NYS Forest Rangers told the press Tuesday that on July 11 at 7:40 p.m., a call came in to DEC’s Ray Brook Dispatch from the father of a man who was camping long-term on state land in the Hoffman Notch Wilderness Area, in violation of the law. Rangers said the 36-year-old male from Crown Point was communicating with his father over the course of several weeks but the father stated that he had not heard from the son in some time and that he had missed the last two supply drops. Worried about his son’s well-being, he requested Forest Rangers >>More
Archive for the ‘Environment’ Category
Protect the Adirondacks Annual Meeting July 20th in Old Forge
Protect the Adirondacks is set to hold its annual membership meeting at View Arts, located at 3273 State Route 28 in Old Forge on Saturday, July 20th. The meeting provides an opportunity to get an update on the major issues the organization sees facing the Adirondack Park, see PROTECT’s priorities for the year ahead, and meet the staff and Board of Directors. The annual meeting includes the Conservation and Advocacy report, financial report, membership report, and election to the Board of Directors. Protect the Adirondacks will present the Howard Zahniser Adirondack Award in 2019 to the Wildlife Conservation Society Adirondack >>More
Appoint Tim Rowland to Adirondack Park Agency Board
As membership of the Adirondack Park Agency board dwindles toward zero, I would like to toss my hat into the ring for consideration. In the words of Sam Cooke, I don’t know much biology, don’t know much about a science book, don’t know much about the French I took. But come on, all this talk about “qualifications” has gotten a bit out of hand, don’t you think? In modern America you don’t need expertise, you just need to park tanks outside the meeting hall. That should work. Shows everybody you are faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a >>More
Oak Wilt And Invasive Species Vigilance
It’s hard to be cheerful in a job where I am expected to keep up on each newly arrived or imminent threat from invasive insects, novel plant diseases, and worrisome trends in the environment. Although I typically deflate everyone’s happy-bubble when I give a talk, I’ve discovered we need not fret that the sky is going to fall. The National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) is a joint effort of research institutions, government agencies and nonprofit groups; their mission is to monitor stuff which falls to Earth that is not some form of water. Since one of the » Continue Reading. >>More
David Gibson On APA Appointments; Role of Statewide Interests
Some local government leaders in the Adirondack Park complain that Governor Cuomo’s 2019 picks for seats on the Adirondack Park Agency remain unconfirmed by the State Senate. They feel that these individuals have been unfairly blocked by environmentalists putting pressure on State Senators. They can be forgiven for forgetting that this is not the first time that a Democratic Governor’s choices for the Adirondack Park Agency have been rejected by a Democratic State Senate. Ten springs ago, Governor Paterson’s nomination for the APA, Peter Hornbeck of Minerva, Essex County, was held up by Senate Democrats at the request of Senator >>More
Generation X Population Trends In The Adirondacks and Rural America
One way to understand Adirondack population trends is to look at the major changes in the experiences of different age groups. In this article we look at the experiences of the Late Baby Boomers, those born between 1956-1965, and the Generation Xers, those born 1966-1975. Across Rural America these age groups saw major population losses by 2010, even as the U.S. population grew due to immigration from abroad. In the new report The Adirondack Park and Rural America: Economic and Population Trends 1970-2010 we aggregated the data of the 61 Adirondack Park Towns that are 100% within the Blue Line >>More
State Tree Cutting on Forest Preserve Ruled Unconstitutional
The Appellate Division, Third Department, ruled Wednesday that state tree cutting to build a network of wide class II community connector snowmobile trails in the Adirondack Forest Preserve violated Article XIV, Section 1 of the State Constitution. The Appellate Division, Third Department, reversed a lower court ruling issued in 2017. Protect the Adirondacks had challenged the constitutionality of cutting more than 25,000 trees to build over 27 miles of new snowmobile trails in the Forest Preserve. The lawsuit was started » Continue Reading. View original post.
Major Adirondack Conservation Reform Bill Falls Short
Legislation advanced in each house of the New York State Legislature this year that, if approved, would have amended the Adirondack Park Agency (APA) Act to require conservation development standards, clustering, and open space protections for the largest proposed subdivisions in the Adirondack Park. The proposed bill would be the most significant amendment to the Land Use and Development Plan since enactment in 1973. The legislation gained some bi-partisan support but failed to advance in final days of the session when North Country representatives Senator Betty Little and Assemblymember Dan Stec lobbied to keep the bill from coming up for >>More
Adirondack Park Boat Wash Stations Open for Peak Season
Free boat inspections and decontaminations are being offered at more than 60 locations across the Adirondack region to help the public stop the spread of aquatic invasive species. Decontamination stations and boat inspection locations are also located at popular boat launches throughout the Adirondacks. Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute (PSC AWI) is working to implement the state’s Adirondack Aquatic Invasive Species Spread Prevention Program and help the public be in compliance with new invasive species regulations. The invasive species spread prevention law prohibits invasive plants and animals on boats launching into New York State lakes, ponds and rivers. The >>More
The Local Government Club at the Adirondack Park Agency
The State Senate gaveled-out its historic 2019 Legislative Session on June 21st without acting on any of the four people that Governor Cuomo had nominated for the Board of the Adirondack Park Agency (APA). These were among dozens of nominees to various state boards that were left unconfirmed, but the message from the State Senate was clear: changes were needed in many of the individuals and slates of nominees submitted by the Governor. The Governor’s response to the rebuff by the State Senate on APA Board nominations was to go on the attack. Cuomo’s spokesman, Rich Azzopardi, tried to talk >>More
