Act Now to Help Support Land Conservation in Connecticut

An Action Alert from the President of Connecticut Audubon Society

Dear Friends,
In 2011, the state of Connecticut reached a deal with a developer to swap valuable state-owned conservation land along the Connecticut River for a less valuable parcel inland. After much effort, conservationists managed to defeat that deal. But lands in Connecticut that were acquired for conservation remained at risk.

There is now a bill in Hartford that would make it harder for public lands to lose their protection. The Senate has passed the bill and it is awaiting action by the House.

As President of Connecticut Audubon Society, I am asking you to take a few minutes to ask your State Representative to vote Yes on Bill SB 70.

All you need to do is use this link to find the name and contact information of your Representative in Hartford, and then send a quick email.

Please include a couple of sentences asking your representative to vote for SB 70 because it will help protect valuable conservation land in the state.

SB 70 is called, “An Act Concerning The Grant Of Property Interests In Property Held By The Departments Of Agriculture And Energy And Environmental Protection And The Establishment Of A Public Use And Benefit Land Registry.”

The bill requires the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) to establish a registry of all conservation lands within Connecticut. This will give conservationists, interested residents and others a full picture for the first time of which lands have been protected, and which critical lands still need to be protected.

The bill also authorizes DEEP and the Department of Agriculture to put conservation easements on their state-owned lands, thus permanently protecting them from development. This is important because in recent years, as I mentioned, there have been several proposals to transfer, swap or develop state lands that were acquired for conservation.

We think SB 70 is an important step in helping to improve conservation in Connecticut. Please take a few minutes an act today.

Thank you!

Sincerely,

Alexander R. Brash
President