Advocates reach accord

River advocates have dropped their request for a public hearing regarding the discharge of a new manufacturing chemical into the Quinnipiac River Watershed after an agreement was reached regarding the amount of the chemical that could be released.

All in all, it is a happy ending, said Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection spokesperson Dennis Schain.

“They found a standard they could agree to and allow the company to move forward in a way the river advocates found acceptable,” Schain said.

River Advocates of South Central Connecticut, a newly formed nonprofit dedicated to protecting the watersheds of Greater New Haven, filed a petition against proposed discharge permit modifications by Allnex USA, a Wallingford-based manufacturing plant, in March. Schain said the DEEP had tentatively approved the permit modifications proposed by Allnex USA, formerly known as Cystic Industries, when the petition for the public hearing was submitted. Continue reading.