STATEMENT FROM AGRICULTURE SECRETARY BUDDY HANCE ON SIGNING OF FERTILIZER USE ACT OF 2011

ANNAPOLIS, MD (May 19, 2011) – Governor Martin O’Malley today will sign into law SB 487/HB 573, which will improve the management of lawn fertilizer and reduce nutrient loads to the Chesapeake Bay from urban and suburban areas.

“This legislation levels the playing field for nutrient applications. Everyone in the Chesapeake Bay watershed needs to do their part to reduce nutrient loads.  While Maryland farmers have made significant progress in reducing nutrient runoff from agricultural land, nutrient loads from urban and suburban sources continue to increase.

There are approximately 1.1 million acres of turfgrass area maintained and used in Maryland, which is about 18 percent of total land in the State.  The majority of this land, 937,000 acres, was in single family residences.*

The new law aims to change homeowner actions by changing lawn fertilizer contents to eliminate phosphorus and change labeling instructions that will result in a reduced environmental impact. The law requires the Maryland Department of Agriculture to reach out to homeowners with an educational component, which will further extend our ‘Take it From Maryland Farmers: Backyard Actions for a Cleaner Chesapeake Bay’ campaign.

Additionally, the law provides MDA with the authority to establish a certification and training program for professional fertilizer applicators (regardless of volume of business). We appreciate the leadership of the Chesapeake Bay Commission, lawncare and fertilizer companies, and all of the stakeholders that participated in the passage of this monumental legislation.”

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* The Maryland Turfgrass Survey was commissioned by the Maryland Turfgrass Council and the Maryland Turfgrass Association and conducted in 2006 by the Maryland Field Office of U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) with guidance from the Maryland Department of Agriculture. Complete results of the survey are available online at: www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/Maryland/Publications/Miscellaneous/turfgrass2006.pd