Lyon Mountain, NY, May 30, 2013 — The Clinton County village of Lyon Mountain is a community that's trying to find its future. The state correctional facility closed down two years ago and the buildings go up for auction in July.

This isn't the first time Lyon Mountain has had to reinvent itself. In 1967, the iron mine that drove early prosperity closed its doors for good. The proud company town has struggled ever since.

Lyon Mountain's iron mining era still shapes the memories and local mythology in that part of the North Country.  Go to full article

May 07, 2013 — We continue our Adirondack Attic series: curator Laura Rice tells Andy Flynn why an old concrete block from Mineville is one of her favorite artifacts at the Adirondack Museum. The block was made from iron ore tailings and used to build company housing in the early 1900s.  Go to full article

Apr 30, 2013 — In the five years since New Yorkers first began to hear about horizontal hydrofracking, the state has become a battleground over the gas drilling technique.
While opponents have some high profile support, their movement remains mostly a loose collection of small groups that have been remarkably effective.  Go to full article

Apr 23, 2013 — The City of Elmira is just seven miles from the Pennsylvania border. And for four years, the natural gas boom in Pennsylvania's Northern Tier crossed over the border and boosted Elmira's economy.

But that natural gas rush has slowed down, and there's disagreement in Elmira about whether a temporary boom is worth the costs.  Go to full article

Feb 25, 2013 — A Canadian company has signed a letter of intent to buy the zinc mines outside Gouverneur for $12 million. Beaufield Resources says it plans to hire workers this year.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Jan 14, 2013 — Activists opposed to hydraulic fracturing in New York, including Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon, attempted to present the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation with over 200,000 comments, on the last day of a public comment period on the gas drilling process.

They and other anti-fracking activists tried to deliver a letter to Gov. Andrew Cuomo as well.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Jan 14, 2013 — New York's Department of Environmental Conservation stopped accepting public comments on the state's revised regulations for hydraulic fracturing on Friday. The end of the comment period drew more opponents of the natural gas extraction method to Albany. Led by Yoko Ono and her son, Sean Lennon, they brought stacks of anti-fracking comments to the DEC.

The deadline also prompted the Democratic-controlled state assembly to convene a last-minute public hearing Thursday. It was a day-long session that included some heated exchanges, and a call for another moratorium.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Nov 20, 2012 — Gas drilling companies in New York State says they're "exhausted" by a more than four year long review process on whether to allow hydro fracking in New York, that they say they now fear will drag on into 2013.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Nov 15, 2012 — New York State is facing a Nov. 29 deadline to write rules for the controversial gas drilling method hydraulic fracturing.

If the Department of Environmental Conservation Department doesn't complete its work by that date, the rule making process, possibly including public hearings, would have to start all over again. And a delay in a heath study, which could take months, means that could happen. It could possibly include more public hearings, and add several more months if not years to a review process that's been going on since 2008.  Go to full article

Oct 25, 2012 — A Toronto-based mining executive says he's close to finalizing a deal to buy the zinc mines near Gouverneur. The sale would be the first step towards restarting a big part of the area's economy.  Go to full article