New York Codes, Rules and Regulations › Title 9 - EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT › Subtitle A - Governor's Office › Chapter I - Executive Orders › Part 7 - Executive Orders (David A. Paterson) › Section 7.18 - Executive order no. 18: restricting the use of bottled water at state facilities and promoting executive agency sustainability

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 28, July 10, 2024
WHEREAS, the State has an obligation to promote sound
					 environmental practices, such as conserving, improving and protecting the
					 State's natural resources, reducing pollution and conserving energy, thereby
					 enhancing the health, safety and welfare of the State's residents; and
WHEREAS, the State has engaged in sustainability
					 initiatives at State facilities to make State agency operations more
					 environmentally responsible; and
WHEREAS, federal, State and local governments invest
					 significant amounts of money to provide safe drinking water supplies to the
					 public; and
WHEREAS, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
					 is providing millions of dollars in funding for improving drinking water
					 infrastructure in the State; and
WHEREAS, New York has high quality public water supplies,
					 and it should be the role of the State to support and encourage the use of such
					 supplies; and
WHEREAS, the State is facing an unprecedented fiscal
					 crisis; and
WHEREAS, bottled water can cost thousands of times more
					 than tap water; and
WHEREAS, billions of single-serve, commercially-bottled
					 plastic water containers are sold in the State each year; and
WHEREAS, some bottled water consists of filtered or
					 processed tap water; and
WHEREAS, the widespread use of bottled water and the
					 improper disposal of used plastic water bottles negatively impact the
					 environment; and
WHEREAS, the production and sale of bottled water requires
					 the expenditure of energy in its manufacture, transport, chilling and storage,
					 which also results in the emission of greenhouse gases; and
WHEREAS, in recognition of these and other concerns, the
					 State recently expanded the New York State Returnable Container Act to include
					 bottled water products; and
WHEREAS, undertaking responsible sustainability measures
					 can conserve both natural resources and fiscal resources;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, David A. Paterson, Governor of the State
					 of New York, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
					 laws of the State of New York, do hereby order as follows:
1. Within 180 days of the issuance of this
				  Order, every executive agency shall develop and begin implementation of a plan
				  to eliminate the expenditure of State funds for the purchase of bottled water
				  for use at executive agency facilities. The goal of the plan shall be to
				  eliminate such expenditure by May 1, 2010. Each agency shall provide a copy of
				  its plan to the Commissioner of General Services ("Commissioner").
2. The plan shall include, but need not be
				  limited to, the following:
(a) a description
				  of the specific projects, programs, actions and policies to be undertaken to
				  achieve compliance with this Order;
(b) a description of any ongoing use of
				  bottled water and the extent to which such use complies with this Order;
(c) an assessment of the capability
				  of existing facilities to provide tap water for consumption, including
				  accessibility of water fountains and tap water dispensers, water quality, and
				  constraints on access to tap water for consumption in place of bottled water;
(d) identification of reasonable
				  improvements that can be made to agency facilities to provide or increase
				  reasonable access to tap water for consumption in place of bottled water; and
(e) a description of steps the
				  agency will take to avoid new contractual commitments to purchase bottled
				  water. Such plan shall not entail the replacement of bottled water with less
				  healthful alternative bottled beverages.