Title NAV, Navigation

§ 173. Discharge of petroleum; prohibition. 1. The discharge of petroleum is prohibited. 2. On or after January first, nineteen hundred ninety-four, all new vessels sold in New York that are equipped with fuel tank air vents shall have such fuel tank air vents designed to preven…

§ 174. Licenses. 1. No person shall operate or cause to be operated a major facility as defined in this article without (a) a license issued by the commissioner, (b) without paying a license fee if such fee is required by the administrator, pursuant to the provisions of paragrap…

§ 174-a. Use of containment booms. 1. The commissioner, after consultation with appropriate federal, state and local governments and agencies, may promulgate regulations requiring the use of containment booms or prestaging of response equipment around or at major facilities and …

§ 174-b. Use of agents. 1. The commissioner may promulgate regulations governing the use of dispersants, burning agents, biological additives, surface collecting agents or other chemical additives in the cleanup and removal of a petroleum discharge. 2. The commissioner shall pur…

§ 175. Notification by persons responsible for discharge. Any person responsible for causing a discharge shall immediately notify the department pursuant to rules and regulations established by the department, but in no case later than two hours after the discharge. Failure to s…

§ 176. Removal of prohibited discharges. 1. Any person discharging petroleum in the manner prohibited by section one hundred seventy-three of this article shall immediately undertake to contain such discharge. Notwithstanding the above requirement, the department may undertake t…

§ 177. Emergency oil spill control network. 1. The commissioner shall establish an emergency oil spill control network which shall be comprised of available equipment from appropriate town, county and state highway departments. Such network shall be employed to provide an immedi…

§ 177-a. Emergency oil spill relocation network. 1. The commissioner shall establish an emergency oil spill relocation network which shall be headed by the commissioner of health and comprised of the appropriate services from county and state health departments. 2. Such network …

§ 177-b. Habitat protection plan. The commissioner may require every major facility which engages in the transfer of petroleum to file with the department a habitat protection plan as a condition of issuance of a license pursuant to section one hundred seventy-four of this artic…

§ 178. Right to enter and inspect. The department is hereby authorized to enter and inspect any property or premises for the purpose of inspecting facilities and investigating either actual or suspected sources of discharges or violation of this article or any rule or regulation…

§ 178-a. Responder immunity. 1. Definitions. For the purposes of this section only, the following terms shall have the following meanings: (a) "response efforts" means rendering care, assistance, or advice in accordance with the national contingency plan, the state oil spill con…

§ 179. New York environmental protection and spill compensation fund. 1. The New York environmental protection and spill compensation fund is hereby established as a nonlapsing, revolving fund in the department of audit and control to carry out the purposes of this article. 2. T…

§ 179-a. New York environmental protection and spill remediation account. 1. There is hereby created an account within the miscellaneous capital projects fund, the New York environmental protection and spill remediation account. The New York environmental protection and spill re…

§ 18. Special navigation inspectors. The commissioner may, if in his judgment conditions so require, appoint members of local boat clubs, or other persons found competent, to act as special navigation inspectors during regattas authorized by him. The power and authority in such …

§ 180. Administrator of the fund. The state comptroller shall appoint and supervise an administrator of the fund. The administrator shall be the chief executive of the fund and shall have the following powers and duties: 1. To represent the state in meetings with the alleged dis…

§ 181. Liability. 1. Any person who has discharged petroleum shall be strictly liable, without regard to fault, for all cleanup and removal costs and all direct and indirect damages, no matter by whom sustained, as defined in this section. In addition to cleanup and removal cost…

§ 181-a. Environmental lien. 1. The fund shall have a lien for the costs incurred by the fund for the cleanup and removal of a discharge and for the payment of claims for direct and indirect damages as a result of a discharge upon such real property located within the state: (a)…

§ 181-b. Environmental lien notice; contents. A notice of environmental lien must state: 1. That the lienor is the New York environmental protection and spill compensation fund; 2. The name of the record owner of the real property on which the environmental lien has attached; 3.…

§ 181-c. Filing of notice of environmental lien; filing of release. 1. A notice of environmental lien shall be filed within six years from the time a disbursement is made by the fund for cleanup and removal costs and damage costs incurred by the fund in the clerk's office of the…

§ 181-d. Enforcement of environmental lien. An environmental lien may be enforced against the property specified in the notice of environmental lien, and an environmental lien may be vacated or discharged, as prescribed in article three of the lien law; provided, however, that n…

§ 181-e. Amounts received to satisfy lien. Amounts received by the administrator to satisfy all or part of an environmental lien shall be deposited in the state treasury and credited to the environmental protection and spill compensation fund.

§ 182. Claims against the fund. Claims shall be filed with the administrator not later than three years after the date of discovery of damage nor later than ten years after the date of the incident which caused the damage. The administrator shall prescribe appropriate forms and …

§ 183. Settlements. The administrator shall attempt to promote and arrange a settlement between the claimant and the person responsible for the discharge. If the source of the discharge can be determined and liability is conceded, the claimant and the alleged discharger may agre…

§ 184. Settlements when source of discharge is unknown. If the source of the discharge is unknown or cannot be determined, the claimant and the administrator shall attempt to arrange a settlement of any claim against the fund. The administrator is authorized to enter and certify…

§ 185. Hearings for persons on claims filed with the administrator. 1. The administrator shall grant a hearing when persons alleged to be responsible for the discharge contest the validity or amount of damage claims or claims for cleanup and removal costs presented by injured pe…

§ 186. Disbursement of moneys from the fund. 1. (a) Moneys in the account established by paragraph (a) of subdivision two of section one hundred seventy-nine of this part shall be disbursed by the administrator, upon certification by the commissioner, for the purpose of costs in…

§ 187. Reimbursements of moneys to fund. The administrator shall recover to the fund moneys disbursed for the following purposes: 1. Costs incurred by the fund in the cleanup and removal of a discharge when the person responsible for causing a discharge has failed to promptly cl…

§ 188. Subrogation of rights. Payment of any cleanup costs or damages by the fund arising from a single incident shall be conditioned upon the administrator acquiring by subrogation all rights of the claimant to recovery of such costs or damages from the discharger or other resp…

§ 189. Awards exceeding current balance. In the event that the total awards for a specific occurrence exceed the current balance of the fund, the immediate award shall be paid on a prorated basis, and all claimants paid on a prorated basis shall be paid as determined by the admi…

§ 19. Uniform navigation summons and complaint. 1. The commissioner shall be authorized to prescribe the form of summons and/or complaint in all cases involving a violation of any provision of this chapter or of any ordinance, rule or regulation relating to navigation, or of any…

§ 190. Claims against insurers. Any claims for costs of cleanup and removal, civil penalties or damages by the state and any claim for damages by any injured person, may be brought directly against the bond, the insurer, or any other person providing evidence of financial respon…

§ 190-a. Application of article. For purposes of cleanup and removal of any public or private ground water supply system contaminated by a discharge occurring either before or after the effective date of article twelve of this chapter, all relevant provisions of article twelve o…

§ 191. Joint rules and regulations. The commissioner and the state comptroller are authorized to adopt, amend, repeal, and enforce such rules and regulations pursuant to the state administrative procedure act, as they may deem necessary to accomplish the purposes of this article…

§ 192. Enforcement of article; penalties. Any person who knowingly gives or causes to be given any false information as a part of, or in response to, any claim made pursuant to this article for cleanup and removal costs, direct or indirect damages resulting from a discharge, or …

§ 193. Availability of additional remedies. Nothing in this article shall be deemed to preclude the pursuit of any other civil or injunctive remedy by any person. The remedies provided in this article are in addition to those provided by existing statutory or common law, but no …

§ 194. Severability. If any section, subdivision, provision, clause or portion of this article is adjudged unconstitutional or invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remainder of this article shall not be affected thereby.

§ 195. Construction. This article, being necessary for the general health, safety, and welfare of the people of this state, shall be liberally construed to effect its purposes.

§ 196. Reports. The commissioner and the administrator shall make an annual report to the legislature and the governor which shall describe the quality and quantity of spills of petroleum, the costs and damages paid by and recovered for the fund, and moneys spent pursuant to sub…

§ 197. Effect of federal legislation. If the United States congress enacts legislation providing compensation in the event of a discharge of petroleum, the commissioner shall determine to what degree that legislation provides the needed protection for our citizens, businesses an…

§ 2. Definitions. The following terms when used in this chapter unless\notherwise expressly stated, or unless the context of the language or\nsubject matter indicates a different meaning or application was\nintended, shall be deemed to mean and include: 1. "Office" shall mean\nt…

§ 20. Verification of complaints. Where a navigation summons has been served by a peace officer, acting pursuant to his special duties, police officer, or traveling navigation inspector, in cases of violations of any provision of this chapter or of any ordinance, rule or regulat…

§ 200. Collection of penalties. 1. An action to recover any penalty imposed under the provisions of this chapter, except penalties imposed under article six, may be brought in any court of competent jurisdiction in this state on order of the commissioner and in the name of the p…

§ 201. Disposition of fees and penalties. 1. On the first day of each month or within ten days thereafter, all fines and penalties collected for violations of this chapter, except for violations of article six, under judgment of any town or village court or justice or pursuant t…

§ 202. Application and saving clause. Any work or proceeding initiated under any existing law which is repealed through the enactment of this chapter shall be continued legally to its termination and conclusion subject to the provisions of and in accordance with the procedure pr…

§ 203. Laws repealed. Chapter forty-two of the laws of nineteen hundred nine, entitled "An act relating to navigation, constituting chapter thirty-seven of the consolidated laws," and chapter two hundred and ninety-two of the laws of nineteen hundred forty, entitled "An act rela…

§ 204. When to take effect. This act shall take effect July first, nineteen hundred forty-one, except section seventy-one thereof, which section shall take effect January first, nineteen hundred forty-two.

§ 30. Navigation, jurisdiction over. The commissioner shall have jurisdiction over navigation on the navigable waters of the state and, except as otherwise provided, shall enforce the provisions of this chapter and the regulations established thereunder. As a guide to the interp…

§ 31. Excavation, fill or other modification of water course. No person or local public corporation shall excavate or place fill in the navigable waters of the state without first obtaining a permit therefor in conformity with the provisions of section 15-0505 of the environment…

§ 32. Location of structures in or on navigable waters. 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision two of section forty-six-a of this chapter, no wharf, dock, pier, jetty, platform or other structure built on floats, columns, open timber, piles or similar open-work support…

§ 32-a. Using net or weir unlawfully in Hudson river. A person, who uses any net or weir for setting or attaching nets, or a pole or other fixture in any part of the Hudson river, except as permitted by statute, is guilty of a misdemeanor.