environment Archives - Page 5 of 160 - The Adirondack Almanack Archive - The Adirondack Almanack

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Forest Megaphone provides visitors with a unique way to experience nature.

Paul Smiths, NY – The Paul Smith’s College’s Visitors Interpretive Center (VIC) announced the completion of a Forest Megaphone on its accessible Barnum Brook Trail. The Forest Megaphone, an oversized wooden megaphone large enough for adults to sit or laydown in, amplifies surrounding natural noise for those seeking a deeper sensory experience in the outdoors. The VIC hopes the Forest Megaphone will prompt guests to focus on their soundscape (the combined sounds present at a location) and create a new way to interact with and appreciate nature. » Continue Reading.

Sunday, September 10, 2023

Anarchy is Bad for Picnics

by Paul Hetzler

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I’m not one to shed a tear when authoritarian rulers die, but once they’re gone, picnics become a lot more dangerous. As summer wanes, the original queen in every yellowjacket wasp colony dies – having a few thousand babies in the course of one season is enough to tire any Queen Mum to death.

The colony raises new queens as the old one starts to forget the names of her offspring and where she left her reading glasses. But when the feisty new regals emerge, the young queens
run off with the nearest male wasps for a mating orgy, after which they hide in rotten logs or nearby attics for the winter. » Continue Reading.

Sunday, September 10, 2023

DEC, APA hold public comment periods for Rollins Pond & Golden Beach Campground & Day Use Area UMPs

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The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the Adirondack Park Agency (APA) are holding joint public comment periods to solicit comments for the Rollins Pond and Golden Beach Campground and Day Use Area Unit Management Plans (UMPs). The public is invited to submit input on the draft plans, which will guide future management of the facilities over the next five years and their conformance to the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan. Comments will be accepted until September 18, 2023.

Sunday, September 10, 2023

First annual Clean Up Lake George Day set for Sept. 17

The Lake George Association invites residents, businesses, and visitors to help get rid of trash that harms the Lake’s water quality and aquatic life

Lake George, NY- The Lake George Association (LGA), in partnership with the Warren County Sheriff’s Office, the Village of Lake George, and the Lake George Waterkeeper, will host the first annual “Clean Up Lake George” event on Sunday, September 17, 2023, in Lake George Village. Residents, businesses, and visitors are encouraged to participate in removing trash from the shoreline and in the water to protect water quality and aquatic plants and animals.

Thursday, September 7, 2023

Forward Together Conference set for Oct. 5, register by Sept. 11

Lake George, NY – The region’s planning and economic development organization, the Lake Champlain-Lake George Regional Planning Board (LCLGRPB) is hosting the 2nd annual Forward Together Conference on October 5th, 2023, at the High Peaks Resort in Lake Placid from 8 a.m. to noon. This half-day event focuses on issues that impact the region and its communities, and includes transportation funding and partnerships, community asset-based planning and revitalization opportunities, and small business assistance programs.

Wednesday, September 6, 2023

DEC Announces Rehab Project for the Upper Locks on the Saranac Chain of Lakes

by NYS DEC

Rehabilitation Work Will Begin September 18 and Will Close the Upper Locks

On Tuesday, September 5, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced the $1.6 million rehabilitation project for the Upper Locks on the Saranac Chain of Lakes in the Adirondacks. The project is funded by NY Works and will include necessary maintenance and repairs.

Tuesday, September 5, 2023

DEC: Help monarch butterflies on their long migration south 

by NYS DEC

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Monarch butterflies  (Danaus plexippus) begin their annual fall migration around mid-August. These butterflies are the great-great-grandchildren of the monarchs that migrated to Mexico last fall.   You can help monarchs by providing food (nectar) and keeping those areas protected:

Turn a portion of your lawn into a wildflower meadow—plant milkweed or other native wildflowers.
Delay mowing areas with milkweed until later in the fall.
Avoid using herbicides—they kill all life-stages of monarchs (egg, caterpillar, pupa, and adult).
Report sightings of adults online. View a map of the sightings so far this year.

Saturday, September 2, 2023

ADK Park: Environmental Conservation Police News

by NYS DEC

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) Division of Law Enforcement enforces the 71 chapters of New York State’s Environmental Conservation Law (ECL), protecting fish and wildlife and preserving environmental quality across New York. In 2022, Environmental Conservation Police Officers (ECOs) and Investigators across the state responded to more than 25,600 calls and worked on cases that resulted in nearly 13,800 tickets or arrests for violations ranging from deer poaching to solid waste dumping, illegal mining, the illegal pet trade, and excessive emissions violations.

Injured Eagle – Essex County
On Aug. 17, ECO Nicols received a report of a downed bald eagle at a private residence in the town of Westport. The officer met with the property owners (who were keeping a watchful eye on the bird prior to the ECO’s arrival) and set out to try and catch it.

Friday, September 1, 2023

Tales of the Adirondacks, Past & Present: Why Advocacy is Important for the Adirondack Park by Diane Fish

by Guest Contributor

Our next OurStoryBridge Inc. story share is called Why Advocacy is Important for the Adirondack Park by Diane Fish. This story is about being an advocate for protected areas that are a blend of people and wilderness. Listen to this story in its entirety at the following link: https://app.memria.org/stories/public-story-view/2fb1eef1e4894995b7c3d070e1659717/

Thursday, August 31, 2023

Champlain Area Trails Releases Updated Trail Map Highlighting New Routes

Westport, NY – Discover the beauty of the Champlain Valley with Champlain Area Trails (CATS) and their updated Central Champlain Valley Trail Map, now featuring four new trails. CATS has been constructing and maintaining trails, protecting land, connecting people with nature, and promoting economic vitality in the Champlain Valley as an accredited land trust since 2009. » Continue Reading.

Wednesday, August 30, 2023

ADK 46ers Support ADK Pro Crew and Summit Stewards

The Adirondack 46ers are pleased to support the work of the Adirondack Mountain Club in 2023. We have provided funding for 9 weeks of Trail Work by the Pro Crew at Slant Rock and Avalanche Pass along with a week of blowdown sweeps by the Crew to begin the spring season. The total grant of $65,000 for the Pro Crew work along with the work of our all Volunteer Trail Crew will do much to improve the trails in the High Peaks. This brings the 46er donations to the ADK Pro Crew to over $500,000 to date. » Continue Reading.

Tuesday, August 29, 2023

DEC Invasive Species Feature: Elm Zigzag Sawfly

by NYS DEC

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is spreading awareness about the exotic insect pest called the elm zigzag sawfly (Aproceros leucopoda.) Please see below for information on how to identify the insect, locations in New York where it can be found, how the pest is affecting forests, DEC efforts to research/help manage the situation, and how others can participate in the process.

Friday, August 25, 2023

Tree Sign Language: Early Fall Color Spells Trouble

by Paul Hetzler

early fall color

Each fall deciduous trees, ice-cream stands, and marinas close for the same reason: as daylight dwindles and cold creeps in, they become less profitable. When income dips down to equal the cost of doing business, a wise proprietor will turn off the lights and lock the doors until spring.

Some enterprising holdouts stay solvent longer than others who are in the same business. Perhaps they have less competition or a better location. Conversely, a few businesses close
their shops at the first whiff of autumn. Those are the ones that just barely scrape by at the height of summer. » Continue Reading.

Friday, August 25, 2023

Rangers, wildland firefighters deployed to help contain wildfires in Idaho and Montana

by NYS DEC

Latest DEC Out-of-State Staff Deployment as DEC Water Engineers Return From Dam Safety Inspections in Vermont Following Floods

On Aug. 7, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos announced that DEC Forest Rangers and expert wildland firefighters were being deployed to assist with efforts to contain the Ridge Creek Fire in the Idaho panhandle and the Niarada Fire in northwestern Montana. The latest Forest Ranger deployments come as a team of DEC engineers recently returned from performing dam safety inspections in Vermont after being directed by Governor Kathy Hochul to assist in the recovery from the devastating flooding that inundated the Northeast last month.

New York State often deploys highly trained wildland firefighters to help battle wildfires as part of interstate and international firefighting compacts. The DEC Forest Ranger assisting in Montana will serve as a Task Force Leader and help coordinate the response to a fire that is currently estimated at 10,400 acres and zero percent contained. The fire on Bureau of Indian Affairs lands 12 miles west of Elmo, Montana, is currently threatening several structures. A pair of Rangers are also deploying to Idaho to assist with efforts to contain the Ridge Creek Fire north of Coeur D’alene.

Thursday, August 24, 2023

Wetlands protection

by Tim Rowland

In the protection of its wetlands, the Adirondack Park goes the extra mile, taking a hard look at any sort of activity involving bogs, marshes and swamps of one acre or more in size, or of any size if it happens to be located adjacent to a body of water in which there is a “free interchange of water at the surface.”

Jackie Bowen, director of conservation for the Adirondack Council, said these regulations became all the more critical in May, when the Supreme Court took a swipe at the Clean Water Act, ruling that it did not protect wetlands that were not obviously connected to permanent standing or flowing waters.

Speaking to an online gathering sponsored by Talking Rivers, an organization that promotes river health through science, art and storytelling, Bowen said the “weaker protections open (wetlands) up to fragmentation and water quality risks.”