Bill Text: NY S06268 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Enacts the "sewage pollution right to know act"; requires publicly owned treatment works to report discharges of untreated or partially treated sewage.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 14-7)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-06-21 - SUBSTITUTED BY A10585A [S06268 Detail]

Download: New_York-2011-S06268-Amended.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                        6268--C
           Cal. No. 594
                                   I N  S E N A T E
                                   January 18, 2012
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by Sens. GRISANTI, ADDABBO, AVELLA, DILAN, DUANE, ESPAILLAT,
         FUSCHILLO, GOLDEN, HASSELL-THOMPSON, KLEIN, KRUEGER, LAVALLE, MARTINS,
         MONTGOMERY, O'MARA, OPPENHEIMER, PARKER, SERRANO,  STEWART-COUSINS  --
         read  twice  and  ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to
         the Committee on Environmental Conservation --  committee  discharged,
         bill  amended,  ordered  reprinted  as amended and recommitted to said
         committee -- reported favorably from said committee, ordered to  first
         and  second  report,  ordered  to a third reading, amended and ordered
         reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading --  again
         amended  and  ordered  reprinted,  retaining its place in the order of
         third reading
       AN ACT to amend the  environmental  conservation  law,  in  relation  to
         creating the sewage pollution right to know act
         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1. This act shall be known and may be  cited  as  the  "sewage
    2  pollution right to know act".
    3    S  2.  The  environmental  conservation law is amended by adding a new
    4  section 17-0826-a to read as follows:
    5  S 17-0826-A. MANDATORY SEWAGE  RELEASE  REPORTING  AND  NOTIFICATION  BY
    6                 PUBLICLY  OWNED TREATMENT WORKS AND OPERATORS OF PUBLICLY
    7                 OWNED SEWER SYSTEMS.
    8    1. PUBLICLY OWNED TREATMENT WORKS OR THE OPERATOR OF A PUBLICLY  OWNED
    9  SEWER  SYSTEM  SHALL  IMMEDIATELY,  BUT IN NO CASE LATER THAN TWO HOURS,
   10  REPORT DISCHARGES OF UNTREATED OR PARTIALLY  TREATED  SEWAGE,  INCLUDING
   11  COMBINED  SEWER  OVERFLOWS,  EXCEPT  PARTIALLY TREATED SEWAGE DISCHARGED
   12  DIRECTLY FROM A PUBLICLY OWNED TREATMENT WORKS  THAT  IS  IN  COMPLIANCE
   13  WITH  A  DEPARTMENT  APPROVED  PLAN OR PERMIT, TO THE DEPARTMENT AND THE
   14  LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT, OR IF THERE IS NONE, THE NEW YORK STATE  HEALTH
   15  DEPARTMENT.  SUCH  REPORT  SHALL,  AT  A MINIMUM, INCLUDE, TO THE EXTENT
   16  KNOWABLE WITH EXISTING SYSTEMS AND MODELS:
   17    (A) THE VOLUME AND TREATED STATE OF THE DISCHARGE;
   18    (B) THE DATE AND TIME OF THE DISCHARGE;
   19    (C) THE EXPECTED DURATION OF THE DISCHARGE;
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD13941-05-2
       S. 6268--C                          2
    1    (D) A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF  THE  STEPS  BEING  TAKEN  TO  CONTAIN  THE
    2  DISCHARGE EXCEPT FOR WET WEATHER COMBINED SEWER OVERFLOW DISCHARGES;
    3    (E) THE LOCATION OF THE DISCHARGE, WITH THE MAXIMUM LEVEL OF SPECIFIC-
    4  ITY POSSIBLE; AND
    5    (F) THE REASON FOR THE DISCHARGE.
    6    2.  IN  ADDITION TO SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION, AS SOON AS POSSI-
    7  BLE, BUT NO LATER THAN FOUR HOURS  AFTER  THE  DISCHARGE,  THE  PUBLICLY
    8  OWNED  TREATMENT  WORKS OR THE OPERATOR OF A PUBLICLY OWNED SEWER SYSTEM
    9  SHALL NOTIFY THE LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT OR IF THERE IS  NONE,  THE  NEW
   10  YORK  STATE  HEALTH  DEPARTMENT,  THE  CHIEF  ELECTED  OFFICIAL OR THEIR
   11  AUTHORIZED DESIGNEE OF THE MUNICIPALITY IN WHICH THE DISCHARGE  OCCURRED
   12  AND  THE  CHIEF  ELECTED  OFFICIAL  OR  THEIR AUTHORIZED DESIGNEE OF ANY
   13  ADJOINING MUNICIPALITY THAT MAY BE AFFECTED. THE SAME NOTIFICATION SHALL
   14  ALSO BE PROVIDED WITHIN THE SAME TIMEFRAME TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC, PURSU-
   15  ANT TO REGULATIONS TO BE PROMULGATED  UNDER  SUBDIVISION  FOUR  OF  THIS
   16  SECTION THROUGH APPROPRIATE MEDIA AS DETERMINED BY THE DEPARTMENT.
   17    3. THE DEPARTMENT SHALL POST REPORTED INFORMATION ON ITS WEBSITE EXPE-
   18  DITIOUSLY  AND  SHALL PREPARE A REPORT ON PUBLICLY OWNED TREATMENT WORKS
   19  AND SEWER SYSTEM DISCHARGES ANNUALLY. THE REPORT SHALL,  AT  A  MINIMUM,
   20  INCLUDE:  THE  TOTAL  NUMBER  OF  DISCHARGES, DETAILS OF SUCH DISCHARGES
   21  INCLUDING THE VOLUME AND TREATED STATE OF THE DISCHARGE, AND  THE  DURA-
   22  TION  AND  LOCATION OF EACH DISCHARGE; AS WELL AS ANY REMEDIAL RESPONSES
   23  TAKEN TO MITIGATE IMPACTS AND AVOID FURTHER DISCHARGES.
   24    4. THE DEPARTMENT SHALL PROMULGATE RULES AND REGULATIONS NECESSARY FOR
   25  THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THIS SECTION.  PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF  THIS
   26  SECTION,  THE  DEPARTMENT IN CONSULTATION WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH,
   27  SHALL FURTHER PROMULGATE HEALTH-BASED RULES AND REGULATIONS  TO  PROVIDE
   28  FOR  NOTIFICATION  IN  ANY SITUATION THAT MAY PRESENT A THREAT TO PUBLIC
   29  HEALTH. THESE REGULATIONS SHALL AUTHORIZE PUBLICLY OWNED TREATMENT WORKS
   30  OR THE OPERATOR OF A PUBLICLY OWNED SEWER SYSTEM TO CONSIDER INPUT  FROM
   31  A LOCAL HEALTH AGENCY SO LONG AS THAT INPUT IS BASED ON OBJECTIVE CRITE-
   32  RIA.
   33    S  3.  A  municipality may, but shall not be required to, expend addi-
   34  tional local funds to implement the provisions of this act.
   35    S 4. This act shall take effect May 1, 2013.   Effective  immediately,
   36  the department of environmental conservation is authorized to promulgate
   37  rules  and  regulations,  as  authorized  by  subdivision  4  of section
   38  17-0826-a of the environmental conservation law as added by section  two
   39  of  this act, necessary for the timely implementation of this act on its
   40  effective date.