Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection

DEEP headquarters at 79 Elm Street in Hartford is currently closed due to recent water damage impacting multiple areas of the building. We are working to remediate the situation and get the building back open to staff and the public as soon as possible. While the building is closed, Staff continue to work either remotely or in alternate locations. We continue to be able to receive documents via U.S. Mail or courier service, and our electronic file submittal protocols remain unchanged. For updates, please click here

Green Infrastructure

Green infrastructure is a type of Nature Based Solution that delivers environmental benefits by mimicking natural processes, such as natural water flow and infiltration. Green infrastructure is often implemented through the technique of low impact development (LID), which can be integrated into development and redevelopment projects to manage stormwater. These actions are instrumental to improving and protecting our water resources to ensure a clean and adequate supply of water for now and the future. They also can provide extensive co-benefits such as aesthetic views, pollinator support, habitat for wildlife, flood mitigation, temperature mitigation and more. These practices are often used to enhance traditional stormwater practices.

DEEP Programs Utilizing Green Infrastructure

Non-Point Source Management Program

Activities associated with land uses in Connecticut have the potential to contribute pollution to ground and surface water resources. Non- point source pollution is water pollution that is not concentrated from a single point. Some sources of nonpoint source pollution include lawn fertilizer, pesticides, sediment from construction sites or farms, and bacteria from pet waste. Green infrastructure plays a key role in this program’s management strategy.

Habitat Restoration

DEEP’s Coastal Resource Program, in coordination with many partners across the agency and the State, routinely coordinates various habitat restoration projects. Green infrastructure examples that support habitat restoration can include buffer restoration, tidal flow restoration and more.

Long Island Sound Partnership
DEEP is a partner in the Long Island Sound Partnership. The Partnership has four goals:
  • Restore and maintain water quality in Long Island Sound and its watershed,
  • Restore and protect the health and resilience of habitats and wildlife in Long Island Sound and its ecosystems,
  • Empower Long Island Sound communities to plan for and respond to environmental challenges in ways that prioritize well-being for all and,
  • Inspire and empower the public to appreciate, value, and protect Long Island Sound.

Each of these goals can be advanced through the use of green infrastructure. Green infrastructure can improve water quality, habitat, resiliency and can be an aesthetically pleasing addition to any public access point or educational program. DEEP’s role in this partnership includes monitoring, stewardship, habitat restoration, pollution mitigation and many other strategies.

National Pollution Discharge Elimination Systems (NPDES) Program

The NPDES Stormwater Program, in place since 1990, regulates discharges from municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s), construction activities, industrial activities, and those designated by EPA due to water quality impacts. DEEP incorporates low impact development (LID) in its regulatory policy through the requirement to use LID to the maximum extent practical in the Stormwater Permits.

Land Use Permitting

DEEP’s coastal and inland land use regulatory programs (Structures, Dredging and Fill, Tidal Wetlands, 401 Water Quality Certification, Inland Wetlands, Flood Management & Non-consumptive Water Diversion) look at the use of green infrastructure as a best management practice which if designed properly can help alleviate potential impacts from: scour, increase in flooding, renovate water quality in stormwater runoff and provide habit for wildlife.

DEEP’s Compensatory Water Resource Mitigation Program applies as part of the permitting process if unavoidable impacts occur to Connecticut’s water resources, warranting compensation to offset the impacts. Compensation can occur as water resource restoration, enhancement or creation, which are green infrastructure approaches.

Green Infrastructure Related Funding

Section 319 Nonpoint Source Grant

CT DEEP's Watersheds Section publishes a notice of funding opportunity annually based on funding provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Through this competitive process, CT DEEP provides grants for projects focused on addressing Nonpoint Source impacts in surface waters. Local partners apply for funds to mitigate nonpoint source pollution and often are awarded for green infrastructure strategies. These have included practices like restoration of riparian buffers (the land alongside a stream or river), tree filters along parking lots or roadways and more.

Clean Water Fund

The Clean Water Fund (CWF) is the mechanism through which CT DEEP provides financial assistance to municipalities for projects addressing wastewater needs. The CWF partners with local governments to build and finance projects that improve water quality and protect public health while sustaining the state’s significant natural resources. CWF funded projects incorporate flood resilience measures to prepare vulnerable infrastructure to withstand the adverse effects associated with extreme weather events. Ten to twenty percent of each funding cycle must be dedicated to green infrastructure.

DEEP’s Climate Resilience Fund (DCRF)

DEEP supports climate resilience projects that use nature-based solutions to mitigate risks and provide other benefits to communities. Green infrastructure is a central component of DEEP’s Climate Resilience Fund (DCRF), which provides funding for projects that protect communities from extreme weather, including flooding and extreme temperatures. A wide range of effective green infrastructure approaches are eligible for funding under DCRF, including green stormwater infrastructure, stream bank restoration, and living shorelines.

Other Current Efforts

  • Nature-Based Solutions Report. Pursuant to Section 12 of Public Act 25-125 (P.A. 25-125), DEEP is required to “evaluate how to integrate and advance nature-based solutions in the state that support climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation, ecosystem resilience and biodiversity.” As part of this evaluation, DEEP must also “consider best practices that encourage the use of the state’s ecosystems to naturally sequester and store carbon, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase biodiversity and protect against climate change impacts …” and seek review and input from seven (7) other state entities – the Departments of Agriculture, Housing, Insurance, Public Health, and Transportation as well as the Office of Policy and Management and the Connecticut Green Bank. Those best practices include many of the same principles as green infrastructure.
  • Urban Forestry Program. DEEP’s Urban Forestry Program works with municipalities, non-profits, community groups, and residents to help them grow and manage their urban and community forests

Content Last Updated: January 29, 2026