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- Referred to rules
Companion bill
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Requires the department to establish groundwater standards limiting nitrogen to no more than 2 mg per liter
Assembly Floor Calendar · Sponsor Robert Sweeney
Full text
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Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S7724
Title of bill
An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to groundwater standards limiting nitrogen
Purpose or general idea of bill
To improve water quality in Long Island estuaries by limiting the nitrogen content of groundwater.
Summary of specific provisions
This bill would require the Department of Environmental Conservation to develop an enforceable groundwater standard, in Nassau and Suffolk counties, limiting nitrogen to no more than two milligrams per liter, after holding a public hearing, and within 18 months of the effective date,
Effects of present law which this bill would alter
This bill would amend §15-0514 of the Environmental Conservation Law.
Justification
Nitrogen is essential to life and takes many forms including ammonia, ammonium, nitrites, nitrates, and nitrous oxides. Studies have shown that the impacts of man-made sources of nitrogen on groundwater quality, on-site sanitary wastewater disposal in unsewered areas, for example, are much greater than natural sources such as decaying biological matter. In the recently-released draft Suffolk County Comprehensive Water Resources Management Plan, the Suffolk County Department of Health Services reported that approximately 75 percent of the County's population relies on on-site sanitary wastewater disposal systems for wastewater management. This reliance results in 66 percent of community supply wells having a high or very high susceptibility to nitrate contamination. Studies have shown that Long Island estuaries are approximately 80 percent saltwater and 20 percent freshwater. This combination of fresh and saltwater means that high nitrogen levels in groundwater are having a negative impact on Long Island estuaries, including eutrophication, pollution and algal blooms. This legislation seeks to prevent the further contamination of estuaries by requiring DEC to adopt a low nitrogen groundwater standard on Long Island.
Prior legislative history
This is new legislation.
Fiscal implications for state and local governments
None to the State.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the 90th day after it shall have become law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.