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The Norwalk River Watershed is not proposed for water supply use. However, in decades past there was some discussion of such use. While such proposals are entirely inactive, this web page preserves the historic discussion.

All of the text that follows is part of a summary released by HVCEO in 1986. It has not been updated since that time:

Significant portions of the Norwalk River watershed are located in Redding and Ridgefield. The Norwalk River is a wastewater receiving stream and there are long established permitted discharges from public and private facilities in these municipalities to this waterway, including Ridgefield’s two publically owned sewage treatment plants.

As a Class B watercourse, the Norwalk River is ineligible under current state law for use as a water supply source. Even so, due to constraints confronting other plans for augmenting the supplies of the First and Second Norwalk Taxing District Water Departments, efforts to change the law and thereby make use of this river for obtaining an additional 3.5 MGD is under consideration by those utilities.

It is proposed that water be diverted during high flow periods, as it passes through Wilton Center, to the nearby South Norwalk Reservoir owned by the Second Taxing district.

As it is thus not possible for the Norwalk River to ever be brought up to Class AA water supply standards, a compromise with existing State regulations would be needed before it could be used by Norwalk for supply purposes. The possible impact of such a compromise upon land use and water resources in Redding and Ridgefield is an important issue.

This approach to Class B water is legitimized by Public Act 84-502, which for the first time allows utilities to include in their planning “an assessment of alternative water supply sources which may include sources receiving sewage.” According to the Norwalk Second Taxing District Water Department, “while this certainly is not permission for utilities to use Class B water, it indicates the State acknowledges there is a potential for this use at some point in the future.”

It is relevant to note here that during the drought of 1981 the Mayor of Norwalk informed the Governor that “what we need is permission to draw water from the Norwalk River as it passes through Wilton Center to replenish the nearby Second Taxing District reservoir. The Norwalk River is the only remaining untapped watershed in our area and the water quality at this point has been determined to be more than adequate to introduce to the filtration process.”

Continuing, “all of the municipalities in southwestern Connecticut support this action because the interconnection from reservoirs which currently exists all the Second Taxing District to pass on this water to needier towns and thereby reducer the impending crisis throughout our whole region.”

According to the Final Report of the Southwest Regional Water Resources Research Committee, released in July of 1984, the two Norwalk Taxing Districts are urged to “continue with investigations of the Norwalk River as a reserve supply.”

That report is careful not to imply that use of Norwalk River water to augment water supply for the City of Norwalk is a preferred alternative. Rather, it states that “if Norwalk is denied access to the Cannondale aquifer or to the Class B Norwalk River, it may have to secure a larger and extended commitment from the Bridgeport Hydraulic Company or exploit the well field on the Norwalk River in mid-town.”

By July of 1985 the First and Second Norwalk Taxing District Water Departments’ were noting changing circumstances that they feel alter the logic of the Research Committee’s July 1984 report.

The Second District believes that the Bridgeport Hydraulic Company’s reserve supplies are far less than earlier anticipated and has stated that “these facts impact heavily on our search for additional water and certainly our desire in Norwalk to obtain water supplies out of the Class B Norwalk River has intensified.”

The two Districts also believe that it will be less expensive to tap the Norwalk River than to purchase water from the Hydraulic Company.

From its perspective in the upper reaches of the Norwalk basin, the HVCEO anticipates impacts upon sewage treatment costs, opportunities for sewage treatment plant expansion, and local growth policies if the Norwalk River were to e used for water supply. A dialogue would be necessary to determine the types of compromises possible. Thus the progress of Norwalk’s water supply planning could have impacts upon Redding and Ridgefield and is of continuing interest to the HVCEO.

Ridgefield First Selectman Elizabeth Leonard, commenting upon this issue in August of 1985, stated that “The Town of Ridgefield currently has two sewage treatment plants that discharge directly into the Norwalk River, and the recently completed Norwalk Regional Facilities Plan designated the construction of another one to serve the Georgetown area.

The Town of Ridgefield would have to strongly oppose any action which would interfere with these operations as the Norwalk River is the only possible recipient of present and future treated outflows. Ridgefield would also oppose any actions that would interfere with our current NPDES discharge permits.

It is Ridgefield’s position that adequate supplies of Class A water exist within the region or could be piped through the Bridgeport Hydraulic Company’s Southwest Pipeline. This would eliminate the need to use the Norwalk River for drinking water supply.

If it is required that the Norwalk River be used as a supply of drinking water for Norwalk, then all efforts and expenses to bring the quality of the Norwalk River water up to drinking water standards should be the burden of the taxing district. Ridgefield will vigorously oppose attempts to require additional treatment of the effluent from its existing treatment plant.”

It should also be noted that after the release of these remarks Redding First Selectman Mary Anne Guitar went on record as in favor of them.