BILL NUMBER: S8170

SPONSOR: HANNON
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to the
sale or use of nitrogen fertilizer

 
PURPOSE:

To amend the environmental conservation law in relation to reducing
nitrogen contamination of water bodies.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

This bill would add a new § 17-2104 to the Environmental Conservation
Law to require, in Nassau and Suffolk counties, the sale and use of
non-agricultural fertilizer containing not more than 12% nitrogen by
weight. It also requires the Department of Environmental Conservation to
report by June 1, 2020 on expanding the provisions in other areas of the
state.
              

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Excess nitrogen has been proven to contribute to Harmful Algal Blooms
(HABs) in marine and freshwater environments. Several scientific studies
have identified lawn fertilizer as a significant contributor to excess
nitrogen. A 2009 study in the Journal of Coastal Research estimated that
fertilizer use contributed 15% of the total land-based nitrogen in the
Great South Bay. In addition to nitrogen contributing to harmful HABs,
high nitrogen levels threaten Long Island's aquifer, the areas sole
source of drinking water. Since nitrogen is a soluble substance, it
deeply immerses into the soil after a rainstorm or after irrigation;
when this happens, the nitrogen is able to reach ground water and wells
in the surrounding area. Nearly 3 million people live on Long Island and
depend on the aquifer for their drinking water. Recognizing the threat
that high levels of nitrogen presents to ground and surface water, the
2015-16 state budget included $5 million dollars for the local and state
authorities to create a Long Island Nitrogen Action Plan. In the 2017-18
state budget included $75 million of the $2.5 billion Clean Water
Infrastructure Act of 2017, for a new state rebate program to incentiv-
ize the replacement of failing septic systems and cesspools.

This legislation builds upon those recent efforts to address high nitro-
gen levels on Long Island by ensuring that fertilizer, one of the main
sources of high nitrogen, sold and applied on Long Island are low nitro-
gen and less water soluble than many fertilizers currently are. Based on
a phosphorus restriction enacted in 2010, this legislation would not
apply to farms and would limit the amount of nitrogen that could be
contained in fertilizer sold and used on Long Island. Eliminating exces-
sive nitrogen, which serves primarily to make grass look greener,
represents a common sense approach to limiting HABs and protecting Long
Island's drinking water supply.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect December 31, 2019; provided, however, that
people may continue to use non-conforming nitrogen fertilizer after
December 31, 2019 if the fertilizer was purchased before the effective
date.