Connecticut

The third smallest state in the United States in land area, Connecticut has multiple identities. Its western border with New York makes it part suburban, its northern border shared with Massachusetts makes it part historic New England, and its 250 mi. (402 km) Long Island Sound shoreline makes it a $4 billion-a-year tourist retreat. Such geographic and cultural diversity means that the state's environmental concerns are equally diverse. They include the poor air quality common to dense metropolitan areas, the protection of forests that constitute nearly 60 percent of the state, coastal erosion, and wetlands preservation. The nonprofit organization Environmental Defense Fund reported in 2004 that temperatures in Connecticut increased during the 20th century at a higher rate than the rest of New England. Estimates of the accelerated rise in temperature because of unchecked global warming indicate that temperatures in the state could rise around 4 degrees F (2.2 degrees C) by 2100. Connecticut has responded to the challenge through unprecedented regional cooperation and strong measures within the state to check greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Connecticut ranks in the lowest 10 percent of the states in per-capita carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Since the state is largely a service economy, with finance, insurance, and real estate as the largest industries, energy consumption is comparatively low. Nearly 40 percent of Connecticut's [Page 379]GHG pollution is produced by the transportation sector. The state's oldest and most heavily populated cities, such as Hartford and New Haven, home to thousands of commuters, help to keep the state's emissions low. The Metro-North New Haven Line carries more than 100 passengers daily into New York City. In contrast, per-capita emissions of CO2 in Connecticut's “exurbs,” fast-growing bedroom communities at the far margins of large cities where cars are the only form of transportation, are about three times higher than per-capita emissions in the city. Transportation is the leading source of global warming pollution in Connecticut, and the 96 percent of exurban residents who commute in vehicles carrying only the driver is a major component of the problem.

The effects of global warming are not limited to metropolitan areas. Reforestation began in Connecticut in the early part of the 20th century as farmland was abandoned and reverted to forests; the change leveled off in the early 1970s. In the 21st century, about 85 percent of Connecticut's forests are privately owned. Many believe that private ownership makes the forests more likely to be sold to developers. Researchers at the U.S. Forest Service predict that by 2050, more than 60 percent of Connecticut will be urbanized. Development of this level will mean deforestation that will increase the effects of global warming. Surviving forests could change substantially, as the remaining conifers, sugar maples, oaks, and hickories lose the spectacular colors that have made Connecticut autumns famous. In an environmental spiral, species of songbirds could disappear from the state's forest, leaving invasive pests such as the gypsy moth to decimate vegetation.

In the past century, sea level in Connecticut has risen by 8 in. (20 cm), and the state's current rate is above the global mean. A two-year study of Knell's Island, part of the Charles E. Wheeler Wildlife Sanctuary, reveals an erosion rate of as much as 3.2 ft. (1 m) annually. Predictions suggest increases of at least 5 in. (12.7 cm) by 2020 to a minimum of 11.2 in. (28.4 cm) by 2080. The accompanying storm surge increases would place rail lines, roadways, an airport, the University of Bridgeport, the Navy Reserve Center, sewage disposal plants, and the oil tanks at Johnson Creek at flood risk. Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge, home to the endangered roseate tern, would also be at risk. A large portion of Connecticut's wetlands, already suffering from the effects of development, could disappear.

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