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Conservation News |
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Battenkill cleanups are all done for 2011. Thanks to all who participated!
Rte 313
rest area east of Cambridge, NY, near VT border.
View Larger Map |
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Hurricane Irene Response
in Adirondacks |
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Eastern Brook Trout Status |
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Schoharie County Trout Ponds |
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Subscribe to Division
of Fish, Wildlife and Marine Resources (DFWMR) Field Notes |
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Subscribe to NYS DEC Hudson River E-Almanac |
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Tragedy of the
Trout: The Decline of Heritage Trout |
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Get Your
Free I FISH NY Freshwater Fishing Map Today
Available for your next freshwater fishing excursion
is our new, colorful map brochure with fishing information on more than 400
lakes, ponds, rivers and streams in New York State. One side of the foldout
shows locations of some of the best fishing waters in the state, while the
other side provides details on each site, including access points, types of
fish, marinas and campsites and other important information.
To receive a map in the mail, send an e-mail request
with "NY Fishing Map" as the subject to
fwfish@gw.dec.state.ny.us .
Remember to include your name and complete address in
the e-mail. |
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Recreational Sporting Season Reminders
New Recreational Marine Fishing Registry Year Starts
January 1. With a new year beginning, make sure you enroll in the
2012 Recreational Marine
Fishing Registry, which is a requirement when fishing for all saltwater
and migratory fish in New York State. Registration is free, so enroll today
to prepare for your next saltwater fishing adventure.
Visit
DEC's website for
information on the marine registry and how to enroll.
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Feral Hogs Invade Chaplain Valley & Adirondacks
Invasive plants and animals have been a
big problem in the North Country for decades, from Eurasian water milfoil in
Lake George to zebra mussels in the St. Lawrence River. But farmers in the
Clinton County town of Peru are wrestling with a new invasive animal - and
this one weighs three hundred pounds and comes with razor-sharp tusks.
Feral pigs or boars have established a breeding population on the eastern
edge of the Adirondack Park. Scientists fear the animals could spread fast,
wiping out native animals and damaging crops.
Read story
NYS DEC Feral Swine Info
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Sportsmen Call on Delaware River Basin
Commission to Consider Impacts on Water, Fish and Wildlife Before Adopting
Drilling Regulations
November 8, 2011
Plan does not address cumulative impacts on water and
other natural resources.
Arlington, Va.-- Sportsmen organizations and
businesses from across the Delaware River Basin are criticizing the Delaware
River Basin Commission’s (DRBC) plan for regulating gas drilling in the
watershed after releasing its modified draft gas drilling regulations today.
The regulations are not based in a sound,
comprehensive scientific analysis and do not specifically address the
cumulative impacts of gas drilling on water and other natural resources.
The regulations will apply to all natural gas
development projects including the construction or use of production,
exploratory or other natural gas wells in the basin. The draft regulations
provide rules related to water withdrawals, well pad and associated siting
activities and wastewater disposal.
The DRBC will take action on the regulations on Nov.
21, at a special meeting in Trenton, N.J.
Thousands of gas wells are expected to soon be
developed in the Delaware River Basin. The primarily rural area is replete
with headwater streams and other natural resources.
“Industrial gas drilling in the Delaware basin will
have serious impacts on the water resources that fish and wildlife rely
upon,” said Katy Dunlap, Eastern Water Project director for Trout Unlimited.
“The DRBC has failed to fully evaluate the cumulative impacts of gas
drilling on these valuable and irreplaceable resources.”
“While the DRBC proposes to require a natural gas
development plan to assess impacts to landscapes and water resources, many
wells will fall below the acreage or well pad threshold required, making it
even more critical that a full cumulative impact assessment be conducted
before wells are permitted,” said Kip Adams, northern region director of
education and outreach for the Quality Deer Management Association. “Forest
clearing and fragmentation could significantly impact deer and other
wildlife in this area.”
According to a recent socio-economic study prepared
for the DRBC by the University of Delaware Water Resources Agency, fishing,
hunting and bird/wildlife associated recreation in the Delaware River Basin
accounts for $1.5 billion in annual economic activity and ecotourism
provides almost 45,000 jobs.
“Sportsmen and women spend a significant amount of
time and revenue in the areas proposed for gas development in the Delaware
basin,” said Peter Grimbilas of the New Jersey Outdoor Alliance.
“Additionally, we are very concerned with the negative downstream effects
New Jersey anglers could face without appropriate safe-guards in place
before drilling is allowed to proceed in the basin.”
Marcellus Shale development in the Upper Delaware
River Basin is slated to occur in dozens of small rural communities that
rely upon the recreational economy associated with the Delaware River to
support small businesses like inns, lodges, hotels, restaurants, convenience
stores, gas stations, river guides, fly fishing shops and other outdoor
outfitters.
“The Upper Delaware watershed is the lifeblood of this
federally-designated wild and scenic river and it provides drinking water
and recreational opportunities for millions of people in nearby metropolitan
areas,” said Lee Hartman, owner of World Angling Travels, based in Equinunk,
Pa. “The DRBC's decision to adopt drilling regulations without a cumulative
impact study will place this historic waterway—and all those who rely upon
it—in harm’s way.”
Sportsmen organizations and businesses are urging the
DRBC to conduct a comprehensive study of the cumulative impacts of gas
drilling on the basin’s valuable water, fish and wildlife resources, before
considering adoption of final gas drilling regulations.
CONTACT:
Katy Dunlap, Trout
Unlimited, 607-742-3331
Kip Adams,
Quality Deer Management Association, 570-439-5696
Lee Hartman,
World Angling Travels, 570-224-6371
Peter
Grimbilas, New Jersey Outdoor Alliance
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Hurricane Irene Response
in Adirondacks
Thursday, September 22, 2011
ENVIRONMENTALISTS URGE GOVERNOR TO CLARIFY STATEMENTS
ABOUT PERMIT WAIVERS FOR ADIRONDACK STORM CLEANUP; HALT BULLDOZING OF RIVERS
Highway Crews Have Flattened, Straightened
World-Famous Trout Streams, Degraded Fish Habitat for Thousands of Feet away
from Road Washouts, Turned Wild Rivers into Drainage Ditches.
ELIZABETHTOWN, N.Y. – The Adirondack Park’s largest
environmental organization today urged Gov. Andrew Cuomo to alert state and
local highways crews that his emergency waiver for permits to reconstruct
roads following Tropical Storm Irene was more limited than they appear to
realize and didn’t mean they could bulldoze and excavate trout streams and
wetlands that are thousands of feet away from the affected road.
“A lot of environmental damage is taking place in the
name of public safety,” said Adirondack Council Executive Director Brian L.
Houseal. “The Governor should make it clear that there are some things road
crews can do to rebuild without permits, but bulldozing trout streams is not
one of them.”
The
Adirondack Council also called on the Governor to assign his regulatory
agencies the job of determining how to avoid severe storm damage in the
future as roads, private buildings and public facilities are reconstructed
or relocated. The group provided photographs of major alterations of famous
Adirondack rivers and brooks by heavy equipment, including Johns Brook, Gulf
Brook, Roaring Brook, the East Branch of the Ausable River, and others.
“We understand there was a need for emergency road
repairs and for the clearing of debris from rivers in the communities that
were hardest-hit by tropical storm Irene,” said Houseal. “The Ausable and
other rivers jumped their banks and may have changed course. But the
bulldozing we are seeing now goes far beyond emergency response in
communities. Road crews are flattening and straightening rivers in some
cases for thousands of feet upstream and downstream of the road crossings.
They are turning wild rivers into wide, flat drainage ditches.
“This is bad for all aquatic life in the river,”
Houseal said. “Without big rocks, a few fallen logs, undercut banks and deep
pools here and there, there will be no place for fish and other wildlife to
find shelter, food or breeding areas suitable for them. Fish populations can
recover from a storm without much help from us. But our current reaction to
the storm is causing serious, long-term damage from which fish and wildlife
will have a much harder time recovering.”
Ironically, the decision by local highway crews to
widen and straighten sections of the river will only lead to more flooding
problems in the future. During low flow periods, the unnatural, flat
bottomed river channels will actually cause an increase in siltation
deposits that can change the flow of water.
“In other cases, what the crews are doing will cause
water to move more swiftly and with greater force in the next major storm,”
Houseal said. “That’s going to be bad news for people and wildlife living
downstream. We cannot afford to assume that something like this won’t ever
happen again. There was serious flooding throughout the Lake Champlain basin
this spring.”
Various regions of the Adirondack Park have
experienced flooding and major storm damage nearly every year for the past
decade. The Northway has washed out twice in that time. Looking back a
little further, an unexpected major storm blew down more than a million
acres of forest in July of 1995.
“Wild, unpredictable weather is one of the facts of
life in the Adirondacks,” Houseal said. “That is expected to get worse as
global climate change alters precipitation patterns.”
Houseal called on Governor Cuomo to provide assistance
through the Adirondack Park Agency and Department of Environmental
Conservation to local communities in determining which roads, public
facilities and private developments are in the greatest danger of future
storm damage and to develop plans to rebuild them differently or to relocate
them to upland areas where flooding is less likely.
“You can try to fight the forces of nature, but
ultimately, we will lose,” Houseal said. “We should learn something from all
of the pain, aggravation and suffering this most recent storm has caused and
act accordingly. We should apply those lessons as soon as possible. These
rivers will be gushing again in a few months when this winter’s snow begins
to melt.”
The
Adirondack Council is a privately funded, not-for-profit organization
dedicated to ensuring the ecological integrity and wild character of the
9,300-square-mile Adirondack Park. Founded in 1975, the Council carries out
its mission through research, education, advocacy and legal action. The
Council’s members live in all 50 United States. |
Gulf Brook and its mud flow |
John's Brook full of Mud |
John's Brook meets East Branch of
Ausable |
Upstream John's Brook is still clear
and wild
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Roaring Brook now a gravel ditch
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State of
Battenkill River after Tropical Storm Irene
From: Ken Cox, VT Fish &
Wildlife Fisheries Biologist
September 16, 2011
This message concerns how the Batten Kill has fared
with Irene with respect to stream damages, habitat impacts, effects on
habitat restoration, and trout populations.
Yesterday, Dan MacKinley, Scott Wixsom (both with the
U.S. Forest Service, Green Mountain National Forest) and I inspected the
lower Batten Kill which I define here as the VT 313 bridge by the Arlington
recreation field downstream to the NY state line. Even though the river
overtopped its banks inundating numerous locations throughout its
floodplain, the river came through remarkably unscathed. Very little new
bank erosion has occurred, most of the large wood habitat structures
installed into the river since 2006 remain in place, and the riparian
woodlands are intact. Overall conditions remain pretty much as they were
prior to the flood, and we were unanimous in our conclusion that it is
extremely unlikely that the recovering trout population experienced any
setback as a result of the flood. If there is anything good to be said for
the timing of Irene with respect to trout populations is that it occurred
before the spawning season and the river substrate is loose and not
overburdened with sediments. So, the prognosis for spawning and egg
incubation success looks good pending “normal” winter and spring river
conditions.
Being that the majority of habitat structures
weathered this record flood event, we do not see any need to change their
design and placement. There is no evidence that any of the large wood placed
in the river resulted or contributed to damage to private property, roads
and bridges. No doubt Irene caused much debris flow but most of this
material appears to have originated from the Roaring Branch and Kelly Road
washout. The new concrete arch bridge that replaced two old undersized
culverts on Benedict Hollow Brook and designed to provide trout access to
spawning habitat came through the flood fine and conducted water and any
debris downstream without incident.
Dan, Scott and I attribute the ability of the Kill to
come through the flood event so well to so much of the flood plain
continuing to be accessible river overflow which allows the river to lose
power that can be destructive to transportation infrastructure, personal
property and stream and riparian habitat. Furthermore, much of the upper
river flows through wetlands that have the ability to dissipate hydraulic
energy, store water and capture excessive debris and sediments. Where trees
remain on the river banks (which is the case throughout much of the river’s
length) banks are held in place minimizing erosion and large debris is
retained within the river corridor.
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Giant
Hogweed Hotline
Giant hogweed plants will be flowering shortly. Please
direct all giant hogweed inquiries to the NYSDEC Giant Hogweed Hotline
(845)256-3111.
The hotline is a place for people to report new sites,
ask questions about the plant and how to control it, and connect with our
statewide control project.
NYS Agriculture & Markets is no longer running the
giant hogweed hotline, so please DO NOT send callers to the old hotline
number.
Another giant hogweed resource is the NYSDEC
giant hogweed web page
which provides information about the plant, how to identify it, how to
control it, a map of NY state sites, and more.
Read about how you can control this noxious invasive,
and dangerous, plant species.
DO NOT GET GIANT
HOGWEED SAP ON YOUR SKIN OR IN YOUR EYES!
Contact
Naja Kraus, Forest Health & Protection Program Botanist, Giant Hogweed
Program Coordinator NYSDEC Div. of Lands & Forests
845-256-3111
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Ten & Two Magazine
Special Issue on Natural Gas Drilling
Each issue of
Ten & Two,
The Angler's Journey, highlights a specific subject describing
environmental issues which concern all fly anglers. This article
for the
Winter 2010 issue
examines the relationship between landowners and drilling companies
regarding the development of Marcellus Shale natural gas reserves.
Download the Special Issue on Natural Gas Drilling (4 MB PDF file)
Ten &
Two Magazine online
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Eastern Brook Trout Status
Intact stream populations of brook trout
(where wild brook trout occupy 90
to 100 percent of their historical habitat) exist in only 5 percent of
sub-watersheds.
Wild stream populations of brook trout have vanished or are greatly
reduced in nearly half of sub-watersheds.
The vast majority of historically occupied large rivers no longer support
self-reproducing populations of brook trout.
Brook trout survive almost exclusively as fragmented populations relegated
to the extreme headwaters of streams.
Poor land management associated with agriculture ranks as the most widely
distributed impact to brook trout across the eastern range.
Non-native fish rank as the largest biological threat to brook trout.
Intact subwatersheds of wild brook trout in lakes and ponds are almost
exclusively located in Maine, but self-reproducing populations remain in
some lakes and ponds in New York, New Hampshire, and Vermont.
More data collection is needed to determine the status of brook trout in
various parts of the eastern range, particularly in Maine, New Hampshire,
New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania.
Excerpted from "Distribution, Status, and Perturbations to Brook Trout
within the Eastern United States"
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Schoharie County Trout Ponds
By Mike Walchko
Schoharie County has two trout ponds stocked by
DEC and open to the public for fishing. One of the
ponds, referred to in the stocking report as the
Holding Pond, is part of the village of Cobleskill’s
reservoir system.
Mallet Pond is located in the town of Fulton and
is a walk in pond, accessible from a parking area off Rossman Fly Road and a
short half mile walk. The walk is a bit steep, easy walking down but will
get you breathing hard on the way out. Both ponds have special trout
regulations, Mallet Pond a 3 fish limit with a minimum size of 12 inches,
the Holding Pond a 3 fish limit and 10 inch minimum size. Mallet Pond
receives a stocking of 410 trout annually, both browns and rainbows.
The Holding pond receives 585 trout from DEC,
225 of these are the 12-15 inch browns. The COBY Fish & Game Club also
stocks the Holding Pond with 200 12-15 inch tiger trout. Both ponds have an
excellent carryover population, so there are some much larger fish
available. The Holding pond is one of three reservoirs located at the same
site. The other two, Dow Reservoir and Smith reservoir have excellent
populations of smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, perch, and bluegills. These
two reservoirs are a great place to introduce a youngster to fishing with
the panfish usually willing to accommodate.
Directions:
Mallet Pond:
from the Capital District head West on I‐88
toward Binghamton. Proceed to exit 21 (the
second Cobleskill exit). After exiting I‐88 turn
right and proceed to Rt. 7. Turn left on Rt. 7 (west) and
drive 1.3 miles turning left on Beards Hollow
Road. In .1 miles Beard’s Hollow Rd. swings right , go
straight ahead on Cross Hill Rd. Continue up
Cross Hill Rd. 2.9 miles until you come to a T. Turn right on Beards Rd. for
.1 mile and make another right on Rossman Fly Rd. Proceed up Rossman fly Rd.
for one mile . You will see a State sign for Mallet pond. This leads to the
parking area. Rossman Fly road turns into a narrow dirt road, but is
passable with most cars.
Holding Pond :
from the Capital District head West on I-88, exiting at the first Cobleskill
exit (exit 22) .
When you come down the exit ramp turn left on
rt. 145. Take the first right off 145, Mineral springs
Road. Proceed for several miles taking the first
road to the left ( Dow Street). If you pass the white
church on the right, you missed the road. As you
proceed up Dow St. .2 miles you will see the reservoirs on the right.
Parking is available at the Dow reservoir. The Holding pond is up an
embankment west of the Dow Reservoir. |
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Field Notes from Division of Fish, Wildlife, and
Marine Resources
Subscribe to Field Notes and receive
up-to-date e-mails related to New York's fish, wildlife and marine
resources.
Subscribe
Field Notes is
an e-mail list maintained by The Division of Fish, Wildlife and Marine
Resources (DFWMR) that will provide subscribers notice on programs and
activities associated with the management of fish, wildlife and marine
resources, and offer information on available fish and wildlife recreational
opportunities. The listed items below are some examples of topics that will
be distributed:
- Regulation changes and updates on
fishing, hunting and trapping (recreationally and commercially)
- Wildlife viewing events and
opportunities
- Shellfish area closures and contaminant
information
- Fish and wildlife recreational
opportunities
- Sporting license information and
Sportsmen education dates and locations
- Fish stocking activities
- News (press releases) related to fish,
wildlife and marine resources
- Reports and highlights on fish, wildlife
and marine resources program activities
- AND additional fish and wildlife
news-worthy information.
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NYS DEC Hudson River E-Almanac
The Hudson River E-Almanac is compiled and
edited by Tom Lake and emailed weekly by DEC's Hudson River Estuary Program.
To sign up to receive the E-Almanac
(or to unsubscribe) and write E-Almanac in the subject line.
Weekly issues Archives.
The DEC website's search engine can find species, locations, and other data
in the archives.
Conservationist
magazine brings nature to your door. Discover New York State Conservationist
- the award-winning, advertisement-free magazine focusing on New York
State's great outdoors and natural resources. Conservationist features
stunning photography, informative articles and around-the-state coverage.
For a free, no-obligation issue go to
Conservationist
Magazine.
<<<<< USEFUL LINKS >>>>>
National Ocean Service
tide predictions for 2010
Tidal
current predictions for 2010
Information on the movements of the salt front in the Hudson estuary is
presented by the
U.S.
Geological Survey.
For real-time information on Hudson River weather and water conditions from
eight monitoring stations, visit the Hudson
River Environmental Conditions Observing System website .
Information about the Hudson River Estuary Program is available on
DEC's website.
Copies of past issues of the Hudson River Almanac, Volumes II-VIII, are
available for purchase from the publisher,
Purple Mountain Press, (800)
325-2665.
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