New county law bans Hamptons cesspools

As part of the continuing effort to protect the groundwater across Long Island, Suffolk County passed a new law that will outlaw the installation of new cesspools where old ones previously existed. While cesspools, which contribute to nitrogen pollution, had been banned for new buildings since 1973, the roughly 360,000 Suffolk County property owners who already had them could make in-kind replacements. Beginning July 2018, contractors must notify the county when modifying or retrofitting any waste systems, and by July 2019 such work will require a permit. [EHS]