Lawn Care Laws Heating Up

Connecticut: H.B. 6064 would amend the state's pesticide control law by banning the sale and use of products containing clopyralid in an attempt to "remove a threat" to the marketing of products from municipal composting programs.

Connecticut: Municipalities would be given the authority to regulate lawn care pesticides that are used for aesthetic purposes under H.B. 6035. The sponsor of the bill stated the purpose of H.B. 6035 is to give municipalities the ability to control the use of pesticides that "may endanger the environment," including private water wells. 

Connecticut: A pesticide advisory committee would be created under S.B. 663 to bring about consistency in the statutes and regulations regarding pesticide use as well as advise property owners and pesticide applicators of statutory and regulatory requirements. The committee would consist of environment and public health committee members, the Commissioners of Environmental Protection and Public Health, and representatives from the Dept. of Environmental Protection Bureau of Marine Fisheries and the Dept. of Agriculture's Aquaculture Division. There would be no representation from members of the public on the committee.

Florida: S.B. 1376 would create the 2020 Water Study Commission, composed of 17 appointed members to study state water resource management and planning laws and make recommendations with respect to water resource protection and use. Commission members would include a variety of agriculture, environmental and business interests. The committee would take a comprehensive look at how the multi-billion-dollar water resource infrastructure needs are to be met in the state. Specifically, the commission would make recommendations on increasing the use of reclaimed water, simplifying and streamlining state and local permitting processes for alternative water supply technologies, and encouraging citizen participation in education and the promotion of water resource protection and conservation programs. The commission would issue a final report, with recommendations, by Feb. 1, 2005. 

Maine: H.B. 564 (L.D. 759) would increase the seven-member Board of Pesticides Control to a nine-member body by increasing the number of public members on the Board from two to four and requiring that the new members be from environmental and public health groups. The Board is Maine's lead agency for regulating pesticides. By law, the current seven-member board includes: three persons knowledgeable about pesticides in agriculture, forestry or commercial applications, one person with a medical background and another holding a faculty position in either agronomy or entomology at the University of Maine. The remaining two members represent expertise in environmental issues. The Board of Pesticide Control did not request this legislation.  

Massachusetts: H.B. 1161 would require the University of Massachusetts IPM Program, with the assistance of the state's IPM Council, to develop integrated pest management guidelines for various sectors including lawns, turf, trees and shrubs, golf courses and agriculture. These guidelines would be made available to all certified commercial applicators, all certified private applicators, all licensed applicators, their employers and employees and the general public. The Dept of Agriculture, working with the UMass IPM Program and IPM Council, would develop:

• A certification process – all certified commercial, certified private and licensed applicators would be required to be certified in the use of IPM techniques by Dec. 1, 2004;
• Continuing education requirements and procedures for obtaining credits;
• Protocols for measuring compliance – protocols would require sufficient documentation to allow the department to determine that an applicator was using IPM techniques. The bill would also require all certified commercial, certified private and licensed applicators to use IPM techniques by Dec. 1, 2004.  

Massachusetts: H.B. 48 would remove statutory caps on many fees, including pesticide applicator certification and licensing fees and pesticide registration fees. The bill would allow fees to be determined by the state Secretary of Administration and Finance. According to Responsible Industry for a Sound Environment, the bill provides the opportunity for fees to be raised more quickly than would be case if they went through the statutory process.

Missouri: H.B. 519 would create an environmental audit privilege for owners of facilities regulated by state environmental law. Under the bill, owners would be able to conduct voluntary internal audits to determine compliance with environmental laws. Information contained in the audit would be privileged and not admissible as evidence in any legal action or subject to disclosure during regulatory inspections unless a court required disclosure because the privilege was asserted for fraudulent purposes or the owner did not reasonably pursue compliance after finding out they were in noncompliance. The Dept. of Natural Resources could not seek administrative or civil penalties, or criminal penalties for negligent acts, from anyone who voluntary disclosed noncompliance as long as the owner made the disclosure promptly and corrected the violation within two years.

New Jersey: A nine-member Wastewater Reuse Study Commission would be created to investigate the feasibility of, and provide recommendations on, using reclaimed water for irrigation purposes, dust control, fire fighting and other non-potable uses in the state under A.J.R. 18. The commission would evaluate all economic, legal and public perception issues that are current impediments to the reuse of treated wastewater. A member of the golf industry would be invited by the governor to sit on the commission. The commission would report its findings and recommendations to the Governor and the Legislature no later than nine months after its first meeting.  

Information in this story was provided by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America.