News stories tagged with "water-quality"

(11/15/11) The U.S. has worked to get lead out of gas and out of paint, but the biggest source of lead in a consumer product is still on roadways. It's in the form of wheel weights, used to balance the tires on our cars. The Environmental Protection Agency says about 1.6 million pounds of lead falls off of vehicles each year, and winds up in the environment. New York is among a handful of states that is leading the effort to ban lead wheel weights. Julie Grant reports. more

(05/18/10) A generation ago, acid rain caused by coal burning power plants in the Midwest was seen as the biggest threat to Adirondack lakes and waterways.

New environmental regulations have stopped much of that pollution. But a growing number of advocates say the next big danger is coming from a source closer to home. Every winter, state and local trucks dump thousands of tons of salt in an effort to melt the snow and ice on North Country roads.

Critics say the current system is too toxic. But a growing number of state and local officials say spreading all that salt is also too expensive. Brian Mann has our story.

(02/25/09) State officials want to expand dramatically the protection given to streams and rivers that flow into Lake George. Green groups and some residents say the move is necessary to begin restoring the lake's legendary water-quality. But pro-development groups and many locals say the new regulations would stifle development and eclipse private property rights. Brian Mann reports from Lake George.

(01/05/09) Most of us assume the government is keeping track of environmental issues such as pollution in water. In reality, most pollution problems are first detected by citizens. Lester Graham reports in some parts of the nation, volunteers step in to make sure their local streams and lakes are clean.

(12/03/08) At least four North Country counties are planning to sue the Adirondack Park Agency. At issue are new shoreline restrictions approved last month. The rules limit construction and expansion of waterfront homes without an APA variance. As Brian Mann reports, local leaders say political changes in Albany will mean more lawsuits against state agencies.

(11/14/08) The Adirondack Park Agency is poised to enact sweeping new regulations today. The rules would expand APA authority to restrict shoreline development inside a 50-foot buffer zone. Supporters in the environmental community say the changes close loopholes that endanger water quality and waterfront habitat. But critics describe the move as an illegal power grab that threatens local economies. Brian Mann reports.

(06/02/08) This week, the US Senate will debate a landmark bill that aims to sharply cut the nation's greenhouse gas pollution. The climate change measure is modeled closely after a policy that was first used to curb acid rain in the Adirondacks. The so-called "cap and trade" system would set new limits on carbon pollution. But it would also leave industry to decide how to reach the goals. As Brian Mann reports, the measure puts the Adirondacks back at the center of the national environmental debate.

(11/19/07) The owner of a waterfront home on Lake Clear near Saranac Lake has agreed to pay a $50,000 fine to the Adirondack Park Agency. The settlement allows the Hickey family to keep their luxury home on a location that violates the park's environmental rules. Brian Mann has details.

(09/24/04) After a 14-year impasse, the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe will allow General Motors on to tribal land to clean up an inlet on the St. Lawrence River. Turtle Cove is contaminated with PCBs, a cancer-causing chemical. The EPA ordered the work to be done in 1990. But tribal officials wouldn't allow it because General Motors giant toxic landfill is right next to the cove and they feared the water would get re-contaminated. Different visions of what "clean" means have stalled clean-up of the GM landfill Superfund site near Massena. Listen again to David Sommerstein's report from 2001 on how GM, the EPA and the Mohawks see the PCB problem.

(08/31/04) More and more Americans are being warned that the local fish they eat could be contaminated with mercury and other toxins, according to a new report by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium's Sarah Hulett reports.