History, Natural History & the Arts
The Adirondack Park Agency Board, at its March 16th, 2023 meeting, authorized a 30-day public comment period to solicit input to help inform the Board’s interpretation of the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan’s Wild Forest Basic Guideline No. 4.
The guideline sets the standard for how many miles of roads and snowmobile trails are allowed in the Adirondack Park. [Read more…] about APA Plans For More Roads, Snowmobile Trails In Adirondack Park
The Adirondack Common Ground Alliance (CGA) is a network of stakeholders focused on addressing issues that affect the Adirondack Park – specifically, though not exclusively, environmental protection, economic development, and community vitality.
Their goal is to facilitate dialogue and identify collaborative solutions that improve the Park and its communities for generations to come. Since 2007, CGA has organized an annual forum, yielding an agreed upon set of recommendations for state action referred to as the “Blueprint for the Blue Line.” [Read more…] about Common Ground Alliance Offers Adirondack Recommendations
Last April, Adirondack organizations wrote to the Adirondack Park Agency (APA) asking to rediscover their discretionary power to hold adjudicatory public hearings on particularly complex, controversial Adirondack land use projects.
There was no response to our joint letter, but a rather resounding response has just come from a member of our state’s judicial branch. [Read more…] about Incompetence? Adk Park Agency Loses 2nd Lawsuit Within A Week
Willie Janeway details his decision to leave the Adirondack Council
Willie Janeway, who has been the Executive Director of the Adirondack Council for the past decade, will be leaving the organization this fall. Janeway is leaving the Council in excellent shape, and the dedicated staff will continue to work on behalf of the Adirondack Park on a daily basis. Raul “Rocci” Aguirre, who has served as Deputy Director, is now the Acting Executive Director, and the first person of color to lead a major Adirondack environmental group. [Read more…] about Adirondack Conservation: 5 Things You Need To Know
The Appellate Division, Third Department has issued a unanimous ruling annulling a permit issued by the Adirondack Park Agency (APA) for a large-scale expansion of a commercial marina on Lower Saranac Lake in the Adirondack Park.
The decision in Thomas Jorling vs Adirondack Park Agency, et. al. reverses a lower court decision issued by State Supreme Court. [Read more…] about Court Strikes Down Lower Saranac Lake Marina Permit Issued by APA
Well, it’s happened again. Another state budget is proposed by the Executive, wherein the Adirondack Park Agency’s legislated job is mischaracterized by this Governor’s (and former governors’) budget divisions as working “to achieve a balance between strong environmental protection and sustainable economic development opportunities for the residents of the Adirondack Park” (2023 Executive Budget Briefing Book).
Balance is an important goal to strive for in our individual lives. However, nothing in the Adirondack Park Agency law, now reaching 50 years old in May, calls for “a balance between strong environmental protection and sustainable economic development.” [Read more…] about The Adirondack Park Agency At 50: State Leaders Are Missing The Point
On January 20, 2023, Protect the Adirondacks filed a lawsuit challenging the reconstruction by the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) of a previously closed and reclaimed road in the High Peaks Wilderness Complex. Protect argues that DEC’s road construction activity in the High Peaks violates the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan (Master Plan) which prohibits roads in Wilderness Areas. [Read more…] about State Rebuilding of High Peaks Wilderness Roads Challenged in Court
Species start to vanish from streams during the first stages of suburban development, according to the United States Geological Service. By the time impervious surfaces had absorbed 20 percent of the terrain of some New England watersheds, for example, those streams’ aquatic invertebrate communities had shrunk by roughly 25 percent. [Read more…] about How Does A Land Trust Protect A Watershed? One Parcel At A Time
The Adirondack Park Agency (APA) and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) are holding a joint public comment period to solicit comments for the Broadalbin Public Boat Launch Draft Unit Management Plan (UMP).
The public is invited to submit input on the draft plan, which will guide future management of the facility and its conformance to the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan. Comments will be accepted until January 16th, 2023. [Read more…] about Broadalbin Public Boat Launch Comments Sought
At Adirondack Wild’s October meeting at the Paul Smith’s Visitor Interpretive Center, lakes and ponds came under the spotlight in a panel discussion about Cooperative Stewardship of Adirondack Lakes. Of particular interest was a given lake’s classification and subsequent comprehensive study, planning and management.
If Adirondack waterbodies are considered part of the Forest Preserve, and for the last fifty years the State Land Master Plan talks about land and water, then the law requires that lakes and ponds be classified, just as forests are. That raises important questions. [Read more…] about Gibson: DEC & APA Should Reform Managing Adirondack Lakes and Ponds