The only independent, nonprofit news organization solely dedicated to reporting on the Adirondack Park.
The town of Lake George, long at the epicenter of overbuilding in the Adirondacks, has now become a leader in the fight against one of the damaging consequences of sprawl—the surge of nutrients that can virtually smother a lake. The law is an important part of broader efforts to roll back the damages caused by…
The Outdoor Research DryComp Ridge Pack
As the director of education for the Lake George Association, I am writing in response to your editorial “Protect Park’s Precious Water” [September/October]. The Lake George Association can share with your readers extensive research and resources regarding water protection, phosphorus fertilizers, and the new laws in the town and village of Lake George. Earlier this…
Kudos to the Explorer and writer Mary Thill for covering the Champlain Canal as not only an aquatic invasive-species pathway but also as an opportunity for prevention [“Invasion by water,” September/October]. The issue of canals and invasive species is a timely topic as seen in the Asian carp threat to the Great Lakes, but it’s…
Reading Joe Hackett’s defense of hunting in “It’s Debatable” [September/October], I couldn’t help but wonder if he knew that neither “natural” nor “traditional” is synonymous with “ethical.” Jon Hochschartner, Lake Placid
Joe Hackett did a superb job of defending hunting in “It’s Debatable” [September/October]. I would only re-emphasize the millions of dollars hunters inject into wildlife programs via taxes they pay on their equipment. I consider it disturbing that the Adirondack Explorer even decided to have a debate on this subject. Hunting has been a part…
At the end of Brian Mann’s article about two new environmental groups [September/October], he mentioned the Adirondack Council as one of the region’s largest environmental groups, but he mischaracterized the council’s situation when he says that we “have also struggled financially.” The Adirondack Council actually raised more money in 2009 than it did in 2008,…
It’s good to hear that the Adirondack Park Agency is looking into tightening regulations for building on uplands [“Losing the high ground,” September/October]. As stated by Tom Both, the current Keene Site Plan Review Law’s main weakness is that it leaves too much to interpretation. I was involved in a couple of the site reviews…
I write in response to your article “Losing the high ground” [September/October]. During my twenty-six-year career in the Air Force, which included three wonderful years at Plattsburgh Air Force base in the late 1980s, I have gotten long looks at both the good and bad in terms of land-use practices. I still consider—even after two…
Lisa Densmore grew up skiing at Mount Pisgah in Saranac Lake and went on to compete at Dartmouth College and on the pro tour. Now forty-nine, she is the top-ranked woman skier in the nation in her age group. By Phil Brown