Brian Nearing reports in the Albany Times Union that the U.S. Coast Guard moves its closed-door discussions about possible Hudson River large-barge anchorage sites to Albany this week. Last week the Coast Guard held two days of meetings in Poughkeepsie for a "Ports and Waterways Assessment," studying transportation risks on the river. The Coast Guard has said since last year it needs places to park large ships on the Hudson River, though their proposal met with much resistance from New York state officials, local government leaders, and environmental groups. Rear Admiral Steven Poulin says the assessment is a, "process that allows us to take a really close look at risks – navigational and environmental risks – associated with a particular waterway and it helps us inform and give us a better understanding of what those risks are and how we may mitigate those risks," according to the Mid-Hudson News Network. The Coast Guard has invited the Hudson River Pilots, Hudson River Waterfront Allliance, Sierra Club, Tug and Barge Committee of New York/New Jersey, state Department of Environmental Conservation, Riverkeeper, Scenic Hudson, McAllister Towing, Pace University, and Samalot Marine, but not the public or media to the meetings. Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a law in October that allows the Department of Environmental Conservation to consider potential environmental and waterfront impacts of transporting petroleum on state waterways such as the Hudson River. That came after the Coast Guard withdrew its large-barge anchorage proposal. Read the full story in the Albany Times Union.