Preserved Lands Not Always Protecte

The Council on Environmental Quality,in a report given to Governor Rell on December 20th, has found that existing laws are not adequate to protect preserved lands – including state parks and forests, municipal parks and land trust properties – from various forms of encroachment. The Council defines encroachment as an unlawful action that is harmful to preserved land owned by the state, municipalities, or private organizations such as land trusts.
The most common type of encroachment is the illegal felling of trees, but there are many other types as well, including the placement of buildings, driveways, and lawns on what is supposed to be protected open space. State government has not been strong in the defense of its land.
The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is not equipped to protect state lands from encroachment, and is losing public resources. Some damaging activities, such as the paving of an abandoned road that bisects a state forest, are aided by antiquated statutes. State-owned lands, not managed by the DEP, have been sold or transferred with no knowledge of what natural resources were present. Finally, hundreds of areas of preserved land have been damaged by people driving All-Terrain Vehicles (ATVs) illegally. The Council recommends a combination of statutory amendments and increased enforcement capacity to reverse the growing problem.