BILL NUMBER:  S4735

 TITLE OF BILL :

An act to amend the executive law, in relation to designating Baldwin
lake, Ossi lake, Purdys lake and Muscoot river as inland waterways for
purposes of waterfront revitalization

 PURPOSE :

Designates Baldwin Lake, Ossi Lake, Purdys Lake and the Muscoot River
as inland waterways for purposes of waterfront revitalization.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section one amends paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision 4 of section
911 of the executive law, regarding the definition of "inland
waterways" by adding Baldwin Lake, Ossi Lake, Purdys Lake and the
Muscoot River.

Section two establishes the effective date.

 JUSTIFICATION :

As the Westchester County Department of Planning noted in its
Comprehensive Croton Watershed Water Quality Protection Plan, "from
              

the water we drink to the water we swim in, it's the community's
responsibility to protect this precious resource." The state's coastal
and inland waterway program includes 47 policies, which communities
that are home to an inland waterway can adopt as part of a local
waterfront revitalization plan for the purposes of protecting these
precious resources.

The 1997 Croton Watershed Mebamorandum of Agreement between New York
State, New York City, the United States Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), county and local governments and environmental
organizations sets forth "policies, regulations and watershed
protection programs that include land acquisition and partnership
initiatives to protect the water quality of New York City's vast
public drinking water supply watershed while accommodating
environmentally sensitive economic growth."

Located within the Croton River watershed, the Muscoot River
sub-watershed area of the Amawalk Watershed Basin was identified in
the Croton Watershed South Stakeholder Report (Bureau of Water Supply,
New York City Department of Environmental Protection, May 2004) as an
area suspected to be of concern regarding pathogens, total suspended
solids and total phosphorus. This was confirmed during past 303(d)
monitoring by the State Department of Environmental Conservation. The
Amawalk Reservoir is formed by the damming of the river, and is a
major source of New York City's drinking water supply.

Only one-third of the basin's 12,578 acres are in Westchester, with
the headwaters located in Putnam County, near the Baldwin Place
commercial area. Several lake front communities are also located
within the basin including Lake Purdys and Lake Baldwin. DEC's Lower
Hudson River Basin Waterbody Inventory/Priority Waterbodies List for
the Croton River watershed finds that the Muscoot River's lower
section near Baldwin Place is priority impaired as a water supply, for
public bathing, aquatic life and recreation. Pollutants include oxygen
demand, ammonia, pathogens and municipal stormwater run-off.  The town
of Somers stormwater management program identified the residential
area surrounding nearby Lake Purdys as areas with runoff and with
potential septic system problems.


Lake Ossi, headwaters of the Peekskill Hollow Creek, has tributaries
that originate as outflows from the Amawalk Watershed Basin. The
WI/PWL for Peekskill Hollow Creek-Hudson River watershed identifies as
Lake Ossi as impaired due to minor impacts from nutrient loadings from
nonpoint sources resulting in algal growth and eutrophic conditions.

By designating these lakes and river as inland waterways, the
municipalities in the watershed will be able to align their use with
the State's Coastal and Inland Waterway Policies, and will be able to
pursue our shared goals of improved water quality, preservation of
open space and wildlife habitat, promotion of tourism and economic
development opportunities, as well as combating threats to the
waterways such as pollution, stormwater run-off and invasive species.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

New bill

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

None

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect immediately.