Bill Text: NY A05029 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Creates the "Finger Lakes community preservation act"; prohibits the siting of newly constructed incineration facilities in the Finger Lakes region.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-3)

Status: (Passed) 2019-05-24 - signed chap.32 [A05029 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A05029-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                         5029--A
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    February 6, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by M. of A. CUSICK, LIFTON, PALMESANO, KOLB, WOERNER, LUPAR-
          DO, THIELE, GLICK, FINCH -- read once and referred to the Committee on
          Energy -- committee discharged, bill  amended,  ordered  reprinted  as
          amended and recommitted to said committee
        AN  ACT in relation to creating the "Finger Lakes community preservation
          act"
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Legislative intent. It is the intent of this Legislature to
     2  protect  the  Finger Lakes region from the adverse effects of the siting
     3  of newly constructed incineration facilities, including but not  limited
     4  to:  air  and  ash pollution, the additional traffic on the public roads
     5  and damage to local tourism, winery and agriculture industries  as  well
     6  as the lakes and farmland throughout the area. In an area where three of
     7  the  largest landfills in New York State are located, over three million
     8  tons of trash per year are imported into the Finger Lakes and the  cumu-
     9  lative  impact of adding more imported waste for incineration would have
    10  an extremely negative effect on the public  health  and  safety  of  the
    11  community,  the  local businesses and the lakes. The Finger Lakes region
    12  is a thriving agriculture-tourism region in  the  state  serving  as  an
    13  economic  engine  with  over  one  billion  dollars  ($1,000,000,000) of
    14  investment in the region and has created over 25,000 jobs.
    15    The Legislature hereby determines that the public interest requires  a
    16  prohibition  on  the siting of newly constructed incineration facilities
    17  in the Finger Lakes region.
    18    § 2. Short title. This act shall be known and  may  be  cited  as  the
    19  "Finger Lakes community preservation act".
    20    §  3.  Definitions.  For the purposes of this act, the following terms
    21  shall have the following meanings:
    22    a. "Incineration facility" shall mean a facility which generates elec-
    23  tricity from the combustion, gasification or pyrolysis of solid waste or
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04980-02-9
        A. 5029--A                          2
     1  from fuel from solid waste, provided that such term  shall  not  include
     2  any  facility constructed or in operation prior to the effective date of
     3  this act.
     4    b.  "Solid  waste  management  facility" has the meaning set forth for
     5  such term in subdivision 2  of  section  27-0701  of  the  environmental
     6  conservation law.
     7    §  4. Permits and certificates. Notwithstanding any other law, rule or
     8  regulation to the contrary, no certificate of environmental compatibili-
     9  ty and public need shall be issued for the construction or operation  of
    10  a  new  incineration  facility,  and no application for such certificate
    11  shall proceed for such a facility, and no permit or  any  other  certif-
    12  icate  shall be issued or granted by the state to such a facility if all
    13  of the following criteria exist or are met:
    14    a. The incineration facility is within the Oswego  River/Finger  Lakes
    15  Watershed.
    16    b.  There  is  at  least  one landfill or other solid waste management
    17  facility permitted by the department of environmental  conservation  and
    18  operating  or  located  within  a  fifty mile radius of the incineration
    19  facility.
    20    c. The incineration facility is within 10 miles of a  priority  water-
    21  body  as  designated  by  the  department of environmental conservation,
    22  pursuant to section 17-1407 of the environmental conservation law.
    23    § 5. Severability. The provisions of this act shall be severable,  and
    24  if  any  clause,  sentence,  paragraph,  subdivision or part of this act
    25  shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be  invalid,
    26  such judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder ther-
    27  eof  but  shall  be  confined  in its operation to the clause, sentence,
    28  paragraph, subdivision or part thereof directly involved in the  contro-
    29  versy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.
    30    §  6.  This  act  shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to
    31  have been in full force and effect on and after February  1,  2018,  and
    32  shall not apply to any facility in operation as of such date.