William J. Kemble reports in The Daily Freeman that in the final moments of the New York legislature, the the state senate passed a bill 61-1 giving New York the authority to establish “tanker avoidance zones” on the lower Hudson River. The Coast Guard has been holding hearings about possible anchorage sites for large barges on the Hudson River this year, and this bill might shut that process down if signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. State Sen. Sue Serino (R-Hyde Park) and State Sen. George Amedore (R-Rotterdam) sponsored and co-sponsored the bill, which was introduced in the Assembly by Didi Barrett (D-Hudson) where it passed 93-2. Paul Gallay, president of the environmental protection group Riverkeeper, said the state legislation, “gives the Hudson River, and all who care about it, new momentum in the fight against current attempts to expand the industrial use of the river, particularly for crude oil transport.” Cuomo has not said whether he will sign the bill. Read the full story in The Daily Freeman.