[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Shelter
Island 4-17-2009 by L.L. No. 2-2009. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The Town Board of the Town of Shelter Island adopts this chapter
to prohibit the use of geothermal heating and cooling systems in order
to protect the Town's unique and limited freshwater resources.
A.
The Town of Shelter Island has a sole-source aquifer from which to
draw its groundwater, as it is cut off from fresh groundwater inflow
from adjacent areas of the east end of Long Island. Shelter Island
is low in topography, resulting in a shallow water table and a thin
groundwater aquifer.
B.
The Town Board has utilized an engineer, and the many scientific
materials listed in Town files, to develop the knowledge upon which
to base this chapter. These materials indicate that in most areas
of Long Island there are three freshwater aquifers: the Upper Glacial,
the Magothy and the Lloyd Aquifer. Shelter Island is a smaller and
more fragile sub set of the Long Island aquifer system, with access
to only a thin layer of the Upper Glacial aquifer. This means that
the Town has a limited freshwater supply that requires careful stewardship.
C.
The Suffolk County Department of Health Services has prepared a groundwater
model of Shelter Island. Suffolk County reports that the freshwater
lenses on Ram Island, Montclair and West Neck peninsulas are extremely
limited and will be impacted by increased groundwater withdrawals.
Excessive pumping from inland areas can impact outlying areas by inducing
saltwater intrusion or upconing.
D.
The first Comprehensive Plan for Shelter Island, which was adopted
in May 1994, emphasizes the need to protect our groundwater, which
is supplied by a local sole-source aquifer.
E.
Geothermal heat pump technology is a sustainable source of energy
and can be a positive environmental and community benefit. Geothermal
wells have two basic designs: open loop and closed-loop systems.
F.
A consultant-supported Town working group has studied geothermal
open-loop systems and has determined that these systems draw a considerable
amount of water and have the potential to cause localized saltwater
upconing and intrusion and aquifer contamination. The improper use
of this technology in a thin and fragile aquifer system such as Shelter
Island can cause harm to the island's water supply.
G.
A consultant-supported Town working group has studied geothermal
closed-loop systems and has determined that these systems threaten
the aquifer by piercing deep clay units (which help control saltwater
intrusion and the draining of the freshwater aquifer), and have the
potential to leak contaminants into the general freshwater supply.
H.
A review of existing federal, state, county and Town regulations
on geothermal well systems has determined that they provide insufficient
control of such systems in an aquifer as unique as Shelter Island's.
The Town Board has determined that a local law is required to provide
adequate protection.
I.
The Town Board intends to prohibit the use of geothermal systems
because the potential risks of contamination and saltwater intrusion
in the aquifer shared by all inhabitants of the Town far outweigh
the potential environmental benefits of these systems.
This chapter is adopted as a local law pursuant to the authority
of the Municipal Home Rule Law.
As used in this chapter, the following terms, words and phrases
and their derivations shall have the meanings indicated:
A closed-looped system, an opening (either a borehole or
trench) is made in the earth. A series of pipes are installed into
the opening and connected to a heat exchange system in the dwelling.
The pipes form a "closed loop" (hence the name) and are filled with
a heat transfer fluid. The fluid is circulated through the piping
from the opening into the heat exchanger and back. The system functions
in the same manner as the open-looped system, except that there is
no pumping of groundwater.
A geothermal system uses the Earth's thermal properties
in conjunction with electricity to provide greater efficiency in the
heating and cooling of buildings. It shall include both open-loop
geothermal and closed-loop geothermal systems.
In an open-looped system, groundwater is pumped from a water
well into a heat exchanger located in a surface dwelling. The water
drawn from the Earth is then pumped back into the aquifer through
a different well or, in some cases, the same well. Alternatively,
the groundwater could be discharged to a surface water body. In the
heating mode, cooler water is returned to the Earth, while in the
cooling mode, warmer water is returned.
A.
The installation of a geothermal system is prohibited in the Town
of Shelter Island.
A.
Any person, including but not limited to any owner, builder, architect,
tenant, contractor, subcontractor, well driller, construction superintendent
or their agents, who shall violate any of the applicable provisions
of this chapter, or any order, notice, directive, permit or certificate
of the Building Inspector, shall be liable to a fine or penalty of
no less than $500 and no more than $2,000, or 15 days in jail, or
both, for each and every violation.
B.
Any person, including but not limited to any owner, builder, architect,
tenant, contractor, subcontractor, well driller, construction superintendent
or their agents, who installs such a geothermal system in violation
of this prohibition shall immediately remove the system and be liable
for a penalty of $1,000 per day until such system is removed.
