News Releases

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• 10/9/2024 DEEP and CFPA Highlight Fall Hiking Opportunities, Offer Tips for Safe Fall Hiking

  (HARTFORD) — Ahead of the long holiday weekend, Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) and the Connecticut Forest and Park Association (CFPA) invite residents and visitors to enjoy this year’s vibrant Fall foliage from the many vantage points offered by DEEP’s State Forests, Parks, Greenways, and CFPA’s Blue-Blazed Hiking Trails.

• 5/30/2024 Commissioner Dykes Statement on EPA Clean School Bus Award Announcement

• 10/4/2024 DEEP Announces Opening Days of Fall Turkey, Pheasant, and Small Game Hunting Seasons

  (HARTFORD) — Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) has announced the Opening Days of the following fall hunting seasons:

• 7/2/2024 DEEP Announces Operation Dry Water 2024

  (HARTFORD) - With boating under the influence continuing to be a major factor in incidents and deaths on our nation’s waterways, officers from local, state, and federal agencies will once again team up for Operation Dry Water, a national campaign to raise awareness of and enforce laws against boating under the influence.

• 6/28/2024 DEEP Celebrates the Passport to the Parks Program

  (HARTFORD, CT) – The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), joined by Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz, State Legislators, and representatives from the Connecticut Forest & Park Association and the Friends of Connecticut State Parks, held an event at Hammonasset Beach State Park today to celebrate Connecticut’s Passport to the Parks program.

• 10/26/2024 DEEP Warns of Extreme Fire Danger in Connecticut

  (Hartford, CT) — Today, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) instituted a ban on the use of outdoor grills, firepits, and campfires, and the kindling and use of flame outdoors in all state parks, forests, and wildlife management areas due to statewide severe fire weather conditions and the ongoing Hawthorne Fire on Lamentation Mountain that is affecting Berlin, Meriden, and surrounding areas. This ban follows Governor Ned Lamont’s declaration of a state of emergency across Connecticut yesterday. The Governor’s declaration mobilizes all state resources to address active and potential wildfires and enforce precautionary measures to protect residents, property, and natural resources.

• 6/27/2024 Commissioner Dykes Statement on US Supreme Court Decision Striking Down the Good Neighbor Rule

  (HARTFORD, CT) – Today, the U.S. Supreme Court temporarily blocked the “Good Neighbor Rule” in a 5-4 decision that will make it more difficult for states and the federal government to effectively combat pollution and improve air quality across the country.

• 3/27/2024 Women's History Month Show Celebrates Abolitionist

  (HARTFORD) — Come honor Women’s History Month with a special living history performance of abolitionist Maria Weston Chapman at the Kellogg Environmental Center on Saturday, March 30, 2024, at 3:00 p.m. in Derby. Award-winning writer and historical interpreter Laura Rocklyn will perform “Setting the World by the Ears” about the nineteenth century activist.

• 9/19/2024 DEEP Urges Residents to Take Steps to Avoid Conflicts With Bears This Fall

  (HARTFORD, CT) —The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is strongly urging residents to follow best practices to reduce the likelihood of a conflict with a black bear this fall. So far, 2024 has featured a record high of 68 documented home entries by bears, as well as a bear that bit a resident in Cheshire in July. Conflicts with bears have tripled in recent years in Connecticut and bears have been observed in all of the state’s 169 cities and towns. Given the already high rate of human-bear conflicts in 2024, DEEP is urging residents to practice vigilance as we enter a time of year when bears are particularly active as they increase feeding ahead of the winter denning season.

• 11/22/2024 DEEP Releases Second 20BY26 Progress Report

  (HARTFORD, CT) – Today, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) released its second report describing the work its teams pursued in the summer of 2024 toward the agency’s ambitious 20BY26 Initiative. 20BY26 launched in February 2024 and released its first progress report in August 2024. This initiative builds on the foundation of DEEP’s highly successful 20BY20 Initiative by setting 20 new targets to meet by the end of 2026 to make DEEP’s processes even more predictable, transparent, and efficient. The goal of these ongoing improvements is to keep striving for better and more innovative ways to serve our state’s municipalities, businesses, other regulated entities, and residents. 

• 4/22/2024 Governor Lamont, Congressional Delegation Announce Connecticut Selected To Receive $62.5 Million for Solar Projects Benefitting Low-Income Residents

  (HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont and the members of Connecticut’s Congressional delegation today announced that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is awarding the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) with a $62.5 million grant under its Solar for All initiative.

• 7/2/2024 DEEP Adds Naugatuck State Forest to Existing Alcohol Ban for Recreation Areas

  (Hartford, CT) — The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) has imposed a temporary alcohol ban for Naugatuck State Forest in addition to seven state recreation areas previously imposed this summer. The ban is in effect from Tuesday, July 2, 2024, through Monday, September 30, 2024, for the following area:

• 9/26/2024 Celebrate Hunting and Fishing Day

  (HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont has proclaimed Saturday, September 28, 2024, “Hunting and Fishing Day in the State of Connecticut” to coincide with National Hunting and Fishing Day; and to celebrate, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) invites you to celebrate at Black Rock State Park on Saturday, September 28, 2024, with a fun-filled, daylong event at Black Rock State Park, 2065 Thomaston Road, Watertown, from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm.

• 1/16/2024 DEEP Requests Grant Proposals for Aquatic Invasive Species Control on Lakes, Ponds, and Rivers

  (HARTFORD) — The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is now accepting proposals for the State’s Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Grant Program. The program makes $500,000 available to reduce impacts of aquatic invasive species on inland waters in Connecticut. Applications will be accepted through January 31, 2024.

• 4/5/2024 DEEP Begins Cold Water Safety Campaign

  (HARTFORD) — With warmer weather in the forecast, and boaters heading to the water on weekends in greater numbers, Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) urges boaters to be prepared for the difference between the warm air and the cold water.