[caption id="attachment_7796" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Production was underway Thursday, January 20 on an NYU student film shooting around Hudson, including this quick set up on the 200 block of Warren Street."][/caption]Hudson and Columbia County seem to be well-loved by filmmakers, according to a story in the Register-Star about a new student film from New York University senior Logan Lamson, who is shooting his short "Forming a Guise" with a crew of around 24 over the coming weeks. The film came to Hudson based on local residents' recommendations, as well as aid from the Hudson Valley Film Commission, based in Woodstock and tied to the film festival there. Shooting will take place this Sunday, January 23 at Hudson High School on Harry Howard Avenue. They were shooting between Front and First street, at the Henry Hudson Riverfront Park, and on Warren Street this Thursday, plus doing interior and exterior shots at the Spotty Dog on Warren Street’s 500 block. Extras for a crowd scene are needed. Call O’Brien at 813-508-1419 or e-mail formingaguide @gmail.com for more information.

The Town of Ashland in Greene County's western Mountaintop area, which lost its town hall and firehouse to fire a little over a year ago, discussed stopping its current construction of a replacement facility at a town board meeting on January 14. According to a story in the Daily Mail from reporter Michael Ryan, frigid temperatures and the associated expense of keeping poured concrete warm as it dries had caused town board members to have second thoughts about proceeding further this winter.

Engineers have estimated that as much as $10,000 will be spent on propane heaters and coverings to slowly cure the various footings and foundation walls for the structure, which replaces a facility lost to fire a year ago. There is also a need to install temporary corner shoring, due to the freezing weather. Interior flooring won't be set until after the building is put up, giving rise to concerns about heavy snow and high wind loading. Local officials felt helpless, watching what they believed were thousands of extra dollars piling up, summoning representatives from Delaware Engineering and Gallo Construction to the table, last Friday afternoon.

Although Ryan reported that town elders didn't prefer a slow down, because of the delay of several months that would result, they are worried about money. Like all government, business, and most local residents these days. For the full story read The Daily Mail.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="Mescal Hornbeck, a longtime Woodstock-based activist and 50-year nurse, passed away January 18 at the age of 99. Photo from Daily Freeman."][/caption]Mescal Hornbeck, who passed away at the age of 99 in her hometown of Woodstock on Tuesday, January 18, may have had her biggest impact in Ulster County, but her activities on behalf of local Meals on Wheels programming and the establishment of strong Offices of the Aging were regional in scope... and ultimate effect. Moreover, Hornbeck's weekly letters to local papers were read far and wide... to the point where people started worrying when they stopped appearing in recent weeks.

The Kingston Freeman has a story about the feisty Hornbeck's passing in its January 20 issue. A memorial will be printed in the Woodstock Times later today.

Even at her advanced age, Hornbeck remained “sharp as a tack” and “politically astute,” said town Supervisor Jeff Moran. And she always was a “doer and a shaper,” said Amy Godes, who organized a “Mescal Appreciation Concert” in 2001.

Godes said Hornbeck spearheaded the community’s Senior Recreation Committee and that the group’s activities grew to include classes, art, drama and exercise. “She really breathed life into it,” Godes said.

When it came to senior citizens’ activities in town, “she was basically the head of the whole shebang,” said Toni Weidenbacher, one of the organizers for Woodstock’s annual All Day Christmas Parties.

Hornbeck, who was a nurse for nearly half a century, also is remembered as a political advocate for issues she believed were important — particularly universal health care and campaign finance reform. For a full appreciation of this "cantankerous" original, click here...

In its first two months of operation, a prescription drug discount program has saved Greene County residents more than $18,000, according to the county in a local sidelight story commenting on the current healthcare hullabaloo down in the U.S. Congress. The Daily Freeman's Ariel Zangla-Girard reports January 20 that the Greene County Prescription Drug Discount Card, offered to county residents through a partnership with ProAct Inc., has saved locals $18,243.61 since it was introduced last November, according to information provided by the county. The county said 384 cards were used in November and December for an average savings of $27.81. “Obviously, there’s tremendous benefits to those without insurance and those who need medicine not covered by their insurance,” county Legislature Chairman Wayne Speenburgh, R-Cosxackie, said while adding that he would like to see more county residents take advantage of the free discount card. ProAct, at its own expense, mailed more than 24,000 prescription drug discount cards to county residents beginning the week of Nov. 8. While the program was advertised as being of most benefit to people lacking prescription drug insurance and seniors paying out of pocket for the Medicare Part D coverage gap, all county residents are eligible to participate, regardless of age or income. The discount card also can be used for pet medications.

Speenburgh said that when ProAct originally approached Greene officials about offering the discount card, the county took a “wait and see” approach because a lot of other counties were offering the program. But after a time, the county contacted ProAct to offer the program in Greene, Speenburgh said. He noted the card carries no cost for the individuals who use it and no cost for county taxpayers.

Neighboring Ulster County also offers the ProAct program to its residents. Between July and October 2010, Ulster County residents used the discount card 3,833 times for a total savings of $125,971.62. In Dutchess County, a partnership with the National Association of Counties had served nearly 8,600 residents as of November, with a total savings of $354,676.

If individuals need the card, they should call ProAct at (877) 776-2285, Speenburgh said.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has been accused by pro-fracking advocates, and the New York Post, of having conflicts of interest within his anti-gas drilling stance of late."][/caption]The battle over gas drilling, or fracking, heated up in advance of its move to the halls of our nation's capital this week, with the New York Post running a piece earlier this week claiming that New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, who they describe as "leading the fight to block a type of natural-gas drilling in New York" - has a conflict of interest regarding his stance due to the fact that his private law firm is trying to drum up multimillion-dollar lawsuits against the practice in other states.

The speaker's massive Manhattan-based personal-injury law firm, Weitz & Luxenberg, plans a pair of public forums this week in Pennsylvania and West Virginia to "listen to the concerns of the community, share information and discuss legal options" about the gas-exploration phenomenon known as "hydrofracking" or "fracking." Silver (D-Manhattan) -- citing risks of water contamination by chemical byproducts from the process -- has emerged as a leading foe to expanded natural-gas drilling, which proponents argue could improve New York's energy independence and revive upstate's long-stagnant economy.

The process, formally called "horizontal hydrofracturing," for the first time allows engineers to unlock stores of gas trapped in the vast underground Marcellus shale deposit that stretches from central New York to Virginia. Last month, former Gov. David Paterson extended an environmental review period after vetoing a six-month ban shepherded through the Assembly by Silver.



Silver was relatively late to the drilling issue, following the state Senate, and its current Senate majority, in promoting or passing moratorium legislation against the practice while its effects are studied in New York.

Drilling advocates, government watchdog groups and even some Democrats say Weitz & Luxenberg's anti-drilling push, which follows a similar forum last month in Pennsylvania, raises questions about the powerful speaker's independence on the high-stakes issue.

Things are going to get messy as this issue heats up beyond its regional battleground in the coming year...

Wetter, cooler summers can have a detrimental effect on the milk we drink, according to new research published by Newcastle University in England, Science Daily reports. Researchers found milk collected during a wet, cold UK summer and winter, had significantly higher saturated fat content and less beneficial fatty acids than in a more 'normal' year. But the scientists discovered organic supermarket milk showed higher levels of nutritionally beneficial fatty acids compared with 'ordinary' milk regardless of the time of year or weather conditions. "The study, which is published in this month's Journal of Dairy Science (January 2011), leads on from previous research undertaken nearly three years ago which looked at the difference between organic and conventional milk at its source -- on the farms," says Science Daily.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="200" caption="New state legislative bill proposes to end document shredding by losing representatives, with examples cited in bill's publicity."][/caption]The Times Union's Capital Confidential newsblog has a piece up about how a group of state legislators — mostly Assembly Republicans — have gathered to propose a bill making it a misdemeanor for losing lawmakers to destroy constituent case files after leaving office. Assemblyman Phil Boyle, a Long Island Republican who is the bill’s sponsor, said he first experienced the problem in the 1990s as chief of staff to then-Rep. Rick Lazio. “We walked in the office after a tough race, all the files were destroyed,” he said. Recently, Boyle said, he got the idea to outlaw the practice while watching a news report on outgoing-Sen. Antoine Thompson’s destruction of files. Sen. Mark Grisanti, who defeated Thompson, will sponsor the bill in the Republican-majority Senate.

Boyle asked other legislators — Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis and Assemblymen Mike Spano and Dean Murray — to share similar stories. Murray said his office was stripped of all files when he took over after a special election, and even the copier was looted of its toner cartridges. “It got to the point of ridiculous,” he said.

Boyle explained the bill he is sponsoring would not require the preservation of all files, but simply ones relating to individual constituents seeking and/or receiving assistance in dealing with a state agency. This can include everything from cutting through red tape at the Department of Motor Vehicles to making sure their health insurance is in order. Those latter instances, Boyle said, make this a “life and death issue.” In addition to introducing the legislation, Boyle said he would forward the bill language to Gov. Andrew Cuomo with the suggestion it be included in an overall ethics reform package.

Remember that story from yesterday morning about the armed robbery that took place in Hudson as snowfall started Tuesday night, January 18, the one that included mention of a firearm reported missing from local state police barracks in Livingston? (It turns out, in updates from various sources, that the missing firearm turned out to be a typo...)

Two teenagers are in jail for allegedly committing the crime on North Fifth St. in Hudson Tuesday night. But despite mention of charges involving stolen weapons, no mention's been made yet about how a weapon went missing from the police station yet. According to a story in today's Register-Star by Andrew Amelinckx, who also serves as a WGXC programmer, Tyler T. Lamont, 16, of Hudson and 19-year-old Perry B. Gilliard, listed as being homeless, are facing several felonies for stealing a 20-year-old man’s wallet and cell phone at gunpoint.



According to Hudson Police Lt. Richard Paolino, the crime was reported to the police at 8:40 p.m. Tuesday. The robbery occurred shortly before that time, he said. About an hour later, while HPD detectives and patrol officers were investigating the crime scene, near North Fifth and Columbia streets, the two suspects were spotted.

Lamont and Gilliard were both apprehended after a short foot pursuit, said the lieutenant. Lamont was captured after he ran into the basement of a building on Prospect Street, according to authorities. He was allegedly found with a sawed off .22 caliber rifle. Gilliard was caught on Dodge Street and allegedly had a stolen revolver on him.

Both teens are being charged with first-degree robbery and first-degree use of a firearm, class B felonies; fourth-degree conspiracy, a class E felony; and second-degree menacing and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, class A misdemeanors. Gilliard is additionally being charged with fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, a class E felony, and obstructing governmental administration, a class A misdemeanor. Both were arraigned in Hudson City Court by Judge Mark Portin and remanded to Columbia County Jail without bail, pending a future court date.

Not only were two robbers taken off the streets, according to Paolino, but two illegal weapons as well. “This makes four guns we’ve gotten off the streets so far this year,” he said, pointing out that Hudson is a “small city.”

That gun had been reported stolen to the State Police in 2006 and was taken during a burglary. Anyone with information regarding this crime or any other criminal activity is encouraged to contact HPD at 518-828-3388 or the Hudson Police Detective Unit and TIPS Line at 518-828-9900.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="200" caption="Peter Markou, Greene County's new treasurer, promised to look into credit card payment options for deliquent taxpayers while campaigning for office last year. Now he's pushing forward for the option."][/caption]Worried about getting more funds in as efficiently as possible, new Greene County Treasurer Peter Markou is saying that he’d like to start collecting delinquent taxes by credit card, hoping it will bring some taxpayers current while providing a model for tax collectors at the town level. A Daily Mail story on the matter, which Markou says he will be suggesting to the town clerks who actually take in county monies, was published today, January 20.

Using a credit card, Markou said, gives delinquent payers an additional option, especially if the payments are relatively small. Taxpayers would be charged an additional convenience fee for credit card payments, said Markou. That fee is typically based on a percentage of the payment, usually two to three percent. Legislator William Lawrence, R-Cairo, said that for smaller amounts credit card payments may work but for “the bigger picture” — when property owners have a tough time paying one year, much less three — credits may not work in that situation. Markou said it was only a trial and could be presented as just one option to delinquent property taxpayers.

Markou also brought up the idea of installment payments arranged by credit card account, with one payment being made on tax day and another interest-free payment being accepted within a few months. Municipalities may frown on the interest-free payment aspect, Markou said, but it may prevent some delinquencies. He added that he will continue negotiations with area banks on the credit card payment option and may present a resolution before the county legislature in the near future. As for any representation of taxpayers already in trouble from credit card and other debts, nothing yet.

The National Weather Service has posted a Hazardous Weather Outlook with snow forecast late Thursday/early Friday and then frigid temperatures with wind chills below zero forecast this weekend.


Snow totals
From the National Weather Service, snowfall totals from the latest storm:
COLUMBIA COUNTY
KINDERHOOK 3.0 1138 AM 1/19 TRAINED SPOTTER
LIVINGSTON 3.0 1110 PM 1/18 WEATHERNET6
TAGHKANIC 2.5 730 AM 1/19 WEATHERNET6
NORTH CHATHAM 2.0 538 PM 1/18 WEATHERNET6
CHATHAM CENTER 2.0 504 PM 1/18 WEATHERNET6
ANCRAMDALE 1.5 538 PM 1/18 WEATHERNET6
CLAVERACK 0.5 1146 AM 1/19 WEATHERNET6
GREENE COUNTY
WINDHAM 6.0 754 AM 1/19 WINDHAM MTN SKI AREA
HUNTER 5.0 500 PM 1/18 WTEN
EAST JEWETT 4.3 630 AM 1/19 CO-OP OBSERVER
DURHAM 4.0 413 PM 1/18 WEATHERNET6
SE NEW BALTIMORE 3.3 700 AM 1/19 COCORAHS
KISKATOM 3.0 558 PM 1/18 WEATHERNET6
CAIRO 3.0 700 AM 1/19 CO-OP OBSERVER
CATSKILL 2.0 850 PM 1/18 WEATHERNET6


Town meetings tonight
LAFARGE LEGISLATIVE HEARING A formal legislative hearing on proposed changes at the Lafarge cement plant in Ravena, billed by the company as an modernization but seen by opponents as an expansion, will take place at the Ravena High School at 6 p.m.
CITY OF HUDSON Hudson Community Development and Planning Agency board meeting at noon at City Hall.


Weather
SNOW Snow starts late Thursday then Friday temperatures drop.


Astronomical bodies
TIDES Hudson: High, 2:59 a.m./Low, 10:03 p.m.
SUNRISE/SUNSET 7:19 a.m./4:53 p.m.
MOONRISE/MOONSET 6:16 p.m./7:35 a.m.


Birthdays
JANUARY 20 Juan Garcia Esquivel, Federico Fellini, and David Lynch.


Live on WGXC Thursday
*6-8 A.M.: WGXC Morning Show Hosted by Casson Kennedy, and Mark Lacoy. A mix of news headlines, audio features, and conversation. This morning there will be updates about the storm, possible closings, and more.
6:30 A.M.: WGXC Farm Report
7 A.M.: WGXC Newsroom Headlines
7:15 A.M.: Paul Smart calls in with live news update.
7:30: Story and audio about votes in Washington and Albany.
9 A.M.: WGXC Newsroom Headlines with Richard Roth, Alan Skerrett, Joan Geitz, Christina Malisoff, Sam Sebren, and/or Nancy Rothman.
9:15 A.M.: WGXC Farm Report
9:30-10 A.M.: Sam Sebren and Ellen Thurston preview weekend events in Greene and Columbia counties.
10 A.M.: "Tell It Like It Is" with Richard Roth, Alan Skerrett, Joan Geitz, Christina Malisoff, Sam Sebren, and/or Nancy Rothman.
NOON-2 P.M.: Crossroads Jazz show hosted by Alan Skerrett.

Ariel Zangla-Girard in The Daily Freeman reports that Greene County legislators adopted a resolution Wednesday allowing the Treasurer’s Office to refinance the county’s outstanding bonds to save money. The resolution authorizes the county treasurer’s office to refinance up to $12.5 million in current outstanding bonds. Officials said refinancing would only be done when money can be saved and would not increase the length of time in which the bond would be repaid. The resolution, The Daily Freeman reports, does not apply to the bonds that were taken out to pay for the renovation of the Greene County Courthouse. "New treasurer Peter Markou said the resolution was suggested by the county’s financial advisors because there are times when Greene would have to act quickly to take advantage of lower interest rates on bonds," the story said.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="134" caption="Felix Ortiz, from his Assembly website."][/caption]WTEN television reports that for six years New York Assemblyman Felix Ortiz of Brooklyn has proposed a law requiring the use of helmets on the ski slopes, and the measure is getting more attention since the weekend death of a teenager on Windham Mountain. State police say 18-year-old Erin Clare Malloy-McArdle of Long Island hit a tree on Windham Mountain Sunday morning, and was not wearing a helmet. She died later in the day at Columbia-Memorial Hospital in Hudson. "This bill is about public safety," says Ortiz. "It's about saving lives, and it's a prevention mechanism to prevent accidents like this one from happening in New York State." The ski industry generally opposes such regulations.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="213" caption="Rep. Chris Gibson's swearing-in, from his Facebook page."][/caption]Acts of symbolism are often part of the legislative process, and new Republican majorities in the U.S. House of Representatives and in the New York State Senate started their sessions Wednesday with such votes. Republicans running for Congressional seats, including our area's new representative, Chris Gibson, vowed that, if elected, they would vote to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Healthcare Act. Wednesday Gibson and 244 others (189 Democrats voted against the repeal) did just that. Gibson released this statement: “By voting to repeal the health care legislation passed last year, we’re one step closer to enacting health care reform that increases access to quality and affordable care in a way that does not result in a massive government takeover, harm small businesses, or step on our freedoms," he said. But Democrats still control the U.S. Senate and President Obama has vowed to veto any repeal, so Republicans will have to propose more specific measures and take the bill apart piece by piece to achieve their dismantling.


[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="245" caption="NY State Senator James Seward, from his website."][/caption]In Albany Wednesday, a similar kabuki was being acted out. Republicans there passed the Job Creation and Taxpayer Protection Act of 2011, and other bills to make it tougher for legislators to raise taxes. Greene County's representative in the State Senate, James Seward, says the legislation, adopted today, "will encourage the creation of new private sector jobs and ensure fiscal responsibility through the enactment of a two percent state spending cap and requiring a two-thirds 'super-majority' vote to raise taxes." (He included an audio press release to listen to below.) Casey Seilor, in the Albany Times-Union's Capitol Confidential blog wrote, "All [of the measures passed Wednesday] are likely one-house bills, the first of several the restored GOP conference will be introducing in order to batter the Assembly’s Democratic majority and shore up their supporters as budget season approaches." With Democrats holding the State Assembly, and Gov. Cuomo only likely to agree with Republicans so many times, this is another show for the cameras.


Watch video of Rep. Chris Gibson speaking on House floor during vote to repeal health care bill. Click here to watch wmv video of C-Span clip of.


Listen to audio of State Senator James Seward press release about Job Creation and Taxpayer Protection Act. Click here to listen to audio.

The National Weather Service issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook forecasting continued snow showers through Friday morning (possibly several more inches) and a bitter cold after that. Saturday and Sunday forecast highs are in the teens. Wind chills are expected to make it feel much colder this weekend.

Carole Osterink in The Gossips of Rivertown reports that at Tuesday night's Hudson Common Council meeting the city approved the transfer of three city-owned lots on the 200 block of Columbia St. to Habitat for Humanity. Habitat needed a commitment from the City before the end of the month in order to apply for two major grants, which was put in doubt by the weather and Fifth Ward Alderman Dick Goetz's three-month winter holiday in Florida. Fourth Ward Alderman Sheila Ramsey also did not make the meeting, and until Third Ward Alderman Chris Wagoner arrived late, the resolution lacked the necessary votes to pass. Wagoner did get all the ice off his car and made it to the meeting to pass the resolution, and Habitat will get to build new houses for low-income residents. Common Council President Don Moore said that a program would be made available to residents of the Bliss Towers housing project to help them qualify to buy the Habitat houses.

One thinks of things like identity theft as big city urban crime stories, where the importance of those getting their identities stolen are key. Not so. The Daily Mail reports on January 19 of a 34-year-old Cairo woman who has been charged with stealing the identity of a sick friend and withdrawing more than $10,000 from the friend’s accounts.

The Greene County Sheriff’s Office charged Tammy Lacitignola with allegedly using a friend’s checkbooks to write herself checks. She also is alleged to have used her friend’s personal information to open credit card and cell phone accounts. She has been charged with seven counts of second-degree forgery, seven counts of second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, third-degree grand larceny, first-degree identity theft, all class D felonies, and three counts of criminal impersonation, a misdemeanor.

Colin DeVries' story goes on to note how Greene County Sheriff’s Investigator Adam Brainard said Lacitignola was asked to watch over a friend’s home while they were hospitalized for an illness. During that time, Brainard continued, Lacitignola had access to her friend’s checkbooks and confidential information, and allegedly used them to her advantage, investigators said.

A joint investigation with the Greenport Police Department and the Greene County District Attorney’s Office revealed that between September 2010 and December 2010, Lacitignola allegedly cashed numerous checks by forging her friend’s signature, and opened up four cell phone accounts and credit card accounts in her friend’s name. Lacitignola illegally signed the checks — which were made out to “Cash” — and cashed them at banks in both Columbia and Greene counties, said Brainard. The funds she is alleged to have taken exceed $10,000, the sheriff’s office said.

Lacitignola was arraigned in Catskill Village Court and remanded to the Greene County Jail in lieu of $15,000 cash bail or $30,000 bond. She is due to reappear in Catskill Village Court at a later date. The Greenport Police Department will also be filing similar felony charges against her in the coming days.

The New York Lottery has announced the name of an Ancram Mega Millions player who won $10,000 in the drawing held on Jan. 4. The winner, Robert Macarthur, purchased the winning ticket at the Xtra Mart at 2224 Route 9 in Livingston.

Lottery prizes up to $600 may be cashed at any of the Lottery’s 16,000 licensed retailers statewide. Lottery prizes valued at $601 to $999,999 may be claimed at any of the Lottery’s seven stand-alone Customer Service Centers located in Buffalo; Rochester; Syracuse; Schenectady; Fishkill; Manhattan; and Garden City, and within any of the Lottery’s eight gaming facilities including Saratoga Gaming & Raceway; Monticello Gaming & Raceway; Tioga Downs Casino; Batavia Downs Casino; Empire City Casino at Yonkers Raceway; Fairgrounds Gaming & Raceway; Finger Lakes Gaming & Racetrack; and Vernon Downs Casino & Hotel. Prizes of $1,000,000 or more must be claimed at one of the Lottery’s seven stand-alone offices listed above.

For more information on how to cash a winning Lottery ticket, click the “Ask New York Lottery” tab at www.nylottery.org.

And hey... congratulations to Robert MacArthur!

State Police are looking for two men who held up the night clerk at the Xtra Mart convenience store on Route 9 in the Town of Kinderhook early Tuesday morning. According to the Mid Hudson News Network, two men, dressed in dark clothing, hoodies and ski masks entered the store around 12:30 a.m. and demanded money from the clerk under the threat that they had a weapon. None was displayed. No one was injured during the robbery. The pair fled with an unknown amount of cash. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Livingston State Police BCI at 518-851-2001.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="200" caption="There are some saying there may be a tinge of Frank Capra's classic "Mr. Smith Goes To Washington" as the gas drilling "fracking" discussion enters Congress in the coming term."][/caption]The Watershed Post out in the Catskills has an update on how hydraulic fracturing is shaping up to be one of the big battlegrounds for the new 112th U.S. Congress, where "the various actors are already hinting at how the debate will unfold."

President Barack Obama's administration has hinted that gas drilling could emerge as a major issue this year. The day after the midterm elections were swept by Republicans in November, Obama surprised gas industry advocates and critics alike by singling out natural gas drilling as a point of compromise with the newcomers in Congress. But despite the President's professed enthusiasm for natural gas, according to a January 4th article in the New York Times by the environmental news source Greenwire, the Obama administration has continued to tread a middle ground. with fossil fuel enthusiasts saying they have seen no change in Obama's approach since the Nov. 2 election that he dubbed a "shellacking."

The report goes on to note a number of inconsistencies in the administration's stance on gas drilling, then charts GOP clear support for hydraulic fracturing.

On the first day of the new congressional session, January 5th, a pro-fracking contingent of the House of Representatives issued a challenge to Salazar's proposal (to regulate chemicals used in the process). Thirty-two members of the Congressional Natural Gas Caucus showed their support for natural gas development by signing a letter opposing any regulations that would require the disclosure of the ingredients in fracking fluid used in drilling on public lands.

Watershed Post goes on to quote Pro Publica's report that indicated that, "if money is an indicator, the anti-regulatory group has the upper hand. A back-of-the-envelope analysis of campaign finance dollars contributed to the members of Congress who are speaking out on the issue shows that the Natural Gas Caucus received 19 times more money from the oil and gas industry between 2009 and 2010 than the group who signed Rep. Hinchey’s letter (in support of Salazar's regulations and disclosure requirements for the industry)."

For the full story, click here...

One of the state's leading environmental organizations, Environmental Advocates, gathered representatives of the timber industry, farmers and other disparate groups to urge Gov. Andrew Cuomo to restore money to the state's Environmental Protection Fund. The fund pays for a range of activities that benefit farmers and loggers as well as environmentalists and have included such projects benefiting our coverage area as $17.6 million for open space land buys, $1.1 million for fighting invasive species, $12 million for waterfront revitalization, $6.6 million for municipal recycling programs, $10.7 million for farmland protection, and other funds for historic preservation over the years.

A Times Union report notes that with a budget deficit as high as $11 billion looming in the next fiscal year, it's hard to say whether the fund, which this year stands at $134 million, will be restored to $222 million as environmentalists and others want. But the participants at Tuesday's news conference provided a clear illustration of how budget crunches can bring together allies from a wide range of diverse interests.

The EPF was $250 million in the 2007-08 budget year.

"It's very tempting to think about environmental programs, certainly in terms of things that have obvious importance, like making sure our water is clear and our air is safe to breathe ... but these agencies, these programs, do far more than that," said Rob Moore, executive director of Environmental Advocates which joined with the loggers and farmers.

For those in the forest products business -- timber cutters, log-home builders, wood pellet makers and others -- cutbacks at the state Department of Conservation as well as in the EPF translate into fewer trees cut and less business.

New York loggers are already cutting considerably less wood on state land that they did a decade ago, noted Eric Carlson, executive director of the Empire State Forest Products Association, one of Tuesday's participants. And with fewer DEC foresters and technicians available to mark trees that can be cut, activity is further reduced.

Ironically, Carlson figured the state is missing out on between $5 million and $10 million a year on logging fees because the trees aren't marked.

Additionally, with a downsized EPF fund there is less money to buy easement rights to timber lands. These rights allow the public to enjoy such forests, even though they are privately owned, and it helps keep the land as a forest rather than, say, making it available for development.

Farmers also benefit from EPF money, often with regard to the development rights to their land. By selling these rights, farmers forego the opportunity to develop their farmland. That can help them afford to continue farming, noted Jeffery Williams, deputy director of public policy for the state Farm Bureau. EPF money also helps fund soil and water conservation experts who advise farmers.

Others who use EPF money include organizations that figure out ways to avoid pollution, and recyclers, both of which have also felt the pinch from a smaller EPF.

"The EPF is critical. It supports organizations such as ours," said Anahita Williamson, director of the NYS Pollution Prevention Institute, which is based at the Rochester Institute of Technology.