North Creek, NY, May 08, 2012 — The Olympic Regional Development Authority will begin operating the Belleayre Mountain resort in the Catskills later this year. That's a huge change for the organization, which had focused exclusively on Adirondack venues, in Wilmington, Lake Placid and North Creek.

Once Belleayre is added to ORDA's list of venues, two new members from the Catskills will sit on the organization's board.

But currently, only one board member represents communities in Warren County and the North Creek area. As Andy Flynn reports, some Gore Mountain advocates say they want more representation on ORDA's board.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Jan 13, 2012 — The State's environmental commissioner estimates the agency has received 40,000 comments in the public comment period on proposed hydrofracking in New York, which ended Wednesday. In Albany, Karen DeWitt has the details.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Jan 02, 2012 — New York Comptroller Tom DiNapoli is thinking ahead to the possibility of new hydrofracking operations in the state this year. In a letter to the Department of Environmental Conservation, DiNapoli renewed his call for a drilling fee to pay for any accidents caused by natural gas drilling.
The Innovation Trail's Matt Richmond reports.  Go to full article

Newton Falls, NY, Dec 28, 2011 — The state department of environmental conservation is looking for help in finding the person or people who stole brass and copper tubing, pipes, fittings and other items from a St. Lawrence County petroleum contamination cleanup site.

The DEC discovered last week that someone had broken into buildings at the former Jones and Laughlin Ore Processing site on State Route 3 outside of Newton Falls.  Go to full article

Watertown, NY, Sep 21, 2011 — The north country is part of the Atlantic flyway, one of four major bird migration routes in the nation. Every year, thousands of waterfowl migrate north and south with the seasons along the route. And each summer the Department of Environmental Conservation traps and bands ducks as part of an effort throughout the northeast states to track populations. Reporter Joanna Richards went out with a crew from the DEC's Brownville field office to the shore of Perch Lake near Watertown to see how the process works.  Go to full article

Caroga Lake, NY, Jul 26, 2011 — New York's Department of Environmental Conservation has begun a process designed to eliminate the racially charged "N-word" from all its maps and regulations.

The change affects documents created decades ago and includes one small lake in the southern Adirondacks. Brian Mann has details.  Go to full article

Croghan, NY, Jul 08, 2011 — The Department of Environmental Conservation says it's on schedule to remove the last stop logs from the Croghan dam any day now. That'll lower the pond on the Beaver River by some five feet. That's after the pond in Lewis County was lowered two feet last summer when stop logs were removed.

DEC engineers say the dam's a hazard. But local officials say it's part of history and there's no rush while they seek money to save it. David Sommerstein reports.  Go to full article

Mar 31, 2011 — Forest rangers in the Adirondacks have found the body of a Central New York woman who went missing last Friday. 44-year-old Kerry Young was found near the town of Inlet yesterday, following a two-day search that involved helicopters and more than fifty people. Brian Mann has details.  Go to full article

Binghamton, NY, Feb 01, 2011 — New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has signaled that the state could cut up to 10,000 workers. Which could make the state look really different.

One state agency has already been deeply affected by staffing cuts. That's the Department of Environmental Conservation, or D-E-C. The Innovation Trail's Emma Jacobs reports that's changed the way the agency does its job.  Go to full article

Ray Brook, NY, Jan 05, 2011 — Governor Andrew Cuomo has named a top conservationist with deep ties in the North Country to head the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

Joe Martens is president of the Open Space Institute, which has brokered some of the biggest land preservation deals in the Adirondack Park.

Martens is also head of the state's Olympic Regional Development Authority's board of directors - helping to operate sports venues in Lake Placid, Johnsburgh, and Wilmington.

As Brian Mann reports, Martens' nomination is drawing praise from across the political spectrum.  Go to full article