Hillsborough County to crack down on use of harmful fertilizers during rainy season

TAMPA, Fla. - Hillsborough County leaders are cracking down on nutrient pollution leaking into Tampa Bay. Next year, fertilizer use will be regulated in the county during the rainy season.

Hillsborough County Commissioners unanimously approved the ordinance Wednesday. It bans the use of landscape fertilizers containing nitrogen or phosphorus from June 1 through September 30 each year.

"It is much cheaper, easier, and more effective to prevent pollution from entering the bay than it is to clean up the bay after the damage has been done," said Commissioner Mariella Smith during Wednesday’s public hearing.

County leaders have been working on the new rules since August, in reaction to the massive amounts of dead fish washing onshore from red tide in July. High concentrations of the same microorganism also playing a role in a record number of manatees dying here in the sunshine state this year.

"The same thing that can fuel the growth of your yard, can also fuel the growth of algae in the water," explained Maya Burke, Tampa Bay Estuary Program assistant director.

She says nitrogen is the number one pollutant to Tampa Bay, and it is seeping into the waterways from fertilizers being used on people’s lawns.

The rules are strong. Fertilizers can no longer be applied during the summer, and we are told violators will face penalties.

"This ought to provide a benefit to the places that we love to fish and play, as well as provide some much needed clarity and guidance to local residents who, before, might not have been sure if it was appropriate to apply a fertilizer during that rainy period or not," Burke said.

Hillsborough’s ordinance mirrors those in Tampa and Pinellas County. Both localities passing rules more than a decade ago, giving leaders time to see the benefits to the bay. 

"We can see some of the fears that were brought forward before have no come to pass, nobody’s lawn is going brown," said Smith.

Hillsborough is now the 16th County in the state with a fertilizer ban in place.