Bill Text: NY A09595 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Relates to the filling of borrow pits in Jamaica Bay.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Vetoed) 2020-11-27 - VETOED MEMO.68 [A09595 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A09595-Introduced.html

---

                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          9595

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 27, 2020
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M.  of A. PHEFFER AMATO -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Environmental Conservation

        AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation  to  the
          filling of borrow pits in Jamaica Bay; and to amend chapter 288 of the
          laws  of  2014 amending the environmental conservation law relating to
          the filling of borrow pits in Jamaica Bay, in relation to  making  the
          provisions of such chapter permanent

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1.  Legislative intent. Due to the increase in vessel size  in
     2  recent  years, New York State waterways such as channels, berthing areas
     3  and harbors are being excavated in a process known as dredging to  main-
     4  tain sufficient depth for safe and efficient vessel operation.
     5    Dredged  material  is  naturally  accumulated  sediment,  much  of the
     6  dredged material does  contain  some  contaminants  at  varying  concen-
     7  trations.
     8    Jamaica  Bay  was  dredged to supply soil for a number of construction
     9  projects. This process created borrow pits in the bay. These borrow pits
    10  have been identified as an attractive alternative for the  disposing  of
    11  dredge material.
    12    §  2.  Subdivisions  1 and 3-a of section 15-0505 of the environmental
    13  conservation law, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 233 of the laws of
    14  1979 and subdivision 3-a as added by chapter 288 of the  laws  of  2014,
    15  are amended to read as follows:
    16    1.  No  person, local public corporation or interstate authority shall
    17  excavate or place fill below the mean high water level  in  any  of  the
    18  navigable  waters  of the state, or in marshes, estuaries, tidal marshes
    19  and wetlands that are adjacent to and contiguous at any point to any  of
    20  the  navigable  waters  of the state and that are inundated at mean high
    21  water level or tide, without a permit issued pursuant to  subdivision  3
    22  of  this  section. For the purposes of this section, fill shall include,
    23  but shall not be limited to, earth, clay,  silt,  sand,  gravel,  stone,
    24  rock,  shale,  concrete  (whole  or  fragmentary), ashes, cinders, slag,
    25  metal, dredged material or any other similar  material  whether  or  not

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09819-04-0
        A. 9595                             2

     1  enclosed  or  contained by (1) crib work of wood, timber, logs, concrete
     2  or metal, (2) bulkheads and cofferdams of timber sheeting,  bracing  and
     3  piling or steel sheet piling or steel H piling, separated or in combina-
     4  tion.  Nothing contained in this section is intended to be, nor shall be
     5  construed  to  limit,  impair  or affect the memorandum of understanding
     6  which any state department enters into with the Department  of  Environ-
     7  mental  Conservation  or the general powers and duties of the Department
     8  of Transportation relating to canals or the general powers and duties of
     9  the Department of Environmental Conservation relating to flood control.
    10    3-a. [The department may only grant a permit for  the  filing  of  the
    11  Jamaica Bay borrow pits if the proposed sediments and fill materials:
    12    (1)  have  been tested and the test results are in accordance with the
    13  requirements set forth in the department's technical  operational  guid-
    14  ance  series  5.1.9  for  the in water management of sediment and dredge
    15  material; and
    16    (2) meet the department's class a criteria] In filling the Jamaica Bay
    17  borrow pits the department may only grant a permit if the proposed sedi-
    18  ments and fill materials meet the following criteria:
    19    (1) comply with federal unrestricted ocean dumping criteria;
    20    (2) have been tested and test results indicate no unacceptable toxici-
    21  ty or bioaccumulation in biological test systems;
    22    (3) has no potential short-term (acute) impacts or long-term (chronic)
    23  impacts; and
    24    (4) requires no special precautionary  measures  are  required  during
    25  disposal.
    26    §  3.  Section 3 of chapter 288 of the laws of 2014 amending the envi-
    27  ronmental conservation law relating to the filling  of  borrow  pits  in
    28  Jamaica  Bay,  as amended by chapter 499 of the laws of 2016, is amended
    29  to read as follows:
    30    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately [and shall expire  and  be
    31  deemed repealed June 30, 2022].
    32    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.