NY State Senate Bill 2015-S48

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Environmental Conservation Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

Please enter your contact information

First Name

Last Name

Email Address

A valid email address is required.

Home address is used to determine the senate district in which you reside. Your support or opposition to this bill is then shared immediately with the senator who represents you.

Optional services from the NY State Senate:

Create an account. An account allows you to officially support or oppose key legislation, sign petitions with a single click, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Include a custom message for your Senator? (Optional)

Enter a message to your senator. Many New Yorkers use this to share the reasoning behind their support or opposition to the bill. Others might share a personal anecdote about how the bill would affect them or people they care about.

Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 06, 2016	referred to environmental conservation
Jan 07, 2015	referred to environmental conservation

co-Sponsors

View additional co-sponsors

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A211
Current Committee:: Senate Environmental Conservation
Law Section:: Environmental Conservation Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§23-0305, 23-0101 & 71-1307, En Con L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2011-2012: A6913
2013-2014: S3333, A9074, A3561
2017-2018: S575, A451, A4720
2019-2020: S1858, A2295, A7933
2021-2022: S355, A903, A5136
2023-2024: S1538, A7105

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Prohibits the use of waste from oil or natural gas extraction activities or waste from storage of oil or natural gas on any highway.

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S48

 TITLE OF BILL :  An act to amend the environmental conservation law,
in relation to prohibiting the use of waste from oil or natural gas
extraction activities on any highway

 PURPOSE :

This bill would prohibit waste water from oil and gas drilling,
including hydrofracking, which contains a variety of chemical and
radioactive contaminants, from being used on highways for purposes
such as melting ice.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

The bill prohibits waste generated from oil and gas industry i.e., the
waste water from hydrofracking operations, from being used on
highways.

Section 1 amends Environmental Conservation Law ("ECL") section
23-0305 by adding subdivisions 15 and 16 to prohibit use of waste
generated from oil or natural gas extraction and waste generated from
oil or natural gas storage on highways, and specifically refers to the
Transportation Law definition of highway, to ensure that all public
roads are included.

Section 2 amends ECL section 23-0101 by adding new paragraphs f to add
waste generated as a result of oil or natural gas extraction
activities to the definition of waste. It also amends ECL section
23-0101 by adding a new paragraph g to add waste from oil or natural
gas extraction activities to the definition of waste. It also amends
ECL section 23-0101 by adding new paragraph g to add waste generated
from storage of oil or natural gas to the definition of waste.

Section 3 amends ECL 23-0101 by adding a new subdivision 21 to define
natural gas extraction activities.

Section 4 amends ECL 71-1307 to set out a punishment for violating
section 23-0305.

Section 5 sets forth the effective date as 180 days after enactment.

 JUSTIFICATION :

There are many concerns about the safety of the process of
hydrofracking and its effect on groundwater and watersheds, which are
the subject of other legislative proposals, moratoriums and
administrative and/or legislative oversight and regulations. A
separate concern about possible reuse of the wastewater is addressed
by this bill. The production of oil and natural gas, especially the
hydraulic fracturing process to extract natural gas, generally
referred to as hydrofracking, generates wastewater with a variety of
contaminants, including endocrine disruptors and radioactive
materials. At least in part because the wastewater is very salty, it
is used in some communities to de-ice roads in the winter, as well as
for other purposes, like suppressing dust, in other seasons.

Toxic, hazardous, and radioactive fracking waste from oil and natural
gas drilling can potentially cause irreversible damage to water, air,
land and food supplies. Although this waste is hazardous and in fact
exceeds the legal criteria for hazardous waste classification, it is
categorized as "industrial" under federal and state laws as a result
of special exemptions given to the oil and gas industry. These
exemptions eliminate tracking requirements for its handling, storage,
treatment and disposal of the waste. As such the waste can be used for
many purposes such as road deicer or to suppress dust.
Spreading radioactive fracking waste on roads will expose drivers,
passengers, and pedestrians, to dangerous pollutants while
contaminating nearby surface waters, residential areas, school
properties and farmland. Radioactive particles may become airborne as
trucks and passenger vehicles travel along roads. These events provide
opportunity for human and livestock inhalation and ingestion of highly
radioactive materials and other contaminants.

Unfortunately, these uses also result in runoff that can contaminate
the ground water. This bill therefore would prohibit the use of
wastewater from hydrofracking on public roads in New York.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

S.3333-A of 2013-2014 (Gipson): Died in Environmental Conservation
A.9074-A of 2014 (Abinanti): Died in Environmental Conservation

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

None.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect 180 days after becoming a law.

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                   48

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                               (PREFILED)

                             January 7, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen. HOYLMAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Environmental Conservation

AN ACT to amend the  environmental  conservation  law,  in  relation  to
  prohibiting the use of waste from oil or natural gas extraction activ-
  ities on any highway

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1.  Section 23-0305 of the environmental conservation  law  is
amended by adding two new subdivisions 15 and 16 to read as follows:
  15.  THE DEPARTMENT SHALL PROHIBIT THE USE OF WASTE GENERATED FROM OIL
OR NATURAL GAS EXTRACTION ACTIVITIES  ON  ANY  HIGHWAY,  AS  DEFINED  IN
SUBDIVISION  FOURTEEN  OF SECTION TWO OF THE TRANSPORTATION LAW, FOR ANY
PURPOSE, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO USE FOR DE-ICING, DUST SUPPRESSION
OR ANY OTHER USE. SUCH PROHIBITION SHALL EXTEND TO ALL WASTE FROM OIL OR
NATURAL GAS WHETHER OR NOT SUCH WASTE RECEIVED A BENEFICIAL USE DETERMI-
NATION PURSUANT TO 6 NYCRR PART 360.
  16. THE DEPARTMENT SHALL PROHIBIT THE USE OF WASTE GENERATED FROM  THE
STORAGE  OF  OIL OR NATURAL GAS ON ANY HIGHWAY AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION
FOURTEEN OF SECTION TWO OF  THE  TRANSPORTATION  LAW,  FOR  ANY  PURPOSE
INCLUDING,  BUT  NOT LIMITED TO, DE-ICING, DUST SUPPRESSION OR ANY OTHER
USE. SUCH PROHIBITION SHALL EXTEND TO ALL WASTE FROM OIL OR NATURAL  GAS
WHETHER OR NOT SUCH WASTE RECEIVED A BENEFICIAL USE DETERMINATION PURSU-
ANT TO 6 NYCRR PART 360.
  S  2.  Paragraphs  d and e of subdivision 20 of section 23-0101 of the
environmental conservation law, as amended by chapter 846 of the laws of
1981, are amended and two new paragraphs f and g are added  to  read  as
follows:
  d. The inefficient storing of oil or gas; [and]
  e.  The  flaring  of gas produced from an oil or condensate well after
the department has found that the use of the gas, on terms that are just

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                           LBD01404-01-5

S. 48                               2

and reasonable, is, or will be economically feasible within a reasonable
time[.];
  F.  ANY  WASTE  THAT  IS  GENERATED  AS A RESULT OF OIL OR NATURAL GAS
EXTRACTION ACTIVITIES WHICH SHALL INCLUDE, BUT IS NOT LIMITED TO,  LEAC-
HATE FROM SOLID WASTE ASSOCIATED WITH NATURAL GAS ACTIVITIES. THIS WASTE
MAY  CONSIST OF, AMONG OTHER SUBSTANCES, WATER, BRINE CHEMICAL ADDITIVES
OR NATURALLY OCCURRING RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS (NORM)  AND  HEAVY  METALS;
AND
  G. ANY WASTE THAT IS GENERATED FROM THE STORAGE OF OIL OR NATURAL GAS.
  S  3. Section 23-0101 of the environmental conservation law is amended
by adding a new subdivision 21 to read as follows:
  21. "NATURAL GAS EXTRACTION ACTIVITIES" MEANS ALL GEOLOGIC OR  GEOPHY-
SICAL  ACTIVITIES  RELATED  TO  THE  EXPLORATION OR EXTRACTION OF OIL OR
NATURAL GAS OR OTHER SUBSURFACE HYDROCARBON DEPOSITS, INCLUDING, BUT NOT
LIMITED TO, CORE AND ROTARY DRILLING AND HYDRAULIC FRACTURING.
  S 4. Subdivision 3 of section 71-1307 of the  environmental  conserva-
tion  law,  as  amended by chapter 99 of the laws of 2010, is amended to
read as follows:
  3. Criminal sanctions. Any person who,  having  any  of  the  culpable
mental  states  defined  in  sections  15.05 and 20.20 of the penal law,
violates any provision of article 23 of  this  chapter  or  commits  any
offense  described in section 71-1305 of this title shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished  by  a  fine
not  to  exceed  one  thousand  dollars  for  each day during which such
violation continues or by imprisonment for a term of not more  than  one
year,  or by both such fine and imprisonment. If the conviction is for a
subsequent offense committed after a first  conviction  of  such  person
under  this  subdivision,  punishment  shall  be by a fine not to exceed
eight thousand dollars for each day during which such violation  contin-
ues  or by imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or by both
such fine and imprisonment.   NOTWITHSTANDING  THE  PROVISIONS  OF  THIS
SUBDIVISION,  ANY  PERSON  WHO  VIOLATES  THE  PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISION
FIFTEEN OR SIXTEEN OF SECTION 23-0305 OF THIS CHAPTER SHALL BE  PUNISHA-
BLE  BY  A FINE NOT TO EXCEED TWENTY-FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS PER VIOLATION
AND/OR BY IMPRISONMENT FOR A TERM OF NOT  MORE  THAN  ONE  YEAR.    EACH
INTRODUCTION  OR USE AND/OR APPLICATION OF WASTE FROM OIL OR NATURAL GAS
EXTRACTION ACTIVITIES AND/OR WASTE FROM THE STORAGE OF  OIL  OR  NATURAL
GAS SHALL CONSTITUTE A SEPARATE AND DISTINCT VIOLATION.
  S 5. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
it shall have become a law.

Comments

Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.

Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.

Create an account. An account allows you to sign petitions with a single click, officially support or oppose key legislation, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Senate Bill S48

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Environmental Conservation Committee

co-Sponsors

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Details

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S48

Share this bill

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Environmental Conservation Committee

co-Sponsors

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Details

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2015-S48 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments