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energy

State Parks Plan To Be Energy Independent By 2030

January 27, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Franklin D Roosevelt Four Freedoms State ParkAt the State Of The State Address on January 10, 2023, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul introduced an ambitious response to climate change. Largely ignored in the reporting over those efforts is a plan to switch State Parks to 100 percent renewable energy by 2030. [Read more…] about State Parks Plan To Be Energy Independent By 2030

Filed Under: Nature, Recreation Tagged With: Climate Change, energy, Kathy Hochul, OPRHP, State Parks

339-Mile Power Line Construction Beginning In Washington County

December 5, 2022 by Editorial Staff 3 Comments

Champlain Hudson Power Express RouteConstruction is beginning in Washington County, NY, on the 339-mile Champlain Hudson Power Express transmission line, being developed by Transmission Developers Inc, between Hydro-Québec in Canada and and New York City. The massive power line is expected to be fully operational in the spring of 2026. [Read more…] about 339-Mile Power Line Construction Beginning In Washington County

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Nature, New York City Tagged With: energy, Lake Champlain, NYSERDA, Putnam, Washington County, Whitehall

Firewood and Invasive Pests

November 12, 2022 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Stack of split firewood and a maul for splitting courtesy Wikimedia user Chmee2For many of us, this season involves hunting, gathering, and preparing for a long, cold winter. This often includes stacking (or restacking) the firewood that’s been seasoning while we enjoyed the laid back warmer months of summer. Humans have used wood as a source of heat since they learned to control fire more than a million years ago.

For many in the Northeast, it’s a secondary, cost effective, and efficient way to heat our homes. In addition to home heating, firewood is often a component of camping and recreating. Moving firewood, however – whether for home heating or camp site ambiance – can spread exotic invasive pests and cause harm to the forest. [Read more…] about Firewood and Invasive Pests

Filed Under: Nature Tagged With: emerald ash borer, energy, fall, Forestry, insects, Invasive Species, Spotted Lanternfly

Zero Emission Vehicles: Quieter Roadways and Cleaner Air

November 12, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

NYS is moving into a cleaner future by increasing the number of zero-emission vehicles (ZEV) on the road. ZEVs include battery electric, hydrogen fuel cell, and plug-in hybrid electric-powered vehicles. Governor Kayth Hochul recently directed DEC to propose the adoption of California’s Advanced Clean Cars II (ACC II) regulations. [Read more…] about Zero Emission Vehicles: Quieter Roadways and Cleaner Air

Filed Under: Nature Tagged With: clean air, energy, Kathy Hochul, pollution, Transportation

Adirondack Park Agency Meeting Highlights

September 22, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

APA logoThe Adirondack Park Agency Board approved two projects and voted that proposed best management practices to control invasive species on New York State Department of Environmental Conservation administered lands inside the Adirondack Park conformed to the State Land Master Plan at its September 15th, 2022 meeting. [Read more…] about Adirondack Park Agency Meeting Highlights

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Nature Tagged With: Adirondacks, APA, Clifton, energy, Invasive Species, nature, St Lawrence County, Wildlife

At Spier Falls Immigrants Built America, Or Died Trying

August 15, 2022 by Lawrence P. Gooley Leave a Comment

Spier Falls DamAdirondack history is naturally rife with river-related stories — wildly successful fishing trips, damaging floods, wilderness exploration, and dam construction.

Rivers were the lifeblood of development: settlements sprang up along waterways, where partial diversion of streams provided the wheel-turning power necessary to many industries. But freshets were so common and destructive that dams were introduced as flood-control measures, and then for hydropower as the electrification of society unfolded. [Read more…] about At Spier Falls Immigrants Built America, Or Died Trying

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Adirondack Dams, Adirondacks, energy, Glens Falls, Hudson River, Immigration, Labor History, Saratoga County, Spier Falls, Warren County

Adirondack Council Lauds Climate Bill

August 8, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

US Capitol Building SouthAdirondack conservation advocates the Adirondack Council today celebrated the U.S. Senate’s approval of landmark climate legislation, applauding a bill that invests hundreds of billions of dollars into programs designed to speed the nation’s transition away from fossil fuels and toward cleaner energy sources.

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 will also reduce the fossil fuel-fired emissions that cause acid rain and smog, while increasing employment and boosting domestic manufacturing.  The bill is expected to pass the House of Representatives later this week and be signed into law by President Joe Biden. [Read more…] about Adirondack Council Lauds Climate Bill

Filed Under: Nature Tagged With: Adirondack Council, Adirondacks, clean air, Climate Change, conservation, energy, Environmental History, Environmental Justice, Joe Biden, politics

Adk Council: Manchin Harming Adirondacks, Local Green Jobs

July 19, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Adirondack CouncilWest Virginia Senator Joe Manchin’s refusal to negotiate legislation to curb climate change will harm New York’s Adirondack Park as well as the growing clean-manufacturing economy in nearby Plattsburgh, according to the Adirondack Council.

The Council called on New York State government to intensify its efforts to reduce carbon emissions, and called on the state’s voters to approve the Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Bond Act on the ballot November 8th. [Read more…] about Adk Council: Manchin Harming Adirondacks, Local Green Jobs

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Nature Tagged With: Adirondack Council, Adirondacks, clean air, Climate Change, Clinton County, energy, Environmental History, Essex County, Franklin County, Hamilton County, Herkimer COunty, nature, Plattsburgh, politics, St Lawrence County, Warren County

The Night the Lights Came On: Electricity on New York State Farms

May 1, 2022 by Milton Sernett 4 Comments

Few New York State farms had electric power in the 1920s. Even as late as 1930 ninety percent of farm families nationwide had no line-run electricity. On long winter evenings city dwellers could read and sew long past sunset, but farm families sat in near darkness and did chores, such as milking the cows, in the dim light of kerosene lanterns.

Some farmers used Delco-Light Plants made up of ranks of glass-jarred lead-storage batteries located in dirt-floored basements for electric power. As Delco’s slogan was, “Delco systems sell best by night,” Delco salesman cleverly arrived at dusk with small Delco systems to demonstrate to farmers how these DC-units, when sufficiently massed, could bring to the farm what folks in the cities enjoyed. But Delco systems were expensive, and the batteries had to be recharged with a generator powered by a gasoline engine. [Read more…] about The Night the Lights Came On: Electricity on New York State Farms

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Western NY Tagged With: Agricultural History, energy, General Electric, George Westinghouse, Industrial History, local farms, Nikola Tesla, Political History, Thomas Edison

New York State Issues 10th ‘Greening New York State Report’

April 23, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

greening new york stateThe GreenNY Council has issued the tenth annual Greening New York State Report for 2020-21, documenting the continued progress made by New York State to reduce the environmental footprint of State operations.

Highlights of this year’s report include a record $300 million invested in green products and services, 4.4 trillion BTUs of energy saving projects completed or underway as part of the BuildSmart 2025 program, and a record 94 percent recycling rate. [Read more…] about New York State Issues 10th ‘Greening New York State Report’

Filed Under: Nature Tagged With: Climate Change, DEC, energy, Environmental History, GreenNY Council, plastics, pollution

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