Falmouth convened a community workshop on Oct. 30 to discuss the latest draft of a proposed fertilizer and pesticide ordinance, which aims to more strictly regulate those substances. Eloise Goldsmith / The Forecaster

The town of Falmouth has unveiled a new draft of its proposed pesticide and fertilizer ordinance, which aims to more strictly regulate those substances and incorporates feedback the town has heard regarding nitrogen-containing fertilizer and grub control.

The town recently hosted a community forum on Oct. 30 to allow the public a chance to critique the latest draft. Attendees offered a wide range of feedback, though a number said they were concerned about the fact that golf courses are exempt from the rules outlined in the draft proposal.

The current restrictions on pesticides and fertilizers were adopted in March 2020 and only require licensed commercial pesticide and fertilizers applicators annually register with the town, and require they provide summary reports of applications made in Falmouth during the prior year. It also prohibits the application of fertilizer between Dec. 1 and March 31.

According to the town, Falmouth’s work to update the ordinance began back in 2022, when the Conservation Commission proposed amending the ordinance to further regulate pesticides and fertilizers, according to the town. A number of Maine municipalities have moved to ban or restrict the use of pesticides and fertilizers.

Earlier this year, the Town Council unveiled a proposed update for the ordinance that would prohibit the outdoor application of neonicotinoid pesticides, the outdoor application of sludge and biosolids, and prohibited synthetic fertilizer containing phosphorus on lawns and natural turf – but did not address nitrogen-containing fertilizer. In practice, this draft made it so that the town was prohibiting the use and sale of common non-organic weed, grub, and crabgrass control products.

The town put out a survey that drew nearly 600 responses and revealed that 57.5% of residents were opposed to the draft ordinance. Partly in response to the survey results, the Town Council chose to put off working on the draft ordinance until it had the chance to do more public education.

Since then, the town has hosted an expert panel where it invited speakers with knowledge of pesticides and fertilizers to share insights.

In the latest version of the proposal, workshopped by the Ordinance Committee and Conservation Commission over the past few months, fertilizer containing nitrogen would be allowed on lawns, but would be limited to 2 pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet with a maximum of two applications per year. It also would allow the application of phosphorus-containing fertilizer, with a limit of 1 pound of phosphorus per 1,000 square feet with a max application of twice a year.

Nitrogen and phosphorus are useful because they help plants grow, but they can pollute waterways and also cause eutrophication –  the phenomenon where there’s increased availability of a limiting growth factor needed for photosynthesis in a body of water. Eutrophication can cause excessive and even toxic algae blooms.

Phosphorus is the “limiting nutrient” in freshwater, meaning excess phosphorus can cause algae blooms, and nitrogen is the “limiting nutrient” in saltwater.

During the expert panel, Heather Kenyon – the science and advocacy associate with Friends of Casco Bay, a group that advocates for the environmental protection of Casco Bay – brought up these harms and recommended adding a nitrogen fertilizer restriction because much of Falmouth’s runoff drains to Casco Bay, which is salt water.

When it comes to limiting and prohibiting the use of pesticides, the town’s new draft continues to use the “National List” – a U.S. Department of Agriculture list that identifies substances that may and may not be used in organic crop and livestock production – as a reference point.

“Any non-synthetic substance that is specifically listed as ‘prohibited’ on the (National List) is prohibited from use in Falmouth. Synthetic substances are prohibited from use in Falmouth unless specifically listed as ‘allowed’ on the National List,” states the draft policy.

Amanda Methot-Vigue, Falmouth’s policy analyst, said that using the National List was among the issues raised by the public, but at the recent community forum she justified its continued inclusion like this: “The National List is the most robust list, and it has become a standard for ordinances like this across the country as well as (around) the state. It is one of the few lists that is required by federal law to be reviewed on a schedule and updated, where others are just not updated as regularly. So that is why the National List is in there.”

When it comes to grubs, the new draft includes a carve out. Preventative application for grubs would be an exempt activity, but the pesticide must be applied by a professional applicator. In survey responses, some members of the public registered concern that the earlier draft of the ordinance went too far in restricting grub control.

Additionally, the new draft states that there must be a buffer of 20 feet from storm drains for the application of pesticides and removes the prohibition of neonicotinoid pesticides, sludge and biosolids because these are already barred by the state.

Carried over from the older draft is the provision that professional fertilizer applicators must follow best practices for their industries. A long list of exemptions for pesticide and fertilizer use and sale have also been retained from the earlier draft. For example, application at town and school athletic fields, application on golf course playing surfaces and when handling invasive species would all still be exempt. There is also still a ban on fertilizer application between Dec. 1 and March 31.

At the community workshop, roughly 20 Falmouth residents, some town staff and Town Council members, and some of the experts from the recent panel participated in a feedback session on this latest draft of the pesticide and fertilizer ordinance.

Attendees discussed the new proposal in small groups, and then a representative reported out to the larger group at the end of the session.

Points that came up included having an exemption for crabgrass management, making the provision about the National List more “user friendly” and understandable, and making the storm drain buffer distance further than 20 feet.

Another common refrain was that it seemed unfair that golf courses were exempted from the ordinance, given that they are large tracts of land and a nontrivial amount of water moves through them.

The Ordinance Committee and Conservation Commission will take this feedback into account when they meet in mid-November to discuss the draft.