[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Woodstock as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 4-30-1991 by L.L. No. 2-1991]
It is the intention of the Town Board to recognize the private property rights of residents of the Town and the special interests and rights of those at risk by virtue of pesticide spraying activities. The Town Board finds it essential to protect residents from the potential ill effects and problems associated with aerial pesticide spraying activities while recognizing the private property rights of individuals choosing to address problems associated with insect infestation.
This article is adopted pursuant to the Town's municipal home rule authority pursuant to Municipal Home Rule Law §§ 10, 11 and 20 and the general municipal powers of the Town pursuant to Town Law.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ACTIVE INGREDIENT
In the case of a pesticide, an ingredient which will prevent, destroy, repel, or mitigate pests.
AERIAL SPRAYING
The application or applications of pesticides from an aircraft.
AIRCRAFT
Any contrivance now known or hereafter invented, used or designed for navigation of, or flight in, the air.
APPLICATION OF PESTICIDE
Any application of pesticides by aircraft.
CERTIFIED APPLICATOR
Any individual who is certified to use or supervise the use of any pesticide in any category of use covered by his certification from the Department of Environmental Conservation.
INSECT
Any of the numerous small invertebrate animals generally having the body more or less obviously segmented, for the most part belonging to the class Insecta, comprising six-legged, usually winged forms, as, for example, beetles, bugs, bees, flies, and moths, and to other allied classes of arthropods whose members are wingless and usually have more than six legs, as, for example, spiders, mites, ticks, centipedes, and wood lice, except those on or in living man.
PESTICIDE
A. 
Any substance or mixture of substances intended to prevent, destroy, repel or mitigate any insect, rodent, fungus, weed or any other form of terrestrial or aquatic plant or animal life or virus, bacteria or other microorganism intended to be prevented, destroyed, repelled or mitigated (except viruses, bacteria or other microorganisms on or in living man or other living animals).
B. 
Any substance or mixture of substances intended for use as a plant regulator, defoliant or desiccant.
A. 
Any individual, company or corporation engaged in or sponsoring aerial pesticide spraying within the Town of Woodstock shall submit a filing with the Town Clerk's office a minimum of 15 days prior to commencement of aerial spraying activities. It shall be the responsibility of the sponsors who have contracted for aerial spraying to inform their contractor of the filing requirements in the Town of Woodstock.
B. 
The filing shall include:
(1) 
A list, by name and address, of all properties in the Town that will be subject to aerial pesticide spraying;
(2) 
A consent form signed by each participating property owner consenting to the spraying;
(3) 
The dates and times of the proposed aerial spraying;
(4) 
The name or names of all active ingredients plus all other ingredients required to be disclosed by state and federal regulations which are to be utilized in the aerial spraying activity;
(5) 
The names and addresses of the sponsor of the spraying;
(6) 
The name and address of the certified applicator of the pesticide;
(7) 
The names and addresses of the owners of the aircraft being utilized for the spraying;
(8) 
An affidavit listing the names and addresses and a map of all property owners within 500 feet of the properties to be sprayed, which affidavit shall affirm that all property owners on the list have been notified of the dates and times of the proposed spraying in person or, as an alternative, provide with the filing the postmaster's green card indicating said individuals have received written notification of the proposed spraying; and
(9) 
The labels and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) facts sheets relating to the ingredients being utilized in the spraying activities.
C. 
Within 15 days of the submission of the completed spraying filing, the Town Clerk shall issue an acknowledgement of the filing. The acknowledgement shall include the following language: "The sponsor assumes responsibility in connection with spraying activity and has received a copy of Local Law No. 2-1991, titled 'Town of Woodstock Aerial Spraying Law.'"
D. 
Upon issuance of the acknowledgement, the Town Clerk shall cause a notice of the dates and times of the aerial spraying to be posted and published in the Town's official newspaper(s) and shall issue a press release of the dates, times and location of the aerial spraying.
E. 
For the purposes of this article, an application shall mean a single application of pesticide or pesticides on a property or contiguous set of properties. Any subsequent application or application to noncontiguous properties shall require a separate filing and filing fee.
The sponsor of the aerial spraying shall cause the affected property to be posted at least 24 hours before aerial spraying occurs. Such posting shall consist of signs placed around the property boundaries of sufficient number and of sufficient legibility so as to be read from contiguous properties. The signs shall provide information as to the date of the spraying, the materials to be sprayed and the name and address of the applicator.
There shall be a filing fee as provided by the fee schedule established and annually reviewed by the Town Board for each act of aerial spraying proposed under the provisions of this article.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
A. 
No aerial pesticide spraying is permitted of properties located within the Town of Woodstock without the filing by the sponsor pursuant to the regulations of this article.
B. 
No aerial pesticide spraying is permitted of the property of any property owner who has not consented to the aerial spraying of his or her property.
A. 
It shall be a violation of this article to engage in any activities prohibited by § 156-7 hereof. Each separate property affected by a violation of this article shall be considered a separate violation.
B. 
It shall be a violation of this article to do any spraying that is not in accordance with the applicable state and federal requirements.
C. 
For the purposes of this article, violators shall include the owner, the sponsor who contracted for the spraying, the certified applicator of the pesticide and the owner(s) of the aircraft used in the application of the pesticide.
A. 
Private action. Any person injured or damaged, or who may be injured or damaged, by any violation of this article may enforce the rights created herein through an action in New York State Supreme Court or any other court of competent jurisdiction against the sponsor, applicator and/or aircraft owner. These rights shall extend to the Town of Woodstock or its designated representative.
B. 
Government enforcement. A violation of the provisions of this article or any provision thereof shall be deemed an offense against such article and for the purposes of conferring jurisdiction upon the courts and judicial officers such violation shall be deemed a misdemeanor and for such purposes only all provisions of law relating to misdemeanors shall apply to violations of this article. Upon conviction, a violation of any of the provisions of this article shall be punishable by fine of up to $5,000, payable to the Town of Woodstock. The Woodstock police force shall be the agent of the Town authorized to enforce this article.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
C. 
Independent action. A prosecution of any violator of this article under the provisions of Subsection B of this section shall not preclude or be deemed to be inconsistent with any civil remedies that may be available to private individuals or the Town of Woodstock.