Tag Archive for "Adirondack Watershed Institute"

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Stewards are ready for another busy Adirondack boating season

Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute (AWI) is offering free boat inspections and decontaminations starting on Memorial Day weekend at more than 60 boat launches and road-side locations across the Adirondack region to help the public stop the spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS).

AWI staff educate boaters, anglers and other visitors about aquatic invasive species and inspect and decontaminate their boats to meet the Clean, Drain, and Dry standard required by New York State.

Wednesday, May 5, 2021

Seeking public input on the direction of the Upper Saranac Watershed Management Plan

The second of three public meetings for the Upper Saranac watershed management planning effort is scheduled for Thursday, May 6 from 7pm-8:30pm.

The meeting is hosted by the Upper Saranac Foundation (USF) and the Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute (AWI). The groups will present preliminary goals for the watershed plan and will facilitate discussions about the recommendations and the future of the watershed. The groups administered a public survey in the summer of 2020 and held the first public meeting in February of 2021.

Thursday, February 25, 2021

Now Hiring Boat Stewards for 2021 Season

by NYS DEC

New York State’s Watercraft Inspection Steward Programs are now recruiting boat stewards for the 2021 season. If you like working outdoors, interacting with the public, and want to help protect New York’s waters from aquatic invasive species, please check out the SLELO PRISM (St. Lawrence Eastern Lake Ontario Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management) website for a list of positions across the state.

Photo: Boat stewards assist the public with checking their watercraft for aquatic invasive species. They also provide education and at some locations, free boat washes. (Photo by Adirondack Watershed Institute, Paul Smith’s College)

Sunday, October 4, 2020

Boat stewards report successful season and other invasives updates

by NYS DEC

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The boating season may have unofficially ended Labor Day weekend, but New York State’s Watercraft Inspection Steward program continues at select locations. To date, this year’s boat stewards have inspected more than 330,000 boats, talked with hundreds of thousands of water recreationists, and intercepted more than 18,000 aquatic plant and animal hitchhikers (including one very important finding of the infamous invasive plant hydrilla!).

When you’re enjoying the water this fall, please continue to support our stewards’ good work and protect NY’s waters by remembering to clean, drain, and dry your watercraft.

Saturday, August 29, 2020

A salty subject

by Ry Rivard

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This past Tuesday, the Explorer hosted our first public event of the COVID era — a Zoom panel discussion with Dan Kelting, the head of the Adirondack Watershed Institute of Paul Smith’s College.

We focused on something Kelting has been studying for a decade and I’ve been reporting on all year: road salt and what it does to drinking water supplies in the Adirondacks.

Kelting dived into the issue years ago, first to roundup what was known about road salt pollution elsewhere and then to find out what it was doing to the Adirondacks. In sum, too much salt running off roads ends up in waterways. There, it harms humans by messing with heart and kidney function, destroys plumbing and upends ecosystems.

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Join a conversation about road salt, pollution

Join Explorer reporter Ry Rivard and Dan Kelting, head of the Adirondack Watershed Institute of Paul Smith’s College, to talk about one of the major sources of water pollution in our region: the road salt showing up in water supplies across the Adirondacks. Ry Rivard has been reporting on this issue for the Explorer. Dan Kelting has been studying road salt for years and tested hundreds of private wells. The event will take place online starting at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 25. The conversation between Ry and Dan will last about 30 minutes, followed by your questions. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

Boost your knowledge about aquatic invasives

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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.

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.

Monday, February 24, 2020

Studies Examine Role of Boating In Invasives Spread

Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute (AWI) recently presented new research detailing the threat of aquatic invasive species in Adirondack lakes at the Northeast Aquatic Plant Management Society meeting in Lake Placid.

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s Invasive Species Management Grant Program funded AWI to undertake two studies. » Continue Reading.

Monday, February 24, 2020

2020 Lake Stewardship Employment Opportunities

The Adirondack Watershed Institute has announced they have 100+ positions available for summer 2020. They are hiring paid watershed stewards, decontamination technicians, and supervisors to help safeguard against aquatic invasive species and protect Adirondack waterways. » Continue Reading.

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Climate Change Impacting Adirondack Boreal Birds

Two new scientific studies recently released by Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute (PSC AWI) and Shingle Shanty Preserve and Research Station (SSPRS) have detected continuing patterns of decline in boreal birds in the Adirondacks.

The authors examined avian community changes in lowland boreal habitats and the impacts that temperature and precipitation have on long-term occupancy patterns of boreal birds. Both peer-reviewed papers were recently published in the scientific journal PLoS One. The studies build on more than a decade of monitoring boreal bird populations in lowland boreal habitat. » Continue Reading.

Sunday, March 10, 2019

91% of Hamilton Co Lakes Studied Affected by Road Salt

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Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute and the Hamilton County Soil and Water Conservation District have collaborated on a study detailing long term trends of the water quality in 21 Hamilton County lakes.

“The State of Hamilton County Lakes: A 25 Year Perspective 1993 – 2017” was developed to deliver a countywide assessment of the current and historical water quality status and in hopes of guiding future watershed management decisions. » Continue Reading.

Sunday, June 24, 2018

Adirondack Watershed Institute Gets $9.3M State Contract

The Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute (AWI) has been awarded a five-year, $9.3 million contract by New York State to implement the Adirondack Park Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Program.

The contract calls for the AWI to implement a region-wide watercraft inspection and decontamination program to stop the introduction, spread, and transport of aquatic invasive species such as Eurasian watermilfoil, zebra mussels, and spiny waterflea. Through it, 58 stewards will be funded at dozens of locations across the park. Public-facing efforts are seen as key as recreational watercraft susceptible to spreading invasive species move about the park in the coming months. » Continue Reading.

Saturday, October 21, 2017

Major Grant Funds Watershed Institute’s Invasives Work

The Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute has received a $594,276 grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for its ongoing work in controlling and preventing the spread of aquatic invasive species.

The funds will go toward work carried out by AWI stewards at approximately 10 different locations, including Upper St. Regis Lake, the St. Lawrence River and the lower Raquette River Reservoirs. » Continue Reading.

Thursday, June 15, 2017

Adirondack Lake Program Marking 20 Years of Science