Pinellas County Passes Fertilizer Ordinance

Pinellas County Commissioners late Tuesday night voted 6-1 in favor of a landmark ban on fertilizer use during the summer rainy season, a move that rebuffed the lawn care industry.

Sales of fertilizer with nitrogen or phosphates will be banned starting next year from June through September — or any time during the year when big storms or flooding hit — in Pinellas County. Applying that fertilizer on lawns will be banned starting this summer.

"We all have a moral responsibility to take care of the earth, to take care of what's given to us," said Commissioner Susan Latvala.

And there's a financial reason.

The vote came as the county faced pressure to improve water quality. Researchers blame nutrient runoff for polluting Lake Tarpon and other Tampa Bay area waters — triggering $30 million in repair projects. In Pinellas, 75 percent of waterways are rated as impaired, more than double the state average.
Source: St. Petersburg Times
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