environment Archives - Page 10 of 125 - The Adirondack Almanack Archive - The Adirondack Almanack

New York Sea Grant has redesigned, enhanced access, and added resources to the New York State Invasive Species Clearinghouse website at http://nyis.info to support NY’s watercraft inspection steward programs as well as water enthusiasts and recreational boaters. The site is also now a mobile-friendly gateway to science-based information, publications, news, events, and tools for those engaged in managing terrestrial and aquatic invasive species (AIS).

New additions to the New York State Invasive Species Clearinghouse include links to:

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

Boost your knowledge about aquatic invasives

The Adirondack Watershed Institute has partnered with the Adirondack Lakes Alliance to offer a series of educational and training programs to everyone interested in helping to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species.

Offered through the Paul Smith’s College Training Institute, and timed to launch during the 2020 Invasive Species Awareness Week, June 7-13, the program focuses on how to prevent the spread of harmful aquatic organisms in our lakes and rivers. Programs will be open and ongoing throughout the summer.

There are three ways to participate.

Monday, June 8, 2020

Red Fox Dens in Suburban Areas

At this time of year, when spring comes around and the flowers and trees start to bloom, the DEC receives calls about fox sightings around rural and suburban areas.

The Red Fox is small furbearer about 10 – 12 lbs.- (The size of a house cat) and during the spring they seek out den sites in order to raise their young (called “kits”). These den sites happen to sometimes be in less-than-ideal locations occasionally, including under porches and sheds. So, what should you do if this happens? The DEC has some recommendations:

Sunday, June 7, 2020

Dam failure and implications for the Adirondacks

by Ry Rivard

5 Comments

Recent dam failures in Michigan are a reminder that humanity’s efforts to hold back rising water with aging infrastructure are not guaranteed to succeed.

The Michigan case, where two dams on the same river failed, makes it hard to point fingers at a single problem. But it provides a particularly well-documented example of what happens when a privately owned dam isn’t maintained. In a blistering piece that appeared in Slate, a former native of Midland writes about the history and current owners of one of the failed dams. The full piece is worth reading because it shows how a private dam owner can avoid making upgrades until it’s too late.

Regulatory failure is also usually a factor in dam failure: In Michigan, there are two dam safety staffers for the whole state and 2,500 dams, the Detroit Free Press reported. In New York, as of 2018, there were 11 staffers looking out for more than 5,800 dams.

Sunday, June 7, 2020

Invasive Species Awareness Week starts today

The week of June 7-13 is Invasive Species Awareness Week.

According to information from the NYS DEC, an invasive species is a non-native species that causes harm to the ecosystem they have invaded (including harm to the economy and human health). Called “Invasives” for short, they can come from as close as a few states away, or from the other side of the world. They are sometimes purposely introduced in order to create huntable or viewable populations, or as business enterprises. Sometimes they are accidentally introduced from something as innocent as the bottom of your shoe, forgetting to clean off your boat after a long trip, or from over-seas shipping crates and boat ballasts.

Saturday, June 6, 2020

Raising awareness about invasive species

The Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program (APIPP) is calling for Adirondack outdoor enthusiasts to join a state-wide effort to protect trails, waterways, and habitats during New York’s seventh annual Invasive Species Awareness Week (ISAW). This year, from June 7-13, APIPP is going digital by holding online trainings and awareness initiatives to help community members protect the environment while maintaining safe social distancing guidelines.

Invasive species are non-native plants, animals, and insects that can throw native ecosystems out of balance, cause harm to human health, and put economically important industries such as farming, fishing, forestry, and tourism at risk. We all have a critical role to play in preventing the spread of damaging invasive species, and with increased knowledge, we can work together to steward the Adirondacks. What can you do to help?

Saturday, June 6, 2020

Adirondack 46ers contribute to Summit Stewardship Program

Amidst the global pandemic, and the resulting shortage of NYS funding, the Adirondack 46ers, (A group of people who have hiked all 46 mountains in the Adirondacks) have stepped up to provide financial support for the Adirondack High Peaks Summit Stewardship Program.

They have given $10,000 in 2020 and made a commitment to providing $75,000 of additional support over the next three years. The 46ers have been long time supporters of the stewardship program and have donated a total of $45,000 over the last three years as part of a joint commitment with the ADK (Adirondack Mountain Club).

Thursday, June 4, 2020

Adirondack Wild Elects New Board Director and Advisor

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At its May 2020 board meeting, Adirondack Wild: Friends of the Forest Preserve elected Richard L. (Rick) Hoffman of Easton, Washington County, to join its board of directors and Sunita Halasz of Saranac Lake to join its advisory council.

The meeting was conducted via Zoom due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Wednesday, June 3, 2020

Survey finds boats bypassing I-87 inspection station

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Boat counters on the Northway for the Memorial Day weekend say that 89% of the trailered motorboats traveling north into the Adirondacks on Interstate 87 passed the inspection/decontamination station without stopping, according to the Adirondack Council.

It is illegal to transport invasive plants, fish or wildlife from one water body to another in New York. The surest way to avoid contaminating one lake, pond or river with species from another is to have the boat inspected and cleaned by trained personnel. New York has installed a network of inspection stations in and around the Adirondack Park.

Boat inspections and decontaminations are free, but the state hasn’t required boaters to stop at the inspection stations. The Adirondack Council and others want better protection.

Tuesday, June 2, 2020

‘Compost For Good’ project aims to stamp out food waste

If global food waste were a country, it would be the third-largest greenhouse gas emitter in the world, according to the United Nation Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Currently, community-level composting options are limited in the Adirondack region, but a new project is aimed at changing that.

AdkAction is delighted to announce its newest project: “Adirondack Compost for Good.” This new project builds on the work that has been done by three local residents with a passion for turning waste into “black gold.” The project will promote food waste composting within the Adirondacks, and help communities meet the upcoming 2022 NYS ban on landfilling food wastes of a certain volume throughout New York State. The goal of the project is to help Adirondack communities turn food and other organic “wastes” into a soil amendment, which is the material added to soil to improve its physical or chemical properties. This composting process builds local resilience, heals soils, and helps reduce global greenhouse gas emissions.

Monday, June 1, 2020

Making the case for local meat

by Richard Gast

7 Comments

The Food Supply Chain System is Vulnerable

America’s meatpacking plants endure some of the highest rates of workplace injury of any U.S. job sector. COVID 19 has introduced yet another occupational hazard. These crowded facilities have become frighteningly successful vectors for COVID-19 contagion.

On Sunday April 26, a news release entitled, ‘A Delicate Balance: Feeding the Nation and Keeping Our Employees Healthy’ appeared as a full-page ad in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. It was also widely posted on Facebook, Twitter, etc.

Saturday, May 30, 2020

#LoveYourADK business toolkit available online

In order to emphasize the Leave No Trace principle, the Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism (ROOST) has created the “Love Your ADK” business toolkit.

The pledge and accompanying hashtag (#LoveYourADK) will spread awareness via websites and social media to ensure those who retreat to the Adirondacks are respectful of our ecosystem. This includes a commitment to check for invasive species, and to respect the wildlife and residents by following the 7 Leave No Trace principles.

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Adirondack Pollinator Project: 2020 Plant Sale

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AdkAction’s Adirondack Pollinator Project will be offering its annual “Pollinator Plant” sale again to help the hummingbirds, butterflies and bee population.

They have teamed up with Cook & Gardener Nursery and chose plants that can thrive in the Adirondacks. The plants offered have been sourced or grown from seeds to ensure no contact with neonicotinoids (a class of insecticides harmful to pollinators) and will help efforts to rebuild the monarch butterfly population, attract hummingbirds, and reinforce the native bee and moth population.

Plant orders are available online until June 15, or while supplies last.

Thursday, May 28, 2020

Rangers urge caution as wildfires flare across the region

by NYS DEC

NYS DEC rangers have been called out to help fight forest fires that have started over the past few weeks. Here is a recent report from the DEC:

Town of Brasher
St. Lawrence County
Wildland Fire: On May 18 at 2:56 p.m., Region 6 Forest Rangers overheard a call by St. Lawrence County 911 about a five- to six-acre fire off Murray Road in the town of Brasher. Forest Rangers assisted 10 area fire departments using ATV firefighting apparatus and hand tools. A Ranger drone mapped the fire at 14 acres as the fire spread through dry vegetation in swamps and wooded areas. Low humidity and high temperatures, before the leaf growth, helped to spread this fire caused by the landowner burning brush.

Monday, May 25, 2020

Spring Cleaning: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

It is that time of year again where spring cleaning is on the forefront of everyone’s minds. But before you begin, the DEC wants to remind us how important it is that you properly recycle everything instead of just throwing it away.

It is certainly easier to just toss everything, but don’t forget that most everything requires limited natural resources to produce, and in the efforts of conservation, the DEC wants to share some tips to reduce the amount of waste generated this spring-cleaning season.