By Lynne Jackson ALBANY: The proposed landfill expansion in the Albany Pine Bush could be used by the new administration in the State of New York as a catalyst for change in solid waste policy in the state. Over the past year, Save the Pine Bush has had many speakers discussing the solid waste issue. … Proposed Landfill Expansion a Collision of Factors
It’s no mystery why, every few years, Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings keeps wanting to expand the capacity of the Rapp Road landfill. The city continues to reap a bonanza there—more than $13 million a year— by selling space to neighboring towns and private haulers. But the specter of layoffs and a large tax hike if … Don’t allow expansion of Albany landfill
To the Editor: At a recent Albany Common Council General Services Committee meeting concerning the expansion of the Rapp Road landfill, three issues of concern were raised: the city hot line phone number established to report complaints about the smell emanating from the landfill; the little monetary reward the city realizes from the methane-to-energy project; … News from Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission
by Lynne Jackson ALBANY: Dr. George Robinson gave an excellent succinct speech about landfill reclamation at the January Save the Pine Bush dinner at the First Presbyterian Church. Dr. Robinson, an associate professor of biology at the University of Albany, started by talking about the history of landfills. He mentioned many historic buildings, such as … Integrating the Landfill into the Pine Bush or What do you do with a Landfill?
by Lynne Jackson ALBANY, NY: The First Presbyterian Church was the location of the March Save the Pine Bush vegetarian dinner which featured the excellent presentation on biodiversity and Lyme Disease by Kathleen LoGiudice, PhD. Dr. LoGiudice opened her remarks by saying that the battle over Crossgates Mall made a big impression on her in … Does Sprawl Promote Lyme Disease?
by Lynn Rothenberg GUIDLERLAND: A piece of local African-American history has received state recognition. While residents have long called the neighborhood the Promised Land, the state will now recognize it as the Rapp Road District. The designation by the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation is due to one woman’s efforts. The district … State Recognizes The Promised Land
by Lynne Jackson ALBANY: Albany City Commission of the Department of General Services Willard (Bill) Bruce spoke at the May Save the Pine Bush dinner. Mr. Bruce began by showing slides of how landfills are constructed. He emphasized that the Rapp Road landfill is not just a dump, it is a highly-engineered structure and there … Its not a Garbage Problem Its an Economic Problem
"Man has disrupted the natural order in the Pine Bush with roads, developments and suppression of fires," said Stephanie Gebauer at the December Save the Pine Bush dinner. Ms. Gebauer, the first director of the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Research and Management of the Eastern New York Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, went on to … Save the Pine Bush
by Lynne Jackson ALBANY: In an astonishing article in the Hearst-owned Times Union, veteran investigative reporter Brian Nearing revealed the City of Albany’s dirty little secret: nearly 70% of the garbage dumped in the landfill is dumped by Allied Waste at a bargain basement price of $38 a ton; 46% lower than the $70 charged … What Part of the Pine Bush Does the City Want for Allied Waste?
by Richard Clark We in Albany County don’t know what to do about the disposal of solid waste. Mayor Gerald Jennings would rather not expand the Rapp Road landfill on land dedicated to the Pine Bush Preserve Commission, but he desperately needs the money and the jobs that landfill generates. He argues that time is … A Plan for Planning
by Sheree Craigue Surprising to many, trash from the NYS Government offices goes to the City of Albany’s Rapp Road landfill. This gives the Rapp Road landfill a “special” legal status, unique among all of NY State’s landfills. This “special” status has been the cause of several Save the Pine Bush lawsuits being lost in … We Have the Power
The Appellate Court hearing on the SCRAP (Selkirk, Coeymans, Ravena Against Pollution) members’ case against the City of Albany will be held on September 5, 2007 at 1pm on the fifth floor of the Justice Building at the Empire State Plaza (for directions, email Jim Travers at jatrav@yahoo.com). It is the plaintiffs’ contention that the … News from our SCRAP Friends
ALBANY: The City of Albany tried to sneak in legislation at the last minute that would radically change the protection of the Pine Bush Preserve. The Albany Common Council, in vote of 11-4, asked the NYS Legislature to pass a home rule bill to alienate 12.5 acres of protected Pine Bush Preserve in order for … City of Albany Attempts to Sneak Legislation Past the Public Removing Land from the Pine Bush Preserve
by Lynne Jackson ALBANY: On October 19, Willard Bruce, Commissioner of the Albany Department of General Services, made a presentation to the Common Council about the proposed landfill expansion in the Pine Bush. During the meeting, he told the Common Council members that the City was no longer obligated to dedicate the Fox Run Estate … Albany wants to Dedicate a Dump to the Preserve
By MATT PACENZA, Staff Writer ALBANY – The city received permission Thursday to begin digging test wells in the Pine Bush – a first step toward a possible and controversial expansion of the Rapp Road dump into the nature preserve. Nearly simultaneously, however, the city’s plan was dealt a blow when state Assemblyman John “Jack” … City of Albany Attempts to Sneak Legislation Past the Public Removing Land from the Pine Bush Preserve
There’s a solution to Albany’s garbage problem — the same one for the better part of the last 20 years — but most city officials don’t want to hear it, and despite a few protestations, the state Department of Environmental Conservation has remained sympathetic. The reason is money, which is understandable as far as the … Editorial: End excuses for Albany landfill
COLONIE: The Town of Colonie Operations Center was the setting for a public meeting on a proposal to construct a RV (recreational vehicle) storage and washing facility. This proposal would place asphalt or building on top of more than 10 acres of Pine Bush on this approximately 40 acre site, called 106 Cordell Road. Nearby … Forty Acres of Pine Bush Slated for Destruction in the Town of Colonie
by Rezsin Adams ALBANY: According to Daniel Bogan, who spoke at the Save the Pine Bush dinner on November 10, the challenge today to wildlife is urban sprawl, which results in habitat loss and increased interaction between animals and humans. New York State was originally covered with forests but in the 1800’s the forests were … Roads in the Pine Bush – John Poorman Speaks about the CDTC
Below is a copy of the Final Scoping document for the proposed hotel adjacent to the Karner Blue Butterfly site. For more information about the project, please see the following: Crossgates Wants to Build a Hotel in the Pine Bush, Will they never go away? (Sept/Oct 04) Save the Pine Bush Sues Crossgates Maul and … You Can Help Save the Pine Bush in The Town of Colonie
SPB Sues City & DEC Over Illegal Landfill in the Pine Bush SPB Sues City & DEC Over Illegal Landfill in the Pine Bush ALBANY, NY: Save the Pine Bush filed suit in July against the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the City of Albany over the permit approval for the City … SPB Sues City & DEC Over Illegal Landfill in the Pine Bush
Exploring Bus Service to the Pine Bush Exploring Bus Service to the Pine Bush by John Wolcott One can reach the Pine Bush from Albany by bus. However, it is, at one point, difficult and unsafe. At another point, it is awkward, and, as yet, uncertain. A couple of weeks ago, I tested part of … Exploring Bus Service to the Pine Bush
Council Sacrifices Pine Bush – Nitido, Hershberg Win Council Sacrifices Pine Bush Nitido, Hershberg Win By Daniel Van Riper Showing a marked lack of common sense, the Albany Common Council voted 9-6 in favor of rezoning 400 and 495 Rapp Road to build an office park called Drumlin Fields in the shadow of the … Council Sacrifices Pine Bush – Nitido, Hershberg Win
by Tom Ellis ALBANY, NY: David Ellis of Rensselaer Residents Against Toxic Dumping and Lou Sebesta of Stop Trucks Assaulting Rensselaer (STAR) spoke at the May 15th SPB dinner about “Done with Dunn Landfill: Negative Impacts of Dunn C/D Dump Operations” in Rensselaer, and their efforts to close it. Later in the evening, George Keleshian … Done with the Dunn Dump
Compiled by Tim Truscott Letter: Pine Bush Preserve remains a folly To the editor, Sunday, September 2, 2018 The extension of the lifespan of the Rapp Road landfill is welcome news for Albany taxpayers. It’s unimaginable what the cost of getting rid of our waste will be when we have to close that landfill. I … Letters to the Editor of the Times Union
The City of Albany is about to hold its first ever Zero Waste Festival! Albany’s Riverfront Jazz Festival is slated to celebrate its 17th anniversary on Saturday, September 8th from 1-9 pm at Jennings Landing. For the first time this festival will bring its attendees more than great music, Hudson River views and evening fireworks – … Zero Waste Jazzes Up the City of Albany
by Diana Wright On March 28, Albany and Saratoga Counties unveiled plans for a jointly funded aerobic digester facility in Menands. It has bi-partisan support in the Albany County Legislature and will save each county $1 million annually. It will shut down 4 incinerators at the current facility, which spew out toxic chemicals into the … Anerobic digester and the Albany Landfill
by Tom Ellis ALBANY. NY: There is much to report on issues regarding solid wastes. The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC or En Con)) DEC held a public hearing in Albany to receive comments on proposed revisions to its Part 360 regulations, DEC is assisting the Town of Colonie with its landfill expansion application,” … Solid Waste Issues in the City of Albany, the Town of Colonie and the Proposed Changes in the NYS Solid Waste Regulations
by Grace Nichols, July 26, 2009 The survival of the Federally Protected Karner Blue Butterfly in the Albany Pine Bush Preserve is in doubt here in Albany – its numbers have been critically low for at least ten years. This butterfly was first named by Vladimir Nabokov, the famous writer, and became one of … Save the Pine Bush
NEW SCOTLAND — A man of principle and passion, Peter Henner worked for causes he believed in with the same logic and commitment he used when playing chess. He tackled his legal work as he tackled mountains on climbs with his wife — with a sense of adventure. “He always told everything straight,” said Nancy … Peter Henner
by Tim Truscott The month of June turned out to have some news related to the City of Albany’s solid waste disposal plans. It became known that the Mayor had created a Solid Waste Planning Committee which included her office, the landfill manager (Joe Giebelhaus), the Recycling Director (Frank Zeoli), a couple of the … Albany Solid Waste Problem Still Not Addressed Openly
By TU Editorial Board on December 29, 2015 at 3:30 AM When the city of Albany in 2009 convinced New York state to let it do one more landfill expansion, it knew the deal: In exchange for a bigger dump, the city would have to fund a substantial restoration of the fragile Pine Bush. … A thorn in the Pine Bush
by Tom Ellis ALBANY, NY: Kate Lawrence of the Mayor’s Office of Energy and Sustainability was the speaker at the March 18 SPB dinner. She said former Mayor Gerald Jennings launched the sustainability office in 2011; he signed a national green jobs pledge in 2008, the bicycle master plan was completed in 2009, and … City of Albany Office of Energy and Sustainability Visits Save the Pine Bush
by Tom Ellis ALBANY: Albany Pine Bush Management Commission (APBMC or the Commission) Executive Director Chris Hawver was the October 15 SPB dinner speaker. Lynne Jackson and I introduced him saying that Save the Pine Bush is very pleased that the Commission exists and is protecting the Pine Bush. Lynne said the work of SPB … Chris Hawver of the Commission Speaks
By Tom Ellis ALBANY, NY: Former Albany First Ward Common Council member Dominick Calsolaro spoke at the June 18 SPB dinner about Environmental Issues in Albany. He began thanking SPB President Rezsin Adams for her many years of friendship. During the US-Vietnam War, he said, Rezsin often came into his family’s restaurant. Dominick spoke about the … Public Advocate Dominick Calsolaro
by Andy Arthur For the March 2013 SPB Hike, we took a tour of the 1830 Central Avenue in Karner. The Central Avenue Power Station was a 1890s-era rotary converter station that took 11,000 volt three-phase alternating current power from the power grid and converted it to 600-volt direct current for streetcars, by using a … SPB Tours Historic Power Station in Karner
by Tom Ellis ALBANY: As is usual, the April SPB dinner featured a variety of speakers and an Earth Day theme. Each spoke 5-10 minutes. Lynne Jackson introduced them and said the people who began Save the Pine Bush met at SUNYA (now the University at Albany) in the 1970s. Saima Anjam of Environmental Advocates (EA) discussed the legislative agenda … Earth Day SPB Dinner
by Tom Ellis In 2005, SPB joined forces with the Citizens Environmental Coalition (CEC) and Selkirk-Ravena-Coeymans Against Pollution (SCRAP) to successfully block the siting of a large regional landfill by the city of Albany on a 363-acre parcel Albany now owns in the town of Coeymans (ten miles south of Albany). Now a new struggle is unfolding. … Coeymens Debates Importing Garbage
by Grace Nichols ALBANY: Steven Leibo, Phd, a Sage Colleges Professor of International History and Politics, as well as an International Affairs Commentator on WAMC Northeast Public Radio, came to speak to us about the Climate Change crisis. Dr. Leibo has been a constant presence on the academic and environmental scene in the Capital … Run Away Climate:
by Grace Nichols ALBANY: For Save the Pine Bush, I foiled for the pesticide records from the City of Albany beginning in September. So far the City has only provided some rodenticide records for the city proper. Sadly, only one City site has replaced anti-coagulant rodenticides, a danger to hawks and other predators, with mechanical … Pesticide FOILS in process
Albany, NY: Recently, a friend out in Rensselaer County grabbed my arm and said “don’t you dare release your rehabilitated (orphan) rabbits out here—The Fisher will get them!” She went on to describe an animal so mean and vicious that no other mammal would be safe around them. And so, though I haven’t ever met … Fishers in the Pine Bush! May 2011 Pine Bush Dinner with Scott LaPoint
by Grace Nichols Dr. George Robinson is a professor in the Biodiversity and Conservation Policy graduate program at the University at Albany. He is very knowledgeable about landfills, as much of his work has involved transforming old landfills into positive open spaces which can meet the needs of local wildlife and local communities. Dr. Robinson’s … Dr. George Robinson Sheds Light on Landfills, their Possibilities and Problems Post-closure.
By Grace Nichols November 2010 was notable in that folks in the community kept contacting us about the Albany Pine Bush Preserve. First it was the neighbors over on Lincoln Ave, wondering why the “forever wild” patch next door was being clearcut, as a new road was being put in connecting Lincoln Ave and Fox … What’s afoot at the Preserve?!
by Tom Ellis ALBANY: Early this year, the City of Albany’s solid waste consultant, Clough Harbour & Associates (CHA), completed a draft long range solid waste management plan for the Capital Region Solid Waste Management Partnership (the planning unit of Albany and the dozen or so municipalities who now dump trash in the Rapp Road … Draft Solid Waste Management Plan Needs Closer Look & Changes
By JORDAN CARLEO-EVANGELIST, Staff writer , reprinted from the Times Union, First published in print: Tuesday, May 4, 2010 ALBANY — City lawmakers on Monday again rejected a crucial borrowing measure to allow the city to continue the Rapp Road Landfill expansion, dealing another blow to Mayor Jerry Jennings’ administration and once again leaving the … Turnabout defeats Albany landfill vote again
Albany Common Council held it’s first Ad Hoc Committee Meeting on Pesticides in June. We are making headway in that the City admitted to longstanding violations of its pesticides policy. The committee has dedicated itself to making positive changes. Our voice are very much needed to 1) Advocate for pesticide reductions in the plans for … Speak Out on Pesticides
an editorial by Lynne Jackson See: United National Peace Conference And, on Sunday, July 25, join the Rally & March at 1:00 A National Conference to Bring the Troops Home NOW! is being held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, State and Lodge Streets, in Albany, NY from July 23 to July 25. I believe all … United National Antiwar Conference to be Held in Albany
by Tom Ellis, Citizens’ Environmental Coalition Save the Pine Bush and friends won a partial victory in late February when Clough Harbour & Associates (CHA) revised the preliminary draft solid waste management plan it had issued in mid-December on behalf of a “steering committee” appointed by Albany Mayor Gerald Jennings. CHA faced considerable pressure from … Zero Waste or Waste Authority?
ALBANY: The NYS Deparment of Environmental Conservation held the one and only hearing on the Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed landfill expansion of the City of Albany’s Rapp Road landfill in the Pine Bush on December 3, 2008. The room was nearly packed, with over 300 people attending. Of course, making sure … DEC’s Dump Hearing December 3, 2008
ALBANY: The City of Albany has applied for a permit to expand the landfill in the Pine Bush. The battle has begun! On Wednesday, February 21 at 7:00 PM at the Polish Community Center (255 Washington Avenue Extension, corner of Rapp Road), the NYS Department of Environmental Conversation will hold a Public Scoping Session on … Expansion of the Landfill in the Pine Bush
Glaciers Are Melting-But They’ll Be Back Glaciers Are Melting-But They’ll Be Back by Daniel W. Van Riper, Mar./Apr. 92 Planet Earth has had some nice weather lately, the best in a thousand years. Don’t expect it to last, though. The forecast calls for drier deserts, higher levels of seawater, more intense storms, and more rain … Glaciers Are Melting-But They’ll Be Back