What's happening
This bill prohibits new incineration facilities from being built in the Finger Lakes region to protect public health and local industries.
Why it matters
Protects local air and water quality. by preventing additional sources of pollution from incinerators, which are known to emit harmful air pollutants and ash that could contaminate the Finger Lakes ecosystem.
Safeguards the region’s economic drivers. notably tourism, wineries, and agriculture—by reducing risks of negative environmental impacts that could deter visitors and harm crops or local products.
Limits cumulative waste-related impacts. in a region already hosting three of the state's largest landfills and receiving more than three million tons of imported trash yearly, aiming to prevent further environmental and infrastructure strain.
Prioritizes public health and community well-being. by blocking new incineration projects near sensitive water bodies and existing solid waste sites, responding to local concerns about industrial development in the area.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Ban New Incinerators Finger Lakes
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Recommit, enacting clause stricken
- Referred to energy and telecommunications
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
175
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE (Prefiled)
January 9, 2019
Introduced by Sens. HELMING, O'MARA, ROBACH, SEPULVEDA, YOUNG -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Energy and Telecommunications
AN ACT in relation to creating the "Finger Lakes community act of 2019"
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Legislative intent. It is the intent of this Legislature to protect the Finger Lakes region from the adverse effects of the siting of newly constructed incineration facilities, including but not limited to: air and ash pollution, the additional traffic on the public roads and damage to local tourism, winery and agriculture industries as well as the lakes and farmland throughout the area. In an area where three of the largest landfills in New York State are located, over three million tons of trash per year are imported into the Finger Lakes and the cumulative impact of adding more imported waste for incineration would have an extremely negative effect on the public health and safety of the community, the local businesses and the lakes. The Finger Lakes region is a thriving agriculture-tourism region in the state serving as an economic engine with over one billion dollars ($1,000,000,000) of investment in the region and has created over 25,000 jobs.
The Legislature hereby determines that the public interest requires a prohibition on the siting of newly constructed incineration facilities in the Finger Lakes region.
§ 2. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Finger Lakes community preservation act of 2019".
§ 3. Definitions. For the purposes of this act, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
a. "Incineration facility" shall mean a facility which generates electricity from the combustion, gasification or pyrolysis of solid waste or from fuel from solid waste, provided that such term shall not include
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04980-01-9
S. 175 2
any facility constructed or in operation prior to the effective date of this act.
b. "Solid waste management facility" has the meaning set forth for such term in subdivision 2 of section 27-0701 of the environmental conservation law.
§ 4. Permits and certificates. Notwithstanding any other law, rule or regulation to the contrary, no certificate of environmental compatibility and public need shall be issued for the construction or operation of a new incineration facility, and no application for such certificate shall proceed for such a facility, and no permit or any other certificate shall be issued or granted by the state to such a facility if all of the following criteria exist or are met:
a. The incineration facility is within the Oswego River/Finger Lakes Watershed.
b. There is at least one landfill or other solid waste management facility permitted by the department of environmental conservation and operating or located within a fifty mile radius of the incineration facility.
c. The incineration facility is within 10 miles of a priority waterbody as designated by the department of environmental conservation, pursuant to section 17-1407 of the environmental conservation law.
§ 5. Severability. The provisions of this act shall be severable, and if any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder thereof but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.
§ 6. This act shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to have been in full force and effect on and after February 1, 2019, and shall not apply to any facility in operation as of such date.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act in relation to creating the "Finger Lakes community act of 2019"
Purpose
This bill would create a special act prohibiting a waste to energy facility from receiving a certificate of compatibility and public need or a negative declaration under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) if certain criteria are met.
Summary of provisions
Section 1: Prohibits a waste to energy facility from receiving a certif- icate of compatibility and public need or a negative declaration under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) if the following criteria are met: it poses a risk to the public health and safety of a community within an environmentally sensitive area of the state; and it is within 10 miles of a priority waterbody as designated by the state as a critical source of drinking water and tourism driver and as having vulnerabilities to harmful algal blooms; and is within a thriving agriculture-tourism region serving as an economic engine with over $1 billion of investment in the region and has created over 25,000 jobs; and there are existing state approved landfills or other solid waste management facilities operating within a 50 mile radius of the proposed site; and there is significant impact to the access roads surrounding the proposed site; and it does not demonstrate a compelling public purpose and the project can be located on an alternative site that does not pose an environmental or economic threat to the region.
Section 2: Establishes the effective date.
Justification
Fundamentally, trash incinerators are not effective mechanisms for elec- tricity generation, often producing less electricity than is expended to burn waste materials, and at a higher cost. They also produce toxic ash from burning a range of solid wastes which can vary widely in chemical output, making compliance with emissions and toxic waste limits diffi- cult. These facilities are effectively.solid waste management facilities which contravene New York's goals to increase recycling rates. These types of facilities are different from other energy generating facili- ties in that, through truck traffic, there is the importation of waste on a daily basis.
Construction of the largest trash incinerator in New York State is proposed for the Finger Lakes region, under an expedited permitting process for siting electricity generating facilities. Siting a trash incinerator in the Finger Lakes region, with the associated impacts of air and ash pollution, will significantly damage the local tourism, winery and agriculture industries as well as the lakes and farmland throughout the area. In an area where three of the largest landfills in NYS are located, this is an unacceptable area for a project of this nature. Over 3 million tons of trash per year are located in this area and the cumulative impact of adding more imported waste would have an extremely negative effect on the public health and safety of the commu- nity, the local businesses and the lakes. This legislation would prohibit a waste to energy facility from receiving a certificate of compatibility and public need or a negative declaration under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) if the criteria listed above are met.
Legislative history
2018: S.8109-B passed Senate/A.11214 referred to Rules
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to have been in full force and effect on and after February 1, 2019.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.