of designation, or agricultural land used for any
agricultural purpose, as defined in section 1-1q, identified by the Commissioner of Agriculture in the inventory provided to the committee pursuant to section 25-204, including
land reserved for crop rotation, may be maintained as such provided if, on or after such
date of designation, any such structure, related facility, surfaced or landscaped area or
agricultural land is degraded, damaged or destroyed, it may be replaced or restored
without regard to the provisions of sections 25-200 to 25-210, inclusive, only if there is
no significant change in its location, dimensions or elevations. Any permitted activities,
authorized under title 22a, which exists within a designated river corridor on the date
of designation may be reauthorized under said chapter without regard to the provisions
of sections 25-200 to 25-210, inclusive. Land reserved for crop rotation shall not include
"forest land" as defined in section 12-107b.
(P.A. 94-150, S. 8; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(e); P.A. 04-189, S. 1.)
History: June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 replaced Commissioner of Agriculture with Commissioner of Agriculture and
Consumer Protection, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 04-189 repealed Sec. 146 of June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, thereby reversing
the merger of the Departments of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective June 1, 2004.