Sec. 25-234. Resource inventory. Statement of objectives. Map. Notice. Hearing. Review by state officials. Management plan.
Sec. 25-234. Resource inventory. Statement of objectives. Map. Notice. Hearing. Review by state officials. Management plan. (a) A river commission shall prepare
a written inventory of all resources and all existing uses within those areas of the local
drainage basin of the river corridor for which the commission was established which
are within the boundaries of the municipalities represented on the commission. Such
inventory shall also identify within such areas any locations providing public access to
resources and any portions of the river or riverfront lands which have been degraded
by human use and could be restored. The Commissioner of Agriculture shall prepare
an inventory of agricultural land within such areas and shall submit such inventory for
inclusion in the commission's inventory. In preparing the inventory a river commission
shall utilize all relevant available information, including, but not limited to, the state
rivers assessment database 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
commission shall prepare a written statement identifying in such areas those resources
which should be preserved or enhanced, those existing uses which should be maintained,
those degraded areas which should be restored and those areas in which potential industrial, commercial and other uses could be accommodated without degrading the resources of the river corridor. Such statement shall be known as the river commission's
statement of objectives. In preparing a statement of objectives, the river commission
shall consider the best uses of the river corridor as identified by the state rivers assessment database and potential conflicts among resources on the one hand and existing
and potential uses of the river corridor on the other hand. The statement of objectives
shall attempt to balance competing uses within the river corridor and its watershed lands
and provide for multiple uses thereof.
(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 commission shall prepare a map which shall be consistent with said inventory and
statement of objectives and which defines the boundaries of the river corridor to be
managed under the river corridor management plan prepared pursuant to subsection (h)
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 commission shall publish in a newspaper having a substantial circulation in the affected area notice of a public hearing to be
held not less than thirty days thereafter in one of the municipalities represented on the
commission. Such hearing shall provide an opportunity for oral and written comments
regarding such documents. After considering all comments received, the river commission shall revise said documents as appropriate and submit them to the commissioner
and the secretary. Within sixty days of receiving the revised documents, the commissioner shall provide written comments to the river commission 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, as
defined in section 4-124i, and, within ninety days of receiving such revised 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 commission shall adopt a final inventory,
statement of objectives and map and shall publish, in a newspaper having a substantial
circulation in the affected area, notice of the adoption of the final inventory, statement
of objectives and map.
(e) After adoption of an inventory, statement of objectives and map, pursuant to
subsection (d) of this section, the river commission shall prepare a report on all federal,
state, regional and municipal laws, plans, programs and proposed activities which may
affect the river corridor defined in such map. Such federal, state, regional and municipal
laws shall include regulations adopted pursuant to chapter 440, and zoning, subdivision
and site plan regulations adopted pursuant to section 8-3. Such federal, state, regional
and municipal plans shall include plans of development adopted pursuant to section 8-23, the state plan for conservation and development, water utility supply plans submitted
pursuant to section 25-32d, coordinated water system plans submitted pursuant to section 25-33h, the master transportation plan adopted pursuant to section 13b-15, plans
prepared by regional planning organizations, as defined in section 4-124i, and plans of
publicly owned wastewater treatment facilities whose discharges may affect the subject
river corridor. State and regional agencies shall, within available resources, assist the
river commission 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 commission's objectives for river corridor management as reflected in the
statement of objectives. If conflicts are identified, the river commission shall notify the
applicable state, regional or municipal agencies and such agencies shall, within available
resources and in consultation with the river commission, attempt to resolve such conflicts.
(f) (1) After adoption of an inventory, statement of objectives and map pursuant
to subsection (d) of this section and completion of a report pursuant to subsection (e)
of this section, the river commission shall prepare a river corridor management plan.
The river commission shall publish in a newspaper having a substantial circulation in
the affected area notice of a public hearing to be held not less than thirty days thereafter
in one of the municipalities represented on the commission. Such hearing shall provide
an opportunity for oral and written comment regarding the plan. The commission 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. After considering all comments received, the river commission shall revise
said documents as appropriate and submit them to the commissioner and the secretary.
Within sixty days of receiving the revised documents, the commissioner shall provide
written comments to the river commission and shall furnish a copy of such comments
to the secretary. The secretary shall coordinate a review of the revised documents by
all relevant state agencies and regional planning organizations, as defined in section 4-124i. Within ninety days of the date the secretary receives such revised documents, he
shall provide written comments thereon to the river commission and to the commissioner. After considering all comments received from the commissioner and the secretary, the river commission shall prepare a document responding to all comments received, shall revise the river corridor management 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 management plan shall set forth a strategy for achieving the
objectives contained in the statement of objectives adopted pursuant to subsection (d)
of this section for the river corridor mapped pursuant to said subsection and for resolving
any conflicts identified in the report prepared pursuant to subsection (e) of this section.
Such plan shall make recommendations for the modification of municipal plans of development and zoning, subdivision, site plan and wetlands regulations as necessary to allow
implementation of such plan and to assure that each member municipality similarly
manages that portion of the river corridor under its jurisdiction. Such recommendations
may concern tourism, navigation, utility and transportation rights-of-way and water-dependent recreational, industrial, commercial and other uses, as well as proposals for
specific setbacks from the river, dimensions of new lots and buildings, restrictions on
cutting of vegetation, restrictions on earth-moving for mining or other purposes, prohibited activities and regulation of paving and other forms of impervious ground cover.
Such plan may also include recommendations that member municipalities enact or adopt
incentives for property owners to protect lands within the river corridor and to develop
such lands in a manner that is compatible with resource protection. Such incentives may
include tax credits for donation to appropriate parties of open space easements or land
development rights and incentives for cluster development.
(3) The river corridor management 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 enhancement objectives of the river corridor management plan.
(P.A. 95-333, S. 5; P.A. 03-140, S. 24; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(e); P.A. 04-189, S. 1; P.A. 07-242, S. 114;
P.A. 08-182, S. 5.)
History: 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; P.A. 07-242 amended Subsec. (e) to delete reference to
comprehensive energy plan adopted pursuant to Sec. 16a-7a, effective July 1, 2007; P.A. 08-182 amended Subsecs. (d),
(e) and (f)(1) to replace references to Sec. 8-31a re establishment of, and plans prepared by, regional planning organizations
with references to Sec. 4-124i re definition of regional planning organizations.