At 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
energy
339-Mile Power Line Construction Beginning In Washington County
Construction 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
Firewood and Invasive Pests
For 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
Zero Emission Vehicles: Quieter Roadways and Cleaner Air
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
Adirondack Park Agency Meeting Highlights
The 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
At Spier Falls Immigrants Built America, Or Died Trying
Adirondack 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
Adirondack Council Lauds Climate Bill
Adirondack 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
Adk Council: Manchin Harming Adirondacks, Local Green Jobs
West 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
The Night the Lights Came On: Electricity on New York State Farms
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
New York State Issues 10th ‘Greening New York State Report’
The 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’