Letting ban on local fertilizer ordinances expire was right thing to do by Legislature
Sometimes they get it right. And when they do, we should acknowledge an example of good leadership.
We're talking about Florida state legislators, including Senate President Kathleen Passidomo and House Speaker Paul Renner, as well as Gov. Ron DeSantis. To be fair, the "action" the lawmakers took this year regarding fertilizer regulations was, well, "no action."
Yet that was exactly the right move for Florida and its waterways.
This all began during the 2023 legislative session. A last-minute measure with no public discussion surreptitiously slid into Florida's $117 billion budget. It did two things:
It placed a prohibition on any city, town or county governments creating new restrictions or modifying existing bans on fertilizer use for residential or commercial property until June 30, 2024.
It funded a $250,000 University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences study to be completed by Dec. 31, 2023 on the effectiveness of local fertilizer rainy season bans.
In the roughly 15 years prior to 2023, more than 100 local governments in Florida — mostly in communities connected to natural waterways — created summer rainy season bans on the use of some fertilizers between June 1 and Nov. 30 each year. The intent by local leaders was to offer some sort of protection for local waterways from runoff of excess nitrogen and phosphorous. Sometimes this runoff would follow the application of fertilizers on properties adjacent to or near waterways that drain into canals, lakes, springs, rivers and estuaries.
High nutrient loads in these waterways is a form of pollution. It can lead to algae blooms, habitat die-off and eventually can trigger kills of freshwater and saltwater wildlife. Blue-green algae blooms, red tides, manatee deaths and fish kills directly affect the economies of these communities.
The Legislature's move in 2023 was called a "sneak attack" by critics because the moratorium was added to the budget the last Sunday night before session ended. A coalition of 55 environmental organizations — including 1000 Friends of Florida, Save the Manatee Club, Friends of the Everglades, Sierra Club and Captains for Clean Water — opposed the move, urging DeSantis to use his line-item veto power on the bill. He did not take their advice.
How do these things happen? It's all about who has the ability to influence lawmakers. In this case, former state House speaker-turned-lobbyist Steve Crisafulli, working for TruGreen Lawn Care, convinced leaders to add the bill to the budget, Florida Phoenix reported. Quarterly and monthly lawn services are the businesses impacted most by the summer fertilizer bans, according to Sierra Club executive director Cris Costello.
In January, UF/IFAS released its report finding there were only six studies that measured nitrogen and phosphorus levels before and after fertilizer ordinances went into effect, and that they were all pretty much inconclusive. The university then requested more time and funding to examine these parameters:
Multiple watersheds to quantify the sources, transport and fate of nutrients, and how they affect downstream waters.
A range of urban watersheds across a larger area, which have diverse social, environmental and economic factors.
Water quality monitoring through manual field samples and continuous electronic equipment.
Pollution-source tracking through direct measurements and isotopic analysis as well as lab experiments.
In February, midway through the 60-day 2024 session, a nonpartisan coalition of 57 elected officials representing some of the 100 communities with seasonal fertilizer bans sent a letter to lawmakers. The coalition represented communities as far north as Tallahassee and as far south as Islamorada. The letter urged the Legislature to let the ban expire.
"As leaders charged with protecting our constituents, keeping Florida’s waterways clean is a top priority. Water quality is of utmost importance to our health, our environment, and our economy. From the beaches to the bays, Florida’s tourism industry and local businesses require clean water.
"… We strongly urge the Florida Legislature to reject any bill or measure that would restrict or remove the ability of a local government to regulate urban fertilizer application."
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These are the Treasure Coast officials who signed the letter:
City of Sebastian — Ed Dodd, mayor
St. Lucie County — Chris Dzadovsky, commissioner
City of Stuart — Becky Bruner, mayor, Campbell Rich, vice mayor, Christopher Collins, commissioner
Martin County — Sarah Heard, commissioner, Ed Ciampi, commissioner
No new bills were filed by state legislators this session and no new action extending the freeze took place. Was this an example of state legislators backing away from seizing home rule from local governments? New development laws suggest otherwise.
But at least this was one time where home rule won out. And for that, we can applaud.
Editorials published by TCPalm/Treasure Coast Newspapers are decided collectively by its editorial board. To respond to this editorial with a letter to the editor, email up to 300 words to TCNLetters@TCPalm.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: State legislature right in letting home rule decide fertilizer laws
