On Feb. 24, the Falmouth Town Council passed the ordinance with a vote of 5-2. Screenshot / Town of Falmouth

On Feb. 24, Falmouth Town Council passed the pesticide and fertilizer regulatory ordinance that has been deliberated and redrafted for almost a year. With five councilors in favor and two opposed, the vote reflected divided community opinion on the ordinance, which bans certain pesticides and fertilizers while restricting the application of others. The regulation will take effect April 1.

“(We’re) trying to be representative of those voices that have spoken in favor of the ordinance, those who have spoken in disproval of it,” said Councilor Bryce Hach.

“And also trying to be considerate to – I say this as an environmental science teacher – also in consideration of young people who will be part of our community down the road, and the natural environment, both of whom have no vote but are part of what makes Falmouth, Falmouth,” said Hach, who voted in favor of the ordinance.

The adopted ordinance builds on a 2020 pesticide and fertilizer ordinance that required licensed commercial pesticide and fertilizers applicators to register annually with the town and report on their applications. It also prohibited the application of fertilizer between Dec. 1 and March 31.

In addition to these requirements, the 2025 ordinance more strictly regulates the chemicals that can be used in Falmouth and where they can be applied. The ordinance bans the use of neonicotinoid pesticides and any non-synthetic substance listed as “prohibited” on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances. Fertilizer containing nitrogen and phosphorus can only be applied to lawns twice a year in limited quantity.

The ordinance also bans pesticide and fertilizer applications within 75 feet of any body of water and within 20 feet from a storm drain. It has requirements for fertilizer and pesticide applicators, as well as retailers that sell the chemicals in Falmouth. Violators may be subject to a $250 penalty for the first violation and a penalty of not more than $1,000 for each subsequent violation.

“The council approved a pesticide and fertilizer regulation ordinance to safeguard the health and welfare of Falmouth residents and to conserve and protect Falmouth’s environment, water, and natural resources,” said a statement from the town manager’s office.

“In developing this ordinance over several years, the Ordinance Committee and Town Council sought input from residents, applicators, and retailers to find a balance that would best protect our environment and health while ensuring reasonable options for the care of properties,” said the statement.

On Feb. 10, Falmouth residents shared their views on the ordinance at a public hearing. While some commentors were in support of the ordinance, a majority of public comments were in opposition, citing the targeting of private homeowners and insufficient scientific evidence of the risk of the chemicals banned in the measure.

Extensive public comment came in via email. Between Jan. 1 and Feb. 24, councilors received 113 emailed comments from residents in favor of the ordinance and 39 against, according to Falmouth Policy Analyst Amanda Methot-Vigue. The two newest councilors, Alisa Morton and Sean Mahoney, noted that they had not received all of these comments due to what appeared to be a technical email error.

In addition to Falmouth residents, Friends of Casco Bay, Friends of the Presumpscot River, and the Maine chapter of the Surfrider Foundation contacted councilors in support of the project.

Councilor Jay Trickett said that the distribution of the emails did not necessarily reflect the breakdown of support and opposition to the ordinance, nor did the ratio of public comments on Feb. 10. Last spring, a survey of town residents found that 57.5% of 600 respondents were opposed to the ordinance. Months ago, Trickett said he called for a second survey on the ordinance, which was not conducted.

“I continue to feel like this is a mistake,” said Trickett, who voted against the ordinance.

“I am struck by this ordinance. I think it will have the most profound direct impact on Falmouth residents of any action taken by this town government since I’ve lived here for 12 years,” he said.

Trickett acknowledged the time and consideration that went into the ordinance by the Conservation Commission and Ordinance Committee and how both groups worked with the community. He said that despite this effort, the regulation of chemicals was a matter to leave to experts at the state and federal level with more resources and expertise.

“I think that we have not sufficiently established that our community should trust us with this ordinance,” said Trickett.

“I am deeply concerned that this is going to erode further the public’s confidence in the town government, it is likely to spur a lot of people to be scofflaws, which is erosive to a strong community, and it is going to pit neighbor against neighbor,” he said.

Morton was the second to vote against the ordinance. She said while making environmentally sound choices is important her to as an individual, as an elected official she voted as a voice for the community.

In response, Councilor Peter LaFond said that the Conservation Commission and Ordinance Committee addressed “concern after concern” about the ordinance from the community by providing the water testing that applicators demanded, consulting experts and conducting community forums.

“I think it’s a mark of the humility, not the arrogance, of those people that they got to work and worked hard, diligently. They met with every single affected group in Falmouth about the issue of pesticides, including applicators,” said LaFond.

LaFond also emphasized that state and federal regulatory bodies may be under external financial pressures to keep pesticides and fertilizers on the market, despite negative effects on the environment and public health.

“We’ve done every single thing about this in the public. There hasn’t been any backroom scheming. We’ve had more public forum than you could possibly imagine,” he said.

The process of updating the ordinance began in 2022, when Falmouth’s Conservation Commission proposed amending the town’s 2020 fertilizer and pesticide ordinance to further regulate the chemicals. This effort followed other Maine municipalities that had already regulated pesticides and fertilizers in their communities beyond the state and federal requirements.

The updated ordinance saw many changes since its first draft, as it met community resistance following its introduction last April. After more than half the respondents disapproved of the ordinance in the survey, in May the council resolved to continue working on the ordinance and engage the public in the process.

Following community forums and workshops, the council reintroduced the ordinance on Dec. 9 with new allowances for the treatment of grubs and fertilizers containing phosphorus and nitrogen based on public feedback. After clarifying minor edits, the ordinance was reintroduced on Jan. 13 as the version that was adopted.

To meet statutory requirements to provide notice of the vote to the Maine State Board of Pesticides Control, a second vote to approve the ordinance will be held at a town council meeting March 24. Falmouth staff were made aware of this requirement earlier this week, said Town Manager Nathan Poore.