NY State Senate Bill 2017-S62

Senate Bill S62

2017-2018 Legislative Session

Establishes a 5 year moratorium on the taking of horseshoe crabs or the eggs of horseshoe crabs by any person

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Environmental Conservation Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2018	referred to environmental conservation
Jan 04, 2017	referred to environmental conservation

2017-S62 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Environmental Conservation
Law Section:: Environmental Conservation
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2015-2016: S4832
2019-2020: S48
2021-2022: S684
2023-2024: S3185

2017-S62 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes a moratorium on the taking of horseshoe crabs or the eggs of horseshoe crabs by any person, unless such taking is for scientific or educational purposes.

2017-S62 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S62

 TITLE OF BILL :

An act to impose a moratorium upon the taking of horseshoe crabs and
the eggs thereof; to direct the department of environmental
conservation to study and report on the populations of shorebirds and
horseshoe crabs; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon
expiration thereof

 PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL :

This legislation proposes to limit the issuance of permits for the
taking of horseshoe crabs, prohibiting the department of environmental
conservation from allowing the removal of more than 100,000 crabs
during any calendar year. Those that are taken must be used for the
purposes of medical or academic research.

 SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS :

This legislation will add a new section 13-0332 to the environmental
conservation law, which prohibits the removal of horseshoe crabs from
New York State waters for purposes other than medical or academic
research, and prohibits the removal of all female horseshoe crabs with
visible eggs. Exceptions can be granted for those who already hold
permits for removal of lobsters from New York State waters. This

legislation would also prohibit the dredging of waters in Richmond
County, Hempstead Bay and South Oyster Bay in the county of Nassau,
and the waters of the Great South Bay West of the Captree Bridge in
the county of Suffolk.

 JUSTIFICATION :

Horseshoe Crabs are a vital part of the ecosystem in the waters off
the coast of New York State. Unfortunately, their population has been
drastically depleted by commercial fishermen who catch these crabs for
use as bait. If they are not protected, the effects could be
disastrous to the migratory birds and other sea life that rely on them
for nourishment.

The red knot, a migratory bird that nests in the Arctic, relies on the
eggs of the horseshoe crab as fuel for their journey. These birds feed
almost exclusively on horseshoe crab eggs during this leg of their
migration. With the diminishing crab population, the average weight of
the red knot en route to its nesting place has dropped noticeably.
Without enough nourishment, they do not have the stamina to make the
journey and hatch fledglings. Significantly fewer are being seen over
the waters off the coast of New York, New Jersey and Delaware, and
even less are making it to their final destination. The annual
survival rate of red knots has dropped over 25% between 1999 and 2002.

Harvesting of some horseshoe crabs is necessary, because of their
medicinal value. The crab plays a vital, yet little-known, role in the
life of anyone who has received an injectable medication. An extract
of the horseshoe crab's blood is used by the pharmaceutical and
medical device industries to ensure that their products, e.g.,
intravenous drugs, vaccines, and medical devices, are free of
bacterial contamination. No other test works as easily or reliably for
this purpose.

New Jersey and Delaware have proposed similar plans to preserve the
horseshoe crab population. In order for this effort to be successful,
New York State must also do their part to limit the harvesting in its
waters.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
S.4832-A of 2015-2016 (Hoylman): Died in Environmental Conservation
A.6308-A of 2015-2016 (Englebright): Died in Environmental
Conservation

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :
None to the state.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect immediately. And shall expire and be deemed
repealed January 1, 2022.

2017-S62 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    62
 
                        2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 4, 2017
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. HOYLMAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Environmental Conservation
 
 AN ACT to impose a moratorium upon the taking of horseshoe crabs and the
   eggs thereof; to direct the department of  environmental  conservation
   to  study  and  report  on the populations of shorebirds and horseshoe
   crabs; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration
   thereof
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Legislative  findings.  The legislature hereby finds that
 each spring more than one million shorebirds of six  species,  including
 the  red  knot, stop at Long Island beaches and feed upon horseshoe crab
 eggs.  The red knot was once considered one of the state's most abundant
 shorebirds. Horseshoe crab eggs are a critical source of  food  for  red
 knots  which  they  consume during their stopover in New York. Such food
 source is necessary for the red  knots  to  gain  sufficient  weight  to
 continue  their  migration  north  to  breeding  grounds in the Canadian
 Arctic.  Surveys have shown that red knots migrating through  the  state
 declined  by  65  percent since 2000. Thus, both state and international
 biologists fear that the red knot will become extinct in as few as  five
 years.
   The  legislature  therefore declares that a moratorium on the harvest,
 landing, taking and possession of horseshoe crabs would help ensure that
 more horseshoe crab eggs will be available as a food source, thus  help-
 ing to ensure the survival of these shorebirds.
   §  2.  (a)  Notwithstanding  the  provisions of section 13-0331 of the
 environmental conservation law or any other provision of law, no  person
 shall take any horseshoe crab (Limulus sp.) or the eggs of any horseshoe
 crab  from  the  waters  or land of the state, nor possess any horseshoe
 crab or the eggs of a horseshoe crab, regardless of the origin thereof.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD05904-01-7

 S. 62                               2
 
   (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section,
 the department of environmental conservation may issue a permit:
   (i)  for  the  taking and possession of horseshoe crabs or the eggs of
 horseshoe crabs for scientific, biomedical or educational purposes only,
 provided that such department determines  that  the  collection  of  the
 horseshoe  crabs  or  the eggs of horseshoe crabs for such purposes will
 not cause harm to the red knot, other shorebirds or the  horseshoe  crab
 population; or
   (ii)  the  collection  of  blood  from  horseshoe crabs for biomedical
 purposes, provided that  the  horseshoe  crabs  are  released  otherwise
 unharmed to the same waters from which they were taken.
   §  3. (a) On or after October 1, 2022, the department of environmental
 conservation shall examine and evaluate the populations  of  red  knots,
 other shorebirds and horseshoe crabs in the state to determine whether:
   (i)  the population of red knots has reached 240,000 as established in
 the United States Shorebird Conservation Plan of May 2001 and
   (ii) a fisheries  management  plan,  based  on  scientific  study  and
 evidence,  demonstrates  that  a  more than adequate supply of horseshoe
 crab eggs exists to ensure population viability for both shorebirds  and
 horseshoe crabs.
   (b)  On  or  before December 31, 2022, the department of environmental
 conservation shall submit its findings, conclusions and  recommendations
 to  the  governor and the legislature with regard to the study conducted
 pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately, and shall expire  and  be
 deemed repealed January 1, 2023.

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