THE GREEN SHEET

Vol. 8 - No. 9
September 2003

Lead Story: Beat the Heat
On the Alert
For Your Information
Activists' Corner
The Month Ahead
Contact Information

Beat the Heat

Hundreds of New Yorkers will stride through New York City’s Central Park on Wednesday, October 15, at the first ever NYC Race to Stop Global Warming. This is a fun run with a serious message. In a very real sense, the effort to stop global warming is a race. The United States, with just 4 percent of the world’s population, produces one quarter of the earth’s carbon dioxide emissions. Every ton of global warming gases released into the atmosphere through the wasteful use of fossil fuels and the destruction of forests spends about 100 years in the atmosphere trapping more heat to the earth’s surface. Given what has already been released, even if global warming pollution is cut to zero, the earth will experience warming to some degree. By acting now to cut emissions, more drastic warming, and more serious disruptions in global climate can be avoided.

What’s at stake? Experts project that global warming will have serious consequences for human health. In New York, Lyme disease and West Nile virus are expected to spread because the insects that carry these diseases like warmer weather. Hotter days also mean more smog, particularly in New York City, Buffalo, and the surrounding suburbs. As the climate warms, smog will worsen, harming children, the elderly and those with respiratory diseases.

The NYC race comes at a particularly important moment. The United States Senate will soon vote on the Climate Stewardship Act, a mandatory plan for reducing emissions of global warming gases. New York’s senators should support this legislation. New York is also working with other northeast states to require power plants to cut emissions of carbon dioxide, the main heat-trapping gas. Governor Pataki should make the state the leader in this effort by capping in-state power plant emissions without delay.

Participating in the NYC race will help send a strong message to Congress and Governor Pataki: Let’s beat the heat by controlling carbon dioxide emissions now! Bring co-workers and family. Race as a team or on your own. To register for the race and to find out more about global warming and NY, visit www.capcarbonnow.com. Because EANY is a local partner for this race, participants can raise money to support the Cap Carbon Now Campaign through pledges. The race, organized by the Green House Network, is one of a series of such road races around the nation.

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On the Alert

♦TEA Time: Congress must reauthorize TEA-21, the legislation that sets national transportation policy and funding levels for the coming years, before it adjourns. Meanwhile, the House is preparing to vote on an appropriations bill, H.R. 2989, that would dismantle key transportation programs. H.R. 2989 would shut down Amtrak, eliminate the enhancements program that supports bicycling, pedestrian and historic preservation projects, and shift funding from transit to more highways. Urge your Representative to vote against this bill. Voice your support for these programs and to maintain the current balance in transit and highway funding. For more information, contact the Alliance for a New Transportation Charter at 202-466-2636. Visit www.antc.net.

♦Rock On: Thalle Industries wants to expand its existing rock quarry mine, located on the east side of Route 9 approximately 1.8 miles south of Interstate 84, in the Town of Fishkill in Dutchess County. A stream that marks the north boundary of the mine property empties into a state-designated primary aquifer and the outlet is upstream from a major public water supply. A public hearing will be held at the Fishkill Town Hall September 30. Petitions requesting party status to participate at the adjudicatory hearing must be received at the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) Office of Hearings and Mediation Services (625 Broadway, 1st Floor, Albany, New York 12233-1550; 518-402-9003) by 2:00PM, September 22. Visit: www.dec.state.ny.us/website/enb/20030806/hearings.html for information on the hearing. Contact Peter Rostenberg, Fishkill Ridge Caretakers, at rostenberg@worldnet.att.net or Warren Reiss, Scenic Hudson, at 845-473-4440 x229, for more information.

♦Water Worries: A loophole in international agreements leaves the water of the Great Lakes vulnerable to large scale diversion and extraction for commercial purposes. Correcting this will take an amendment to the Great Lakes Charter requiring unanimous approval by the governors of the eight US states and two Canadian provinces in the Great Lakes Basin. That amendment process – known as Annex 2001 – is currently undergoing a final round of negotiation. New York, as the downstream state, has the most to lose if the Annex fails. Contact Governor Pataki and urge him to fight for a strong, comprehensive agreement based on conservation and improvement to water quality and water-based resources throughout the Great Lakes watershed.

♦Managing Cats: The DEC released a Draft Revision of the Catskill Park State Land Master Plan in August. The revisions increase the amount of protected wilderness areas, and open up more of the park for public recreational uses. Four public hearings are scheduled in September (see calendar). Written comments will be accepted until Oct. 15 by Peter Frank, bureau chief of Forest Preserve Management, NYSDEC, 625 Broadway, Albany, New York 12233-4254. The Draft Revision Catskill Park State Land Master Plan is available at www.dec.state.ny.us/website/dlf/publands/cats/cpslmp.pdf. Contact the Adirondack Mountain Club at 518-449-3870.

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For Your Information

♦Hubba Hubba: The Great Lakes Aquatic Habitat Network and Fund (GLAHNF) provides information and financial support to grassroots citizen initiatives working to protect and restore Great Lakes shorelines, inland lakes, rivers, wetlands and other aquatic habitats in the Great Lakes Basin. Network activities revolve around communication hubs in each of the Great Lakes states and Ontario. Environmental Advocates was recently named the New York hub. As the state hub, EANY provides organizations with network grant funding information, a monthly electronic newsletter, action alerts, an annual mini conference in the basin on relevant aquatic habitat issues, and more. To receive periodic information on Great Lakes aquatic habitat issues, contact Karen De Vito at 518-462-5526 ext. 235 or kdevito@eany.org. Visit: www.eany.org/issues/greatlakes.html for more information.

♦Overexposed: Environmental Exposure and Racial Disparities, documents how people of different races living in the US are exposed to different chemicals in the workplace and the home. While exposure to naturally occurring environmental chemicals that people touch, eat or breathe is similar, exposure to synthetic chemicals, such as dioxins and pesticides, pose a greater burden to people of color. The results are based on an analysis by the Environmental Justice and Health Union of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Second National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals. To read the complete analysis, visit: www.ejhu.org/disparities.html.

♦Sustainable Manhattan: The Green Ground Zero Sustainable Design Competition provides applicants the opportunity to submit proposals envisioning a sustainable Lower Manhattan. Proposals may deal with any aspect of sustainability, from architecture and transportation to greenery and energy usage. The Competition is being organized by NY Climate Rescue and Democratic Leadership for the 21st Century. Applicants must register by 9/22 and submit proposals by 10/20. A kick off event will be held on 9/4 (see calendar). Call Marc Brammer at 646-237-0217 or visit: www.greengroundzero.org.

♦Daily Dose: A new website contains daily links to press coverage of environmental health issues from across the nation and world. The site, www.EnvironmentalHealthNews.org, is published by Environmental Health Sciences. Free daily updates are also available by email.

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Activists' Corner

Windy City: A wind energy study by graduate students at the University at Buffalo recommends formation of a Wind Action Group (WAG) made up of elected officials, industry experts, regulatory agents, environmentalists and others. The group would connect the multiple stakeholders into a forum for public awareness and the development of economic and environmental opportunities in the Buffalo Niagara region. Buffalo’s Green Gold Development Corporation created WAG in collaboration with Erie County and a number of other public and private organizations.
   Erie County is conducting an urban shoreline wind study that will provide a regional understanding of existing shoreline wind resources and determine appropriate shoreline siting locations, both inside and outside of the City of Buffalo, for future development of urban wind farms. WAG is providing important support to this effort.
   For more information on Buffalo WAG email: windmail@greengold.org or visit: www.greengold.org/wind.

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The Month Ahead

September

4: Green Ground Zero Sustainable Design Competition launch event, hosted by Pace University’s Center for Downtown NY. Keynote by world renowned green architect William McDonough. Michael Schimmel Center for the Arts, One Pace Plaza, Pace University, NYC. 6:30PM. Free. RSVP required to Neil Chambers at neil@greengroundzero.org. (See FYI.)

7: 14th Annual NYC Century Bike Tour 2003, sponsored by Transportation Alternatives. 100, 75, 55, 35 and 15 mile routes. Registration fees vary. Call 212-629-8080 or visit: www.transalt.org.

7: Family Farm Festival, sponsored by Sunstone Herb Farm. Support and celebrate sustainable local agriculture with celebrity chef recipe tasting and competition with local and NYC chefs, activities for kids and more. Epworth Camp, High Falls. 12:00PM-5:00PM. Fees vary. Call Jen Prosser 845-657-6059.

8: Public hearing on Draft Revision Catskill Park State Land Master Plan. Guilderland Town Hall, 5209 Route 30, Guilderland. 7:00PM. Also: 9/9, Windham Town Hall, 371 Route 296, Hensonville, 7:00PM; 9/18, Neversink Town Hall, 273 Main St., (Route 55), Grahamsville, 7:00PM; 9/20, Discovery (Lower) Lodge, Belleayre Ski Center, half a mile south of Route 28 on County Route 49A, Highmount, 10:00AM. (See On the Alert.)

12-13: ReCharge Energy Expo and Conference: Smart Solutions for a Cleaner World, sponsored by Pace Energy Project. Bear Mountain Conference Center, Bear Mountain. Contact Dorice Madronero at 914-422-4415 or dmadronero@law.pace.edu. Visit: www.rechargeexpo.com.

19: SUNY Conversations in the Disciplines: The Feasibility of a NYS Energy Conservation/Global Warming Consortium, a regional conference co-hosted by SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Clean Air-Cool Planet and NYSERDA. Syracuse, NY. Free. Call 315-470-6915 or email: rsmardon@mailbox.syr.edu.

20: NYS Beach Cleanup, coordinated by the American Littoral Society. Join a shoreline cleanup in your area or organize one of your own. Contact Barbara Cohen at 718-471-2166 or alsbeach@aol.com.

20: The Turning of the Tide, Arm of the Sea Puppet Theatre performance at the Hudson Valley Materials Exchange. Larger than life puppets and live music grace this performance about the checkered past of The Hudson River. Bring your own chair. 1101 1st St., Stewart Airport, New Windsor. 2:00PM. Call 845-567-1445.

20-28: Fourth Annual Hudson River Valley Ramble. A 9-day celebration of the natural and historic resources of the 4 million-acre Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area and Hudson River Estuary featuring nearly 140 guided walks, hikes, kayaking events and river explorations led by naturalists, ecologists, historians, and trail organizations. Call 800-453-6665 or visit www.hudsonvalleyramble.com.

28: Ecofest 2003, sponsored by the West Side Cultural Center. Environmental festival features exhibits, entertainment, food and more. Damrosch Park at Lincoln Center, Columbus Ave. at West 66th St., NYC. 11:00AM-6:00PM. Call 212-496-2030.

28: Hudson Valley Harvests: Abundance and Diversity, the 25th Annual Harvest Festival, sponsored by the Stony Kill Farm Environmental Education Center. Activities include a farmer’s market, music, food, crafts and more. 79 Farmstead Lane, Wappingers Falls. 12:00PM-4:00PM. Call 845-831-8780.

28: Jamaica Bay Sunset Cruise, sponsored by American Littoral Society (ALS), Jamaica Bay Ecowatchers and Gateway National Recreation Area. Enjoy a 3-hour narrated tour of the backwater marshes of Jamaica Bay in Queens. 4:30PM-7:30PM. $35 includes refreshments. To reserve, send check to: ALS, 28 West 9th Road, Broad Channel, NY 11693. Call 718-318-9344. Also 10/4.

30: Public Hearing on Thalle Industries proposed rock quarry mine expansion. Fishkill Town Hall, 807 Route 52, Fishkill. 10:00AM. (See On the Alert.)

October

4: Building Green for Health and Safety, a seminar on the benefits of energy efficiency, renewable energy and green building methods and materials, sponsored by Sustainable Hudson Valley, UCCC Health and Safety Institute and Hudson River Sloop Clearwater. Free tour of Sustainability Center following seminar. Registration $35 by 9/26, $40 at door (includes meals). 8:30AM. Call Ann Songalyo at 845-687-5012.

3-5: Sustainable Living with Renewable Energy, the NYS Association of Environmental Management Councils’ 2003 Conference on the Environment. Hyatt Regency Hotel, Buffalo. $65 advance, $75 at the door. Contact Joan Bozer at 716-881-1639 or jkbozer@aol.com.

15: Race to Stop Global Warming. EANY is forming a team to run/walk in Central Park representing the Cap Carbon Campaign. To join, call 518-462-5526, email: info@eany.org or visit: www.capcarbonnow.com. (See Beat the Heat.)

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THE GREEN SHEET
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Environmental Advocates of New York.
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Managing Editor • Jeff Jones
Editor • Laura DiBetta

To Contact Elected Officials:

Governor George E. Pataki
Executive Chamber
State Capitol
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New York State Senate
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518.455.2800
www.senate.state.ny.us

New York State Assembly
Albany, NY 12248
518.455.4100
www.assembly.state.ny.us

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