Another disappointment for the industry came on Friday, Oct. 5 as a fifth county legislature in New York voted to accept the Neighbor Notification Law.
The Rockland County legislature held a public meeting to hear pros and cons on the issue and voted 13-3 to pass it despite warnings from the green industry regarding the law's flaws. The law, which was backed by County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef, will go into effect Jan. 1, 2002.
"I strongly support a local neighbor notification law for Rockland County and believe it will benefit our residents by alerting them when pesticides will be applied near their homes and allowing them to take precautionary steps to avoid unnecessary contact with chemicals," Vanderhoef said in a press release.
The state pesticide notification law, which requires 48-hour written notification to neighbors within 150 feet of a planned application, was passed in August 2000 and applies only in counties that choose to adopt it. In addition, state lawmakers included a provision that the measure must be adopted "as is," barring counties from making modifications to the law. Suffolk, Nassau, Westchester and Albany Counties have also adopted the law and legal challenges from an industry coalition are pending in all four of those counties.
The debate over adoption of the neighbor notification law in Rockland County was long and involved, said Sande Lefkowitz, press coordinator in the County's Legislature office.
"The meeting on Oct. 4 was a continuation of a public hearing in September," she explained. "[In September] we had more than 30 people talk on both sides of the issue and we had to reschedule because we went passed midnight.
"Both sides thought it was a very flawed law, but it was a first step," Lefkowitz related. "Now the county has to put everything into place."
Hon. Frank Fornario (R-17th district), said he was opposed to the law right up until the week before the vote, but changed his mind at the last minute.
"I received some vital data at a pesticide notification workshop in Westchester County that none of the problems that were anticipated had happened there," he explained. "So, I thought we should try the law to see if it's as bad as it's purported to be by lawn care operators (LCOs)."
Fornario contends that if enforcing the law turns out to be a burden for the county or for LCOs, he would introduce a proposal to repeal the measure. "If in fact what the opposition groups claim is going to happen, happens, that would be grounds for me to bring a repeal."
Democrat Ken Zobrowski (5th district) says that Rockland County has been considering passing a pesticide notification law since 1999 - even before the state passed its bill. Zobrowski explains that he appreciates the financial burden this law puts on LCOs and wishes there was something he could do about that.
"I feel they are (LCOs) an important part of our commerce and industry and had I the ability, would certainly be willing to sponsor and support assistance to them in terms of the notification both financially and otherwise," he acknowledged. "But I also feel that in terms of the agents being used, that many of them are going to be outlawed in 10-15 years."
The idea of a voluntary registry was brought up in committee, Zobrowski noted, but it couldn't gain enough votes to move to the full legislature. "There was a good deal of skepticism about its (voluntary registry) effectiveness," he stated. "Therefore, the legislature chose to adopt the state's neighbor notification law because of the potential danger of pesticides to individual residents."
Larry Wilson, government affairs chairperson for the New York State Turf & Landscape association and chairperson of the industry coalition fighting the law, admits that no strategy has been worked out yet for Rockland County. "Until then, I want to talk to the professional landscapers in that county and see what we can do to help them."
Wilson acknowledged that he's hoping that filing a notice of appeal in Rockland County will make the legislature think twice about implementing the law.
However, neither Zobrowski nor Fornario are worried about getting involved with a lawsuit over this matter.
"We're sued all the time," Fornario advised. "It comes with the territory. Obviously we don't like to see our laws challenged, but we have a battery of attorneys in case they are."
For more information about the New York Neighbor Notification Law, visit the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.
The author is Internet Editor of Lawn & Landscape Online.