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Connecticut’s Nitrogen Trading Program, established in 2002, was selected for the award for its innovative approach to water quality management. The program has been successful in reducing the load of nitrogen to Long Island Sound from 79 municipal sewage treatment plants located throughout the state at a lower cost and at a faster pace than conventional regulatory approaches would provide. NEWEA Executive Director Elizabeth Cutone said, “Connecticut’s groundbreaking trading approach to managing nitrogen discharges from the State’s wastewater treatment plants has led to a significant reduction in nitrogen loading to the Long Island Sound, improving water quality in this important regional resource.” The Founders Award was established in 1989 in honor of members of the organizing committee for their foresight, dedication and contributions to NEWEA, and to the sanitary engineering field as the forerunner of environmental protection and health. Paul Stacey, CT DEP’s Director of Planning and Standards, Bureau of Water Protection & Land Reuse, accepted the award on behalf of the Nitrogen Credit Advisory Board from Erin Mosley, president of NEWEA, at a ceremony at the NEWEA annual meeting in Boston. Commissioner Amey Marrella said, “The Connecticut DEP made it a priority to reduce nitrogen to Long Island Sound and I am pleased to see the Nitrogen Credit Advisory Board receive this recognition from NEWEA. With cooperation from municipalities since 2002, this creative approach provides a unique opportunity for cities and towns to lower nitrogen levels in the Sound in an economically efficient manner and, as a result, help provide a healthy and dynamic ecological community for all of us to enjoy.” Nitrogen is the nutrient most responsible for excessive growth of phytoplankton, microscopic algae that is abundant in Long Island Sound. While phytoplankton is an important component in the Long Island Sound food chain, supporting a diversity of fish and shellfish, an overabundance can stress or suffocate marine life by lowering dissolved oxygen levels to unsafe concentrations. The problem is especially severe during the summer months in the western end of Long Island Sound. The Nitrogen Credit Exchange (NCE) is managed by an independent Nitrogen Credit Advisory Board. The NCE is now entering its 8th year of operation and nearly $50 million worth of credits will have been bought or sold by fall of 2009, representing over 15 million nitrogen credits. This activity has been supported by Connecticut’s Clean Water Fund, which has financed more than 40 nitrogen removal projects with a collective value of over $300 million. These projects represent nearly 10 million pounds of nitrogen removed from the waste stream annually and place Connecticut 84 percent towards attaining their 2014 goal for nitrogen reduction. It is expected that the cost effectiveness of trading over conventional individual source permitting will save the state approximately $300 – 400 million. © Copyright by ConnecticutPlus.com. Some articles and pictures posted on our website, as indicated by their bylines, were submitted as press releases and do not necessarily reflect the position and opinion of ConnecticutPlus.com, Canaiden LLC or any of its associated entities. Articles may have been edited for brevity and grammar. CURRENT HEADLINES: Top of Page
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