(a) The Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection shall study the distribution of dedicated open space within the state in relation to proposed land sales by water companies and shall assist in and, at the request of affected towns, coordinate the public acquisition of water company owned lands.

(b) Upon filing of a water supply plan pursuant to § 25-32d, said commissioner shall designate water utility lands which will contribute to recognized programs of the department and shall recommend their acquisition to the General Assembly. Said commissioner shall also recommend the acquisition of water company lands when such acquisition is less costly than the continued monitoring and enforcement of approved sales or changes in use of such lands.

(c) Water utility lands acquired by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection shall be subject to Department of Public Health review and such lands, as restricted by such review, shall be put into dedicated ownership and shall not be sold except by a special act of the General Assembly.