2023 New York Laws › ENV - Environmental Conservation › Article 15 - Water Resources › Title 15 - Water Supply › 15-1504 - Water Withdrawals for Agricultural Purposes.

§ 15-1504. Water withdrawals for agricultural purposes.
1. Applicability.
a.  This  section  applies  to  withdrawals  of water for agricultural
purposes that have been registered with the department pursuant  to  the
requirements  of  title  sixteen  of  this  article  or  reported to the
department pursuant to the requirements of title  thirty-three  of  this
article on or before February fifteenth, two thousand twelve.
b.  All persons making a withdrawal of water for agricultural purposes
shall annually register or report the withdrawal to the department under
the provisions of this section by March thirty-first of each year.
2. When used in this section:
a. "Great Lakes basin" shall mean the watershed of the Great Lakes and
the St. Lawrence River, upstream from Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, consisting
in New York state of the Lake Erie-Niagara  River,  Lake  Ontario  minor
tributaries, Genesee River, Seneca-Oneida-Oswego River, Black River, St.
Lawrence River and Lake Champlain drainage basins.
b.  "Great  Lakes  water"  shall  mean  the  water  contained  in  the
watershed, including the lakes and rivers, of the Great Lakes basin.
3. Registration of water withdrawals in the Great Lakes basin.
a. All persons withdrawing Great Lakes water for agricultural purposes
in excess of an average of one hundred thousand gallons per day  in  any
consecutive  thirty-day  period  shall annually register such withdrawal
with the department.
b. Each registration shall be on a form and contain  such  information
as may be prescribed by the department and consist of a statement of and
supporting  documentation  which shall include but not be limited to the
following:
(1) The place and source of the proposed or existing withdrawal;
(2) The location of any discharge or return flow;
(3) The location and nature of the proposed or existing water use;
(4) The actual or estimated average annual  and  monthly  volumes  and
rates of withdrawal; and
(5)  The  actual  or  estimated average annual and monthly volumes and
rates of water loss from the withdrawal.
c. In  calculating  the  total  amount  of  an  existing  or  proposed
withdrawal  for  the  purpose  of  determining the applicability of this
subdivision, a person shall combine all separate withdrawals  which  the
person  makes  or  proposes to make, whether or not such withdrawals are
for a single agricultural  purpose  or  are  for  related  but  separate
agricultural purposes.
d. Registrations shall be valid for a period of one year.
e.  A  registration  may  be  transferred  by  submitting  a notice of
transfer to the department prior to the date of a transfer or change  of
ownership  of  a  water  withdrawal  system associated with a registered
withdrawal.
f. The department may cooperate with state soil and water conservation
districts  for  the  preparation  and  distribution   of   informational
materials  to  persons  who  withdraw  water  for agricultural purposes,
regarding the purposes, benefits and requirements of this  section,  and
which  may  also  provide information on complying with the registration
program and on any general or  applicable  methods  for  calculating  or
estimating water withdrawals or water loss.
4. Water withdrawal reporting.
a.  Any person who withdraws water for agricultural purposes in excess
of an average of one hundred thousand gallons per day in any consecutive
thirty-day period shall annually report to the  department.  The  report
shall  be  made  on  a  form  and  contain  such  information  as may be

prescribed by the department and shall be based on the water withdrawals
for the previous calendar year, and shall include but not be limited to:
(1)  the water source, the location of the water source and the source
capacity if known;
(2) the amount of water withdrawn for the reporting period,  including
the   average  or  peak  withdrawals  for  intervals  specified  by  the
department;
(3) a description of the use of the water withdrawn; and
(4) estimated amounts of water to be returned, if any,  the  locations
of such returns and the method of such returns.
b.  The  following  water  withdrawals  are  exempt from the reporting
requirements of this subdivision:
(1) a withdrawal registered  with  the  department  under  subdivision
three of this section;
(2) a withdrawal permitted pursuant to section 15-1501 of this title;
(3)  a  withdrawal  reported  to the department under any program that
requires  the  reporting  of  substantially  similar   data,   including
withdrawals  regulated by the Susquehanna River Basin Commission and the
Delaware River Basin Commission;
(4) a withdrawal permitted under section 15-1527 of this title;
(5) closed loop, standing column, or similar non-extractive geothermal
heat pumps; and
(6) reclaimed wastewater withdrawn for reuse.
5. Withdrawals  of  water  for  agricultural  purposes  registered  or
reported  to the department under the requirements of this section shall
be deemed to be in compliance with the requirements of title sixteen and
title thirty-three of this article, as applicable.