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Weekend in review
Aug 06, 2012 12:10 am
Stories that made the news Aug. 3 to Aug. 5, 2012
Brian Nearing reported in the Times Union the vice president of West Ghent recycler TCI Inc., Brian Hemlock, said the amount of chemicals in the Falls Park Industrial Road plant at the time of last week's catastrophic fire were within permitted quantities and met all regulations. However, Hemlock said, the exact quantities are not, in fact, presently known. "Many of the records pertaining to that were in the building and destroyed," he said. Concerns have not abated over the potential for toxic air pollution throughout the area following the chemical-fueled fire that engulfed the industrial structure for more than 12 hours, beginning late Wed., Aug. 1. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said air samples taken near the plant Thurs., Aug. 2, detected no volatile organic chemicals. Test results for PCBs are expected later this week. The state Department of Environmental Conservation is also conducting PCB testing and will expand its sampling to cover a 15-mile radius around the fire scene. On Sat., Aug. 4, members of the Rensselaer County Legislature requested expanded air monitoring and soil testing for farms, vegetation and drinking water wells in their county. Read the full story in the Times Union. A full rundown of WGXC coverage of the West Ghent fire can be found here.
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A bog near Blue Mountain Lake, part of the Finch Pruyn timber easement.[/caption]
Lauren Stanforth reported in the Times Union Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo recently announced the state has acquired 69,000 acres of the former Finch Pruyn and other Nature Conservancy lands throughout the Adirondacks. It is the largest single acquisition to the Adirondack State Forest Preserve in more than a century. The majority of the lands are concentrated within the central lake and tourist region of the Adirondack Park in the towns of Newcomb, Indian Lake, North Hudson and Minerva. According to the state, the former Finch lands contain some of the most important recreational and environmental assets in the Adirondack Park which will be opened to public use for the first time in more than 150 years. Read the full story in the Times Union.
Nathan Mayberg reported in The Daily Mail on the Home Grown Business Challenge, a one-week summer camp at Columbia-Greene Community College focused on educating high school students about agriculture and developing their business skills, by visiting area farms and hearing from entrepreneurs. The students generated ideas for agriculture-related businesses that included an equipment sharing company, a plan to market potted vegetables, fruits and herbs to city residents, and a dairy stand with ice cream, gelato, bread and cheese. The camp was offered as part of a partnership between Tech Valley Career Pathways Consortium, Cornell Cooperative Extension and the Hudson Valley AgriBusiness Development Corporation. Read the full story in The Daily Mail.
Brian Nearing reported in the Times Union the vice president of West Ghent recycler TCI Inc., Brian Hemlock, said the amount of chemicals in the Falls Park Industrial Road plant at the time of last week's catastrophic fire were within permitted quantities and met all regulations. However, Hemlock said, the exact quantities are not, in fact, presently known. "Many of the records pertaining to that were in the building and destroyed," he said. Concerns have not abated over the potential for toxic air pollution throughout the area following the chemical-fueled fire that engulfed the industrial structure for more than 12 hours, beginning late Wed., Aug. 1. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said air samples taken near the plant Thurs., Aug. 2, detected no volatile organic chemicals. Test results for PCBs are expected later this week. The state Department of Environmental Conservation is also conducting PCB testing and will expand its sampling to cover a 15-mile radius around the fire scene. On Sat., Aug. 4, members of the Rensselaer County Legislature requested expanded air monitoring and soil testing for farms, vegetation and drinking water wells in their county. Read the full story in the Times Union. A full rundown of WGXC coverage of the West Ghent fire can be found here.
[caption id="" align="alignright" width="240"]
A bog near Blue Mountain Lake, part of the Finch Pruyn timber easement.[/caption]Lauren Stanforth reported in the Times Union Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo recently announced the state has acquired 69,000 acres of the former Finch Pruyn and other Nature Conservancy lands throughout the Adirondacks. It is the largest single acquisition to the Adirondack State Forest Preserve in more than a century. The majority of the lands are concentrated within the central lake and tourist region of the Adirondack Park in the towns of Newcomb, Indian Lake, North Hudson and Minerva. According to the state, the former Finch lands contain some of the most important recreational and environmental assets in the Adirondack Park which will be opened to public use for the first time in more than 150 years. Read the full story in the Times Union.
Nathan Mayberg reported in The Daily Mail on the Home Grown Business Challenge, a one-week summer camp at Columbia-Greene Community College focused on educating high school students about agriculture and developing their business skills, by visiting area farms and hearing from entrepreneurs. The students generated ideas for agriculture-related businesses that included an equipment sharing company, a plan to market potted vegetables, fruits and herbs to city residents, and a dairy stand with ice cream, gelato, bread and cheese. The camp was offered as part of a partnership between Tech Valley Career Pathways Consortium, Cornell Cooperative Extension and the Hudson Valley AgriBusiness Development Corporation. Read the full story in The Daily Mail.