Senator Grisanti sponsors measures to reduce pesticide waste

Mark Grisanti

March 21, 2012

Senator Mark Grisanti recently sponsored a bill that will reduce the amount of pesticides that are unnecessarily released into the environment. The bill also has environmental and economic benefits by reducing the amount of pesticides needing to be applied or disposed of as hazardous waste.

Senator Grisanti’s bill (S.6401A), which has also been approved by the state Assembly, allows New York’s retailers to continue repairing minor damage to containers, under proper conditions, so that the product can be sold and used as intended.

The measure helps alleviate concerns with the unnecessary disposal of pesticide products and will continue to significantly reduce the amount of pesticides that are disposed of as hazardous waste.

“This legislation represents yet another common sense approach to public policy,” Senator Grisanti said. “Prior to this law’s enactment,retail establishments had to not only throw out these lightly damaged containers, but they had to do so as if it were hazardous waste.  With passage of this legislation, common sense again returns by allowing these retailers to repair these containers according to EPA guidelines and offer them to sale to the public, rather than having them disposed as hazardous waste.”

S.6401A will be sent to Governor Andrew Cuomo for consideration.