WAITSFIELD, VT — The Northern Forest Canoe Trail (NFCT) hosts its annual online auction Nov. 15-30 to support stewardship and programming along the 740-mile water trail connecting New York, Vermont, Quebec, New Hampshire and Maine.
Every year, the auction features outdoor gear and experiences donated by NFCT partners and supporters. Highlights include a cedar strip canoe donated by Grant Faller, gift cards from L.L. Bean, gear from NRS and much more.
» Continue Reading.
Governor Kathy Hochul announced that $3.7 million in Smart Growth Grants is available for communities and not-for-profit organizations in the Adirondack and Catskill parks. DEC, in partnership with the Department of State and the Adirondack Park Agency, is soliciting applications for projects that will link environmental protection, economic development, and community livability in the Forest Preserve. The focus for this round of Smart Growth Grants is affordable housing, a key component for addressing population and economic stability in these rural areas.
Ray Brook, NY – The Adirondack Park Agency (APA) will hold its monthly meeting on Thursday, November 16, 2023. The meeting will be held at the Agency’s headquarters in Ray Brook, NY. The public is welcome to attend in person or remotely.
Public comment will be available to members of the public who attend the Agency meeting in person as well as those who participate remotely. If you would like the opportunity to make a public comment remotely, please email your name and the phone number used to call into the Board Meeting to AgencyMeeting.PublicComment@
Paul Smiths, NY – As part of their Fall Lecture Series, Paul Smith’s College VIC will host a presentation called, “Hotter Planet, Hotter Politics,” featuring Bill McKibben and Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Jr. on Saturday, November 11 from 3 to 4 p.m. The lecture series is sponsored by the Adirondack Council and is free to students from Paul Smith’s College and North Country Community College, a donation of $5 from others is requested.
Bill McKibben is founder of Third Act, which organizes people over the age of 60 for action on climate and justice.
His 1989 book The End of Nature is regarded as the first book for a general audience about climate change, and has appeared in 24 languages. He’s gone on to write 20 books, and his work appears regularly in periodicals from the New Yorker to Rolling Stone. He serves as the Schumann Distinguished Scholar in Environmental Studies at Middlebury College, as a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and he has won the Gandhi Peace Prize as well as honorary degrees from 20 colleges and universities. He was awarded the Right Livelihood Award, sometimes called the alternative Nobel, in the Swedish Parliament. Foreign Policy named him to its inaugural list of the world’s 100 most important global thinkers.
Upgrading or replacing an aging or failing septic system is one of the best things you can do to protect Lake George from harmful algal blooms. But, it does come at a price. Here are two ways to reduce the expense. » Continue Reading.
When it comes to reducing road salt use in the Adirondack Park, a long-awaited government report published this fall leaned heavily on the use of pilot projects to test reduction strategies.
Fortunately, the state won’t be starting from scratch when it builds those pilots. It has had pilots running for years around Lake George and in Essex and Herkimer counties.
Unfortunately, the results are in from a five-year-long independent study of the Lake George pilot, and those results are… mixed.
Tupper Lake, NY – On Nov. 8 and 9, the annual Adirondack Youth Climate Summit (AYCS) will bring approximately 160 students from 27 schools and community groups across Northern New York State to The Wild Center. The Summit includes fun, informative speeches and workshop sessions that will assist students in developing a climate action plan that they can use to implement climate solutions in their own communities.
Speakers include:
Saratoga Springs, NY — Local land trust Saratoga PLAN (Preserving Land and Nature) is proud to announce a significant milestone in its ongoing efforts to safeguard critical forested landscapes within Saratoga County. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos has officially granted over $1.35 million to six land trusts, including PLAN. The funding is aimed at preserving local forests that are integral to New York State’s environmental conservation objectives and the sequestration of climate-altering emissions. This funding was provided through the Forest Conservation Easement for Land Trust (FCELT) grant program and administered through the Land Trust Alliance.
» Continue Reading.
On October 31, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) encouraged outdoor enthusiasts to respectfully share the woods and follow safety precautions this fall and winter. Hikers, nature photographers, leaf peepers, and mountain bikers are encouraged to follow safety measures while hunters and trappers are afield. Regular big game hunting season in the Northern Zone began Oct. 21 and closes Dec. 3. Bowhunting season for deer and bear is ongoing in the Southern Zone and ends at the beginning of the regular firearms season on Nov. 18.
Almost as scary as Frankenstein’s Monster, northern snakehead are an invasive, predatory fish species native to Asia. Dubbed the “frankenfish,” northern snakehead can breathe air and survive for days out of water. Once established, these voracious predators have the potential to wreak havoc on an aquatic ecosystem – out-competing top predators, throwing off the balance of native fish communities and more.
Locked Up
For an on site October update on the DEC’s Saranac Lake Upper Locks construction project, click the link & read on.
Photo provided by Dick Monroe.
As Much a Part of Halloween as Jack-O-Lanterns
Have you ever wondered why or how black cats became a traditional part of Halloween imagery, decoration, and symbolism? Or why people dress up as black cats on Halloween?
I know I have.
I Ain’t Superstitious, But…
‘I ain’t superstitious, but a black cat crossed my trail.’ Those lyrics were written by blues great Willie Dixon in 1961 and recorded by Howlin’ Wolf, Jeff Beck (with Rod Stewart), Santana (with Johnny Lang), and Megadeath; just to name a few. And the belief that bad luck will result from a black cat crossing one’s path is one of the oldest and most enduring superstitions that I know of. But why is it that we connect black cats to bad luck and witchcraft? Perhaps it’s because cats have been associated with magic since ancient times. Across medieval Puritan-Europe, cats; black cats in particular; were commonly linked to witchcraft and the devil. That association continued into the renaissance, when people believed that witches would transform themselves into black cats. Or that, if you came across a black cat, it might be a witch’s ‘familiar’; a supernatural entity or demon-possessed physical-animal believed to have been sent by the devil, to assist witches in the practice of black magic. » Continue Reading.
Staff, volunteers implement 20 projects in New York, Vermont, New Hampshire & Maine
The Northern Forest Canoe Trail (NFCT) wrapped up its 2023 stewardship season earlier this fall, completing 20 projects across New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.
The NFCT’s stewardship crew consists of a stewardship director, field coordinator, paid interns and dozens of volunteers. Projects are carried out in collaboration with state environmental agencies, municipalities, foundations and corporate partners, as well as private landowners. The NFCT’s work is implemented along the woods and waters of the 740-mile canoe trail that begins in Old Forge, NY, and ends in Fort Kent, Maine. In recent years, the NFCT has expanded its stewardship program to include nearby waterways. » Continue Reading.
During the APA’s October 12 meeting, I noted with appreciation the Adirondack Park Agency members who asked pertinent questions about the staff’s proposed permit for Carver Sand and Gravel in the town of Ephratah, Fulton County (Project 2022-0037). These questions and concerns included but were not limited to the proposed dramatic rise in the maximum number of daily truck trips out of the mine (from a maximum of 75 per day to a max of 200 per day).
For APA member Zoe Smith the letter from the Ephratah town board in the public comment file stood out to her because it is rare for a town board to raise detailed concerns about an APA project in writing. In this case the town raised issues of public safety and quality of life of neighbors to the mine should the permit be granted. What was the staff response to that detailed town letter in the public comment file, member Smith asked?
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Great Pumpkins
Linus, the precocious, blanket-toting character from the “Peanuts” world, which by the way is now a Canadian franchise, waited faithfully for “The Great Pumpkin” each Halloween night from 1950 to 1999. If anyone else had been stood-up that many times by the same character, they’d have thrown in the towel (or blanket) for sure. Perhaps Linus’ resolute faith that the mythical pumpkin would show up was spurred on by the fact that almost every year brings the world a bigger “great pumpkin” of the sort one can measure, and – at least potentially – eat. » Continue Reading.