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BRIDGEPORT, CONN. – July 10, 2020 – Aquarion Water Company officials are asking the public to respect the rules that protect public water supplies, citing rampant trespassing and unauthorized activities on the Company’s watershed land and reservoirs in recent months.

“We are doing everything we can to keep our properties open while ensuring public safety during the pandemic,” said Ralph Fensore, Aquarion’s Chief of Law Enforcement and Security. “Along with general trespassing and swimming, we’ve found children unaccompanied by adults, littering, people walking dogs, fire pits, ATV and dirt bike activity, and more.”

The rules governing the use of Aquarion lands are essential to protecting the purity of the water, public health and safety, and the environment in general. The rules, posted at www.aquarionwater.com/recreation, remind visitors:

• Swimming, wading, camping, alcoholic beverages, smoking, campfires, picnicking, littering, radios, boom boxes, motors, and vendors are prohibited.
• Vehicles of any kind, including all types of cycles, are prohibited.
• Pets or horses are prohibited.
• Please stay in designated fishing areas along the shoreline or on the blazed hiking trails.
• Do not pick or remove wildflowers or plants, or otherwise disturb the vegetation.
• Trash containers are located on our property. If they are full, please carry out your trash.
• Park in designated locations to access the Saugatuck Valley Trail and Aspetuck Valley Trail.

Aquarion police work with local and state law enforcement agencies to prevent swimming and other unauthorized activities in company reservoirs. These activities are prohibited due to the need to protect public water supplies from contamination. Unfortunately, fines have been issued to uncooperative guests who have chosen to ignore general rules and no trespassing signs.

The following Reservoirs and the surrounding watershed properties are not open to the public: Easton Lake in Easton, CT; Hemlock Reservoir in Fairfield, CT; Means Brook and Trap Falls Reservoirs in Shelton, CT; Bargh, Laurel, and North Stamford Reservoirs in Stamford, CT; and Siscowit Reservoir in Westchester County, NY.

Aquarion continues to welcome the public to the Centennial Watershed State Forest where the Saugatuck and Aspetuck Valley trails are open for hiking year-round for those who hold a valid permit; trail maps serve as visitors’ permit.

Additionally, three of Aquarion’s reservoirs are open to shoreline fishing with a valid Connecticut fishing license and an Aquarion fishing permit. They include Saugatuck Reservoir, in Redding and Weston; Far Mill Reservoir, in Shelton; and West Pequonnock Reservoir, in Monroe.

Find more information about Aquarion’s public access policies, trail maps, and fishing permits at www.aquarionwater.com/recreation. Inquiries can also be made by calling Aquarion’s Watershed & Environmental Management Office at (203) 445-7339.

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