Hempstead, NY Animal Ordinances: Bird Protection (2026)
Key Facts
- Protected activity
- Active bird nesting and breeding areas
- Approval required
- NYSDEC and Town Commissioner, in writing
- Applies in
- Nearshore, beach and dune erosion zones
- Enforcing agency
- Dept. of Conservation and Waterways
- Penalty
- Up to $250 fine or 15 days jail
Summary
Along the Town's ocean-facing nearshore areas, beaches and dunes, active bird nesting and breeding sites are off-limits to disturbance. Chapter 170's Coastal Erosion Hazard Area Law lets a nesting or breeding area be disturbed only with prior written wildlife-management approval from both the Town's Commissioner of Conservation and Waterways and the New York State DEC.
Active bird nesting and breeding areas must not be disturbed unless such disturbance is pursuant to a specific wildlife management activity approved, in writing, by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and by the Town of Hempstead's Commissioner of Conservation and Waterways.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4863878; v67 updated 2026-04-28; through 04-28-2026).
Full Breakdown
Chapter 170, the Town of Hempstead Coastal Erosion Hazard Area Law, regulates the barrier beach and dune system along the Atlantic Ocean and its bays. Within that mapped erosion hazard area, three parallel provisions covering nearshore areas (Section 170-8B(3)), beaches (Section 170-9B(3)) and both primary and secondary dunes (Section 170-10B(1)(g) and Section 170-10B(2)(i)) all bar disturbing an active bird nesting or breeding area, whether or not it is posted or fenced, unless the disturbance is part of a specific wildlife-management activity that has written sign-off from both the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the Town's own Commissioner of Conservation and Waterways.
The rule sits inside a broader coastal erosion management permit system: any other regulated activity in these zones, from grading to depositing sand to erecting a structure, already needs a coastal erosion management permit from the Department of Conservation and Waterways' permit administrator, and permits can be conditioned, consolidated with other agencies' reviews, or bonded under Sections 170-15 and 170-16. The chapter's stated purpose is to protect natural protective features and the fish and wildlife habitats within them from the erosion and development activity the law otherwise permits along the shoreline.
Violations & Fines
Disturbing a protected nesting area, or undertaking any regulated activity without the required coastal erosion management permit, is a violation under Section 170-21: a fine of up to $250 or up to 15 days imprisonment for each offense, with every additional day counted separately. The Town can also sue for an injunction and require the violator to pay for repairing or restoring the damaged shoreline or habitat.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I disturb a bird nest on the beach behind my Hempstead property?
Does it matter if the nesting area is posted or fenced?
What is the penalty for violating this rule?
Who enforces this rule?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Hempstead
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