News Releases - 2021

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• 7/19/2021 Search for Missing Teens on Farmington River

  DEEP Environmental Conservation Police (EnCon) are continuing a land-based search for the two Plainville teens who have been missing since Thursday night.

• 8/20/2021 DEEP Announces $12 Million in Clean Air Grants from VW Settlement Funds

  (HARTFORD, CT)— The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection today announced that the State of Connecticut is making up to $12 million dollars in clean air grants available as the third round of funding from the legal settlement in the Volkswagen (VW) Corporation emissions cheating scandal.​

• 9/21/2021 DEEP Announces Request for Applications for Sustainable Materials Management Grant Funding

  (HARTFORD, CT) — The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is pleased to announce that the State of Connecticut is making several million dollars in grant funds and technical assistance available to Connecticut municipalities and regional waste authorities to support sustainable materials management (SMM) efforts in direct response to the solid waste disposal crisis that Connecticut municipalities are facing.

• 6/3/2021 CT Greenways Council to Hold 22nd Annual Greenway Awards and Kick-Off CT Trails Day Events: June 4 - 6

  (HARTFORD)- The Connecticut Greenways Council (CGC) will hold its 22nd Annual CT Greenway Awards on Friday, June 4, at 10 a.m. at the Brookfield Town Hall Bandshell in Brookfield. The event, traditionally held on the Friday before CT Trails Day weekend on June 5 and 6, will celebrate the Still River Greenway.

• 9/23/2021 DEEP, DRS, and DCP Remind Wholesalers, Retailers, and Consumers of Surcharge on Miniature Alcohol Bottles That Takes Effect Oct. 1

  (HARTFORD)— The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), Department of Revenue Services (DRS) and Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) remind liquor wholesalers, retailers, and consumers of a five-cent surcharge on miniature alcohol bottles, known as “nips,” that goes into effect Oct. 1.

• 6/16/2021 DEEP to Hold Informational Meeting on Pachaug Pond Dam Repair Project June 23

  (HARTFORD) – The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) will host a public informational meeting June 23 to discuss an upcoming project that will repair and improve the Pachaug Pond dam in Griswold.

• 11/29/2021 DEEP Announces New Proposed Regulations For Whelk Horseshoe Crab Lobster and Striped Bass

• 4/6/2021 DEEP Conduct Prescribed Burn Near Summit of Mohawk Mountain

  (Hartford, CT) – The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) plans to conduct a prescribed burn of about 3 acres of brush in Mohawk State Forest in Cornwall, near the summit of Mohawk Mountain, tomorrow, April 7th, weather and conditions permitting.

• 7/9/2021 DEEP Forester Holds Public Outreach Walk July 15 to Outline Upcoming Forest Management Work in Great Pond Block of Massacoe State Forest

  (HARTFORD)—Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) Forester Jerry Milne will lead a public outreach walk for local officials and interested members of the public in the Great Pond Block of Massacoe State Forest in Simsbury Thursday, July 15, at 6:30 p.m.

• 5/13/2021 DEEP EnCon Officer Named 2020 CT Wildlife Officer of the Year

  (Hartford)- Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) Environmental Conservation Officer John Chickos was recently named the 2020 Connecticut Wildlife Officer of the Year by the Northeast Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies (NEAFWA).

• 8/20/2021 MEDIA AVAILABILITY: DEEP Commissioner Dykes, HRRA Town Officials, Stakeholders to Hold Press Conference Celebrating Launch of HRRA Glass Recycling Program

  (HARTFORD)—On Thursday, August 26th, Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Katie Dykes, along with the Mayors and First Selectmen of the Housatonic Resources Recovery Authority (HRRA) region, and other recycling stakeholders, will hold a press conference to highlight the importance of a new glass recycling program for HRRA member towns, which will help to address the issue of glass contamination in our mixed recycling stream, contributing to a greater amount of recycled material and another important step in the effort to solve Connecticut’s waste disposal crisis.

• 8/20/2021 DEEP Lifts Feeding and Watering Advisory Related to Sick Songbird Illness, Vigilance and Certain Precautions Continue to be Advised

  (HARTFORD)—The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is lifting its advisory issued July 8 related to the usage of bird feeders and bird baths in association with a songbird mortality event observed in Connecticut and several other states, though vigilance and certain other precautions continue to be advised.

• 8/6/2021 Eighty Eighth Anniversary Celebration of the Civilian Conservation Corps Reunion to be Held August 8

  (STAFFORD SPRINGS)—A reunion of Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) alumni, family, and friends in celebration of the 88th anniversary of the founding of the CCC will be held on Sunday, August 8th, at 1 p.m. at the Connecticut CCC Museum at 166 Chestnut Hill Rd. (Rt. 190) in Stafford Springs.

• 7/14/2021 RecycleCT Launches RecycleCT Wizard App

  (HARTFORD)—The RecycleCT Foundation, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote the importance of managing materials more sustainably through waste reduction, reuse, recycling and composting, is adding an app to its very successful RecycleCT Wizard search tool. While the web-based search tool has been very successful, the app will increase ease and access, likely doubling the number of inquiries, and will add languages beyond English and Spanish including French, Simplified Chinese and Portuguese.

• 8/22/2021 DEEP and DPH Advise Against Swimming or Other Water Contact Recreation Over Next 72 Hours Due to Tropical Storm Henri's Impact

  (HARTFORD)— Given the significant rainfall that occurred (and is still expected) due to Tropical Storm Henri, many areas across the state have experienced discharges of untreated sewage. The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) and the Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH) are advising against direct contact with surface water in areas in close proximity to drainage pipes statewide, particularly in urban areas such as Bridgeport, Hartford, Norwalk, Norwich, and the greater New Haven area over the next 72 hours in Connecticut's streams and rivers. Residents are advised not to swim, fish, or utilize paddlecraft in these areas.