Tampa Council approves fertilizer ban

Beginning next year, the sale of nitrogen and phosphorus-laden fertilizers – or using them to keep lawns and athletic fields green – will be outlawed in this city.

On Thursday, the city council voted 6 to 1 to ban the sale and use of those fertilizers during the rainy season, from June 1 to Sept. 30. The restrictions go into effect on June 1, 2012.

Councilman Frank Reddick cast the lone dissenting vote against the measure, as he did in an earlier vote, citing the economic impact on retailers. Mayor Bob Buckhorn has said he will sign the measure.

"Tourists don't want to come to a place where there's no fish, and people don't want to live a place where the water is polluted," said Councilwoman Mary Mulhern, who proposed the ban. "This is about protecting our waterways."

The move comes as the window for local governments to pass point-of-sale restrictions on fertilizers is closing, with a state law prohibiting bans going into effect on July 1.

"If we don't act today we cede our authority to the state," said Councilman Harry Cohen. "And given the state's record on protecting the environment, that really concerns me."

Scientists at the Tampa Bay Estuary Program and Sierra Club pushed the tougher rules, arguing that nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers contribute to nutrient pollution that saps the oxygen in waterways and fuels algae blooms that harm delicate marine life.

Supporters of the fertilizer ban, many wearing buttons that said "Save Tampa Bay and the River from Pollution," packed council chambers today to make their case.

"We have been working for years to protect the bay, now it's time for homeowners to take some responsibility," said Dena Leavengood, co-leader of Tomorrow Matters, a nonprofit group that works on environmental issues. "This is a public health issue."

Fertilizer and lawn care industries opposed the ban as heavy handed and unnecessary. They argued that fertilizers are overrated as a source of nutrient pollution and the runoff problems are due mostly to homeowners' ignorance of fertilizer application techniques.

Moreso, they argued that enforcing a fertilizer ban will be costly and cumbersome for a city that is already laying off employees and slashing budgets to meet operating costs.

"You're going to have to justify hiring fertilizer cops when you're laying off regular cops," said former State Sen. John Grant, a lobbyist who represents opponents of the ban.

Industry officials lobbied ahead of the today's final vote to get the measure overturned, but council members said they weren't swayed by arguments against the restrictions.

The restrictions won't apply to golf courses or agricultural uses, such as farms, but they include a tough provision that's not found in many bans – prohibiting the sale and use of fertilizers containing less than 50 percent "slow-release" nitrogen from October to May.

Council members will be able to revisit the restrictions in coming months if they want to modify or loosen them, a provision that was welcomed by opponents of the ban.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection has labeled hundreds of state waters as "impaired" because of nutrient pollution, including parts of Tampa Bay and the Hillsborough and Alafia rivers. The federal government is likely to impose requirements on Florida's municipalities to reduce nitrogen in rivers, lakes and other waterways.

Environmental groups argue a four-month fertilizer ban is the least expensive way to clean up area waters and prevent cities and counties from having to spend millions of dollars on treatment as federal regulators increase pressure to clean up waterways.

According to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the estimated cost to remove a single pound of nitrogen that washes into a stormwater system is $9,080.

Ban supporters also argue lawns can stay healthy through the summer with slow-release fertilizers or with fertilizer blends containing iron, magnesium and other minerals.

Statewide, at least 50 municipalities have approved seasonal nitrogen-based fertilizer bans to varying degrees, including St. Petersburg, Sarasota and Pinellas counties.

Hillsborough County restricts homeowners from applying nitrogen fertilizer before heavy rainfalls and prohibits the use of fertilizer within 10 feet of a body of water.