Southold Town officials are finalizing the language of a proposed ordinance that would require new automatic irrigation systems to be equipped with weather-based smart controllers and mandate that older systems be fitted with rain or soil moisture sensors within three years.
The initiative is part of a broader effort to curb overuse of Long Island’s finite water supply. A public hearing on the draft legislation is expected to be scheduled soon.
Nearly three-quarters of the 70 billion gallons of drinking water pumped annually from Long Island’s aquifer by the Suffolk County Water Authority (SCWA) is used for lawn irrigation, and about half of that is wasted due to overwatering, according to town and county officials.
While some of that usage stems from recreational activities like filling pools or washing cars, SCWA CEO Jeff Szabo said this week that “an overwhelming majority of our use comes from irrigation systems.”
It took the North Fork Sun just a few minutes of driving in a heavy rain during Thursday morning’s Nor’easter to find an automatic irrigation system running a sprinkler system.
The proposed town law is designed to prevent irrigation systems — whether connected to public water or private wells — from running during rainstorms or when soil is already saturated.
Instead of requiring irrigation installers to obtain a permit, the legislation would require that installers submit an affidavit of compliance, which Assistant Town Attorney Ben Johnson said would “essentially work as a permit.”
Violations could result in fines ranging from warnings to penalties between $1,000 and $2,500.
Golf courses, agricultural production and operations and nurseries and garden centers would be exempt from the proposed regulation.
Since 2023, SCWA has implemented an odd-even watering schedule to reduce peak water demand during summer months. While the policy — which alternates watering days based on street address — does help conserve water, experts said that’s it is difficult to enforce.
To bolster conservation, SCWA has also expanded public education efforts and a rebate program that began in 2016. The program was significantly enhanced in 2023, increasing rebates for smart controllers and broadening eligibility to include devices like rain barrels, pressure regulators, and solar pool covers.
“The rebates have been a tremendous success,” Szabo said.
At Southold Town code committee meeting on Tuesday, officials met with industry experts including Mike Dwyer of the Irrigation Association of New York, Tom Shearin of S&L Irrigation, and Tom Stevenson of Oysterponds Farm, a member of the town’s agricultural advisory committee.
Shearin said compliance with simpler technologies, like rain sensors, would likely face less public resistance and are effective. “The easiest thing is going to be the rain sensor itself,” he said. “The more complicated, more expensive you make it, the more pushback you’re going to get.”
Dwyer noted that many North Fork homeowners aren’t using any technology to water their lawns, and suggested two options that don’t require the internet or a smartphone: the Hunter Solar Sync Sensor and the Toro Climate Logic series.
Costs of the new devices range from $100 for a rain sensor to several hundred for the more advanced systems.
Dwyer noted that Long Island irrigation professionals are less enthusiastic about soil moisture sensors than those in other parts of the country, given Long Island’s varied terrain.
“We have areas where we have clay-based soil, and then areas that are completely sand,” said Town Board member Jill Doherty. “And then you have areas that are mixed.”
“That’s exactly my fear,” Dwyer replied. “Some areas don’t drain at all, and in others the water just runs through.”
Doherty also questioned enforcement feasibility: “If we make up code with all good intentions, you have to really be able to make it workable.”
She floated the idea of securing grant funding to purchase and distribute smart irrigation sensors. “Have partners, have a really robust marketing campaign, get some grants and give them away. People could do the right thing.”
Still, she called the draft proposal “wishy-washy,” saying, “It’s really just guidance. It’s not really code.”
Town Supervisor Al Krupski, who introduced similar legislation as a county legislator in 2023, recommended requiring all new systems to include both smart controllers and rain sensors, with a three-year window for older systems to install at least a rain sensor.
Board member Greg Doroski supported the dual-track approach. “The overall goal is to save water,” he said. “We do not need 100% compliance to start saving water. We can make incremental steps here.”
The town’s code committee has been working on the proposed legislation since 2024. Once the final details are hammered out, a public hearing can be scheduled.
Similar measures are already on the books in Nassau County. The Port Washington and Roslyn Water Districts require smart controllers on all new irrigation systems starting in 2025, while Plainview mandates rain sensors on all systems.
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