We have one beautiful water system here. This river is what drives taxes and makes people want to come here.”

Westport Fish Commissioner Everett Mills

Before we go down the path of doing a bylaw, we have to be absolutely sure that we have the authority to do it.”

Philip Weinberg, Westport Conservation Commission

Westport's fish commissioner believes it's time for the town to get serious about reducing nitrogen in its waters, and is proposing that Westport look into by-law changes that would ban the use of lawn fertilizers containing the nutrient across town.

There's still a big question as to whether Westport even has the authority to regulate lawn products that contain nitrogen, a nutrient which has been linked to algae blooms in both branches of the Westport River as well as Cockeast Pond for years. But fish commissioner Everett Mills told the Westport Conservation Commission recently that the question is at least worth asking:

"What do we need green grass for? We're trying to pass something that makes a difference. Nitrogen is an increasing problem that we can see. And it's only getting worse."

Mills has long noticed the effects of too much nitrogen in the water — herring that have to swim against a sea of green slime as they try to get in to Cockeast to spawn; large carpets of bright green goop in the upper portions of the Westport River, and more. To state his case, he pointed to a 2018 study and flyer about Cockeast Pond published by the Westport River Watershed Alliance (WRWA), which found among other things that 30 percent of the pond's nitrogen load comes from wastewater, 17 percent from lawn fertilizers, and a lesser amount — 9 percent — from the Acoaxet Club. 

While tackling the wastewater component is a different animal — "we can't go town-wide and straighten out every septic system" — regulating fertilizer is easier and will certainly cut down on the amount of nitrogen entering the water, he said. He proposes that the town ban nitrogen-containing fertilizers from use on lawns across town, and said landscapers should be required to sign paperwork pledging that they won't use them on any of the properties they service here.

While he doesn't want to single out the pond or the golf course, which he said has been a good neighbor and tries to keep nitrogen runoff as low as possible, Mills said Cockeast is a prime example of why regulation over lawn fertilizer use is needed here.

"You can use (the pond) as a microcosm" for the entire town, he said. "This is going on all over town — algae blooms are everywhere. We could really make a statement as a group and a town, by the way, because we have one beautiful water system here. This river is what drives taxes and makes people want to come here. The beauty of this is, it isn't going to cost anyone any money and you can still have the option to buy fertilizer without nitrogen in it."

The by-law would be comparable to similar by-laws on the books in Nantucket and two other towns in the commonwealth, he said.

Though several commission members agreed that nitrogen is an issue, member Philip Weinberg, an attorney, said he doesn't believe the town has the authority to take the action. He said he has looked into state regulations and "it is my opinion that municipalities no longer have the right to regulate fertilizer use," and that that authority lies with the state department of agriculture instead.

"Before we go down the path of doing a bylaw, we have to be absolutely sure that we have the authority to do it," he said. "I personally don't think we have that authority."

Chairman Paul Joncas said that the first step should be researching the legalities, and told Mills to reach out to Town Administrator James Hartnett, and through him the town's legal counsel, to get an answer.

"I think in general there's a problem with nitrogen," he said. "I'd have a tough time telling people no one could use fertilizer. But if there's options ... then that's fine."

Mills said he would reach out to Hartnett. Even if it turns out that the town does not have the authority to pass a by-law, he said, officials can certainly work to educate the public on the harm such fertilizers cause. But he was warned that the issue is a dicey one:

"You're going to have a lot of homeowners up in arms when you say, 'You can't have green grass,'" one commission member said.

"That's really too bad isn't it? We've got to watch out for our own river."

Note: Hartnett said Monday that the town's research into the legal matter continues.