Here on Long Island, fertilizing your lawn is a rite of spring. But these days, spreading the wrong fertilizer on your lawn this spring could pollute our water, raise your taxes, and cause health problems down the road.

Since we’re surrounded by water, and we literally live directly on top of our drinking water aquifers, some portion of whatever we put on our lawns eventually either migrates into those aquifers or runs off with stormwater into nearby ponds, streams, or bays.

There are two reasons why this is a problem. First, many of the most popular fertilizers contain PFAS, those infamous “forever chemicals” that are known to cause a number of serious human health problems.  The PFAS is either contained in the biosolids used in some fertilizers or in the plastic coating used to make water soluble nitrogen “slow release.”

Last week, the EPA released standards for the amount of PFAS that can be permitted in drinking water, and water departments across the country are scrambling to meet those standards. It’s going to cost money, and you’re going to pay for it.

The second problem is that high levels of nitrogen in lawn fertilizers (more than 12%, the first of the three numbers on the fertilizer bag) contribute to algal blooms and fish kills in our bays and ponds. It also contaminates our drinking water, so again, your local water department will be spending your tax dollars to remove it from the water you drink.

The solution to this dual fertilizer problem is to ask your retailer for lawn fertilizer that’s PFAS-free and has no more than 12% nitrogen. There are plenty of products available that can make your lawn look great and won’t increase your tax bill, impact your family’s health, or pollute our water.

Doug Wood

Port Washington

The author is coordinator of LIWater.org, a coalition of non-profit and community groups working to protect Long Island’s water.