Bill > S01126

This bill directs the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to conduct a comprehensive ecological restoration study of Jamaica Bay, focusing on the bay's borrow pits. The study must include detailed mapping of the bay's bathymetry (underwater topography), an analysis of ecological service quality across different seasons and depths, examination of fish populations, assessment of geotechnical conditions of pit bottoms, and investigation of the pits' heat absorption characteristics during summer months. The DEC is required to submit a report of its findings to the governor, senate president, and assembly speaker by March 30, 2030, and publish the report on its website. Additionally, the bill imposes a five-year moratorium on placing any sediment or fill into the borrow pits in Jamaica Bay, beginning on the act's effective date or until the study is completed and published, whichever occurs later. This legislation aims to better understand and potentially improve the ecological health of Jamaica Bay, a significant coastal ecosystem in New York.

Agriculture and Natural Resources, Budget and Finance

https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2025/S1126