Commissioners OK fertilizer ordinance By Abdon Sidibe County commissioners overwhelmingly approved a model fertilizer ordinance Tuesday amid calls for a more sweeping law which could have prohibited the use of the phosphorous/nitrogen laden during certain seasons or completely banned the sale and application of specific types. The Board of County Commissioners voted 5-0 on a version of the ordinance which adheres to the minimum mandates of state rules governing watershed areas with impaired bodies of water, according to county attorney Kerry Parsons. Debra Burden, water conservation manager for Citrus County Utilities,unveiled the proposal she said officials were instructed to draft and left it to the board to give them further direction if desired. The provisions in the new law include penalties for violators and require certification of knowledge about best management practices for fertilizer applicators and landscapers. The six-hour training program for a certificate in the “Florida-Friendly Best Management Practices for Protection of Water Resources by the Green Industries” is offered by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection through the University of Florida Extension Service. All businesses applying fertilizer to turf and landscape plants within residential lawns, golf courses, commercial properties and multi-family and condominium properties will be required to employ applicators who have earned the training certificate. The county ordinance is called the Ordinance for Florida-friendly Use of Fertilizer on Urban Landscapes. The proposed rules will allow inspections of commercial or institutional applications. The ordinance will also set civil penalties of a $100 fine for a first violation, a $250 fine for a second violation and a $500 fine for third and all subsequent violations. The ordinance also mandates that fertilizer shall not be applied the first 30 days after seeding or sodding except in emergency situations such as wildfires. The ordinance will have fertilizer-free zones which prohibit the use of the product with 10 feet of any pond, stream, watercourse, lake, canal or wetland. The law also prohibits the use of fertilizer that has phosphorous or nitrogen when the ground is saturated and during the prohibited application period. The law does not make rules about the content of fertilizers or times of year when fertilizer should or should not be used. Commissioners expressed support for the law, but said it was just the beginning of what could be a long-lasting effort to restore the once-brilliant waters in the area to their previous state. Commissioner Dennis Damato suggested the law be passed as-is and then the county could monitor its progress over several months and make tweaks as necessary. Commissioner Scott Adams and Joe Meek agreed with that approach and Meek further noted that when the law is revisited, it should be based on a wider and cumulative look at all the efforts in the current restoration battle. Commission chairman and outgoing commissioner John “JJ” Kenney said he, too, supported the measure as a first step, but wondered why applicators at lawn care sites have to don masks and other protective gear ostensibly to protect themselves but then dump the chemicals into the ground. The phosphorous and nitrates in fertilizer, along with other pollutants, have been mentioned as contributors to the rapacious growth of oxygen-depleting algae in Florida waterways. Some area environmental advocates showed up to both laud the commissioners for the ordinance, but also to ask for a more far-reaching law. Dan Hilliard, president of Withlacoochee Area Residents Inc., shared pictures of his front lawn and citrus trees, which all looked perfectly lush and green. Hilliard noted he has not used fertilizer in 13 years and believes natural occurring nitrates and phosphorous are enough to fuel gardens and lush lawns. Hilliard urged more stringent action to safeguard the economic and environmental well-being of the area. Environmental activists Brad Rimbey and Tracy Colson also weighed in about the importance of the law. Teddi Rusnak spoke on behalf of the Citrus County Council, a consortium of civic, homeowners and environmental groups, and implored the commissioners to not settle for the most basic form of the law. Rusnak said Citrus County waterways are the gem of the Nature Coast and deserve a law that will accelerate its restoration to its previous beauty. Todd Josko, who represented the Florida Turfgrass Association at the hearing, said his group also supported the law as is, but cautioned against a more stringent regime. Josko said neither the state Department of Environmental Protection nor the University of Florida is advocating a more stringent set of rules. He said sometimes more rules are just that — more rules — and do very little to fix whatever they may be intending to fix. Contact Chronicle reporter A.B. Sidibe at 352-564-2925 or asidibe@chronicleonline. chronicleonline/content/commissioners-ok-fertilizer-ordinance
Posted on: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 11:28:13 +0000
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