Authorizes residents of the counties of St. Lawrence, Jefferson and Oswego to collect downed lumber from state owned forest lands outside the forest preserve.

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S7381-2011 Actions

• Jun 21, 2012: COMMITTED TO RULES
• May 21, 2012: ADVANCED TO THIRD READING
• May 16, 2012: 2ND REPORT CAL.
• May 15, 2012: 1ST REPORT CAL.763
• May 2, 2012: REFERRED TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION

S7381-2011 Meetings

Environmental Conservation: May 15, 2012

S7381-2011 Calendars

Floor Calendar: May 16, 2012 , Floor Calendar: May 21, 2012 , Floor Calendar: May 22, 2012 , Floor Calendar: May 23, 2012 , Floor Calendar: May 30, 2012 , Floor Calendar: May 31, 2012 , Floor Calendar: Jun 4, 2012 , Floor Calendar: Jun 5, 2012 , Floor Calendar: Jun 6, 2012 , Floor Calendar: Jun 11, 2012 , Floor Calendar: Jun 12, 2012 , Floor Calendar: Jun 13, 2012 , Floor Calendar: Jun 14, 2012 , Floor Calendar: Jun 18, 2012 , Floor Calendar: Jun 19, 2012 , Floor Calendar: Jun 20, 2012 , Floor Calendar: Jun 21, 2012

S7381-2011 Votes

S7381-2011 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S7381

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to authorizing
residents of the counties of St. Lawrence, Jefferson and Oswego to
collect downed lumber from state owned forest lands outside the forest
preserve; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon the
expiration thereof

PURPOSE:
To empower the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental
Conservation to set forth rules and regulations that allow the
residents of St. Lawrence, Jefferson and Oswego counties to collect
downed lumber from state owned forest land outside of the forest
preserve for a period of three years.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends section 3-0301 of the environmental conservation law
to empower the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental
Conservation to set forth rules and regulations that allow the
residents of St. Lawrence, Jefferson and Oswego counties to collect
downed lumber from state owned forest land outside of the forest
preserve for a period of three years.

Section 2 provides the enacting clause.

JUSTIFICATION:
New York had approximately 16,000 acres of forest which were eligible
in 2011 to be logged under the Department of Environmental
Conservation's (DEC) sustainable harvest plan in the 2011 New York
State Best Management Practices guide. However, in 2011 New York
harvested less than 7,000 acres.

The result of neglecting forests ready for harvest is some of our most
precious resources are left to decompose.

The loss of valuable commodities is compounded by big storms like
Hurricane Irene. Because of the age of much of the forest land, north
country forests were especially susceptible to damage, resulting in
abundant deadfall. Brush and deadfall also make those forests more
vulnerable to fire.

Neighboring states, like Massachusetts, have planned to lift lumbering
moratoriums on hundreds of thousands of acres of forest lands after
large storms.

Especially for residents of regions of the state where winters are
especially cold, the rising cost of fuel has left rural communities
scrambling to find alternate sources of heat. They're increasingly
turning to wood, which has become the fastest growing source of home
heating fuel across the US. Since 2000, according to the US Census,
the number of households in New York that use wood as their primary
fuel source has increased by more than 65 percent, and the percentage
of wood-heated homes exceeds the US average in 40 of our 62 counties,
including some with high rates of poverty and unemployment.


This bill will empower the Commissioner of the DEC to set forth rules
and regulations that allow the residents of St. Lawrence, Jefferson
and Oswego counties to collect downed lumber from state owned forest
land outside of the forest preserve for a period of three years.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
None. This is a new bill.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.

LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
December 31, 2012, and shall expire three years after such effective
date when upon such date the provisions of this act shall be deemed
repealed. And immediately for the amendment and/or repeal of any
rules or regulations necessary for the implementation of this act on
its effective date which are authorized to be made on or before such
date.

S7381-2011 Text

                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

                                    7381

                              I N  SENATE

                                 May 2, 2012
                                 ___________

  Introduced  by  Sen. RITCHIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
    printed to be committed to the Committee on Environmental Conservation

  AN ACT to amend the  environmental  conservation  law,  in  relation  to
    authorizing  residents  of the counties of St. Lawrence, Jefferson and
    Oswego to collect downed lumber from state owned forest lands  outside
    the  forest  preserve; and providing for the repeal of such provisions
    upon the expiration thereof

    THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section  1.  Subdivision  2  of  section  3-0301  of the environmental
  conservation law is amended by adding a new  paragraph  dd  to  read  as
  follows:

    DD.  NOTWITHSTANDING  SECTION 9-0505 OF THIS CHAPTER, THE COMMISSIONER
  SHALL, BY REGULATION, CREATE AND IMPLEMENT A  PROGRAM  THAT  WILL  ALLOW
  RESIDENTS  OF  THE  COUNTIES  OF  ST. LAWRENCE, JEFFERSON, AND OSWEGO TO
  COLLECT DOWNED LUMBER FROM STATE OWNED FOREST LANDS OUTSIDE  THE  FOREST
  PRESERVE.
    S  2.  This act shall take effect December 31, 2012 and shall expire 3
  years after such effective date when upon such date  the  provisions  of
  this  act shall be deemed repealed. Effective immediately, the addition,
  amendment and/or repeal of any rules or regulations  necessary  for  the
  implementation  of  this  act on its effective date are authorized to be
  made on or before such date.




   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD15705-01-2