8/27/2009

Try Shandaken?
The popular annual event come to be known as Shandaken Day is set for this Saturday and organizers promise it to be better than ever.
This year the fun plays out in Big Indian Park alongside Route 28 in the Big Indian Hamlet, where all the attractions of previous incarnations of the celebration will be offered. But this year, according to organizers, Shandaken Day will take on a flavor more unique to the hamlets hosting it.
This year the hamlets of Big Indian and Oliverea are being showcased. To kick things off a new 14 foot tall statue sculpted from a log in Big Indian will be unveiled at 10AM, the beginning of the event, in honor of “Winisook” the “Big Indian” of local lore. The statue will be placed as a welcoming figure along the RTE. 28 corridor for years to come. Also, Native American groups attending from throughout the Hudson Valley will open and close the event with special ceremonies. Those same groups will also host folk song and lore of the valley and region all day.
Live music is planned for the entire day, featuring Rayla Suzan-Hart, Ben Rounds Band and the Earl Pardini Band.
Pride of Shandaken awards will be given to Phoenicia resident Ruth Houska, known for her volunteer efforts with the Phoenicia Methodist Churches thrift store, and Former Pine Hill resident Florence Hamling, a founder of the Pine Hill Community Center. Hamlet hero awards will be presented posthumously to Laura and Archie Aley. Jane and John Rossitz and Robert Kalb, known for their community efforts and political activities, will receive Hamlet hero awards as well.
Ulster County Area Transit has offered free shuttle service, in a continuous loop, during the event, from the Big Indian Park all the way to Slide Mountain and Giant Ledge trailheads. Local businesses are offering specials including bike riding and Zip lines (courtesy Catskill Outback Adventures).
There will be an “Epic Bike Race” of 20 miles (34 for pros) starting at the firehouse at 8:30 AM, a walking tour of the Rudge home at 10:30 Am (with transportation provided), an afternoon Fireman’s Tug of War, and plenty of sack, tube and other kiddy races throughout the day, along with loads of of food and games, square dancing, and good old country comfort and charm. Awards are at 4:00 PM.
Shandaken Day will be held rain or shine and ends at 6:00 PM. So just head out Route 28... and be there!

County Cuts…
In an effort to streamline the Ulster County budget, County Executive Michael Hein has said he would offer an early retirement package to any of the county’s 1,550 CSEA employees who are eligible. In recent weeks, he made the offer to 31 county employees. Now, he said anyone who may be eligible may apply for the program and each person will be considered on a case by case basis.
“We recognize the realities that are facing all municipalities around New York State. In Ulster County in particular, we are facing upwards of an $8 million shortfall in sales tax as well as an additional $4 million increase in retirement system payments to New York State,” Hein said.
There are 376 employees who are 55 or older and are vested, making them potentially eligible for the program. Decisions as to an applicant’s eligibility to retire under the program will be based on criteria such as the overall needs of the county and the necessity to backfill the position.

Byway Kickoff...
The Central Catskills Collaborative (CCC) will meet this Thursday, August 27. and begin the development of the Corridor Management Plan for the nomination of a 50-mile stretch of Route 28 as a Scenic Byway. The meeting will feature an overview of the Scenic Byway nomination process, the steps in completing the plan, and the opportunities for community involvement. An open discussion will follow.
The public is welcome to attend the meeting, which will be held at the Catskill Center for Conservation and Development on Route 28 in Arkville on Thursday, August 27 from 6-8 PM. Refreshments will be provided. To learn more about Catskill Regional Planning, please contact Peter Manning at (845) 586-2611 or visit www.catskillcenter.org. For more about the Central Catskill Collaborative, please visit www.centralcatskills.org/ccc.

Bussing Safety
The management and drivers at Arthur F. Mulligan, one of Onteora School District’s transportation contractors, will be directly addressing school bus safety issues at the upcoming Olive Day taking place in West Shokan on September 12. One of their key issues: Parents seem to feel that their obligation is to get the child to the bus on time, regardless of any cuts to safety that may ensue.
In a recent press release, the company has announced that it, “has decided to become pro active in dealing with this growing problem and has started the AFM S.A.F.E Team.” This is a group of volunteers organized to provide education in preventive measures and evacuation training involving accidents, fire and emergencies along with providing general safety instructions regarding daily transportation of students. Dave Croswell is the team leader and says he wants to address the public’s impatience with school buses, and student behavior while riding the bus. The goal of the S.A.F.E Team, Croswell said, is to help parents understand that they play an important role in their child’s safety while riding the school bus.
“We would appreciate it if parents would remind their children that any distraction can be disastrous.” He said, singling out such things as seat hopping and camera flashes. “The driver is only human and although they are fully trained and qualified a distraction cannot be ignored all of the time. All it takes is a split second.”
Visit myyellowschoolbus.com for more information.
And be sure and drive safely…

Housing Help
A $500,000 grant recently announced by Governor David Paterson’s office brings total home buying and home repair resources currently available in Ulster County to $1.6 million in direct spending for the purchase and post purchase re-habilitation of Ulster County homes. Rural Ulster Preservation Company officials, who will be administering the funds, believe that the latest grant announcement plus other resources in-house will help them top last year’s total investments of $1.8 million spent for 34 new homeowners and 75 rehabilitated homes.
The Affordable Housing Corporation grant will provide an average of $20,000 each to approximately 25 homeowners to help cover down payments, closing costs and post-purchase rehabilitation projects that might be essential on the homes they are able to afford. RUCPO Executive Director Kevin O’Connor noted that “at least 51% of the grant must be spent on the rehabilitation portion of the equation, which is good not just for the buyers but for everyone in the county. This helps to keep our overall housing stock habitable,” he added. “Something that isn’t always easy in this economy.”
Kathy Germain, Director of RUPCO’s Neighbor Works Home Ownership Center, agreed with O’Connor and said that the latest grant would be leveraged with other resources already available at the center to provide maximum benefit possible to clients and to the county and with mortgage financing from private lenders.
Because all of the RUPCO grant programs have different eligibility requirements, Germain urged everyone who might be interested to contact RUPCO to review their circumstances. Call 331-9860 or visit www.rupco.org.

Senior Rec!
Applications for the Town of Olive Senior Recreation Programs are being accepted from residents 55 and older. Lessons in Art will be held on Monday’s from 10 to 12 noon at the Reservoir United Methodist Church in Shokan. Painting supplies are available. Two exercise classes will be offered: Senior Mild to Moderate Yoga will be held on Thursday evening, 6:30 to 7:15, and new this fall is a Gentle Stretch, Strength, and Balance class,which will be less physically demanding than yoga. It is geared to seniors who wish to stay limber, improve their balance, and maintain strength, and may have physical limitations. Many exercises will be from a seated position. This class is offered on Wednesday mornings, 9 to 10. Both exercise classes will be held at the Olive Free Library, West Shokan. All classes will start after Labor Day and run for 15 weeks. The fee for each series of classes is $40 apiece. For further information contact, Judith Boggess, Art Instructor at 657-5817, or email jboggessmsc@hvc.rr.com, and Kathy Carey, Exercise Instructor may be reached at 657-8028, or email yogakathy@gmail.com.

Redistricting?
The Onteora school board will be taking a long hard look at the problem of class sizes in the district over the next few months, and acknowledge that one solution may be redistricting. At an August 18th meeting, many board members as well as some administrators agreed that the best class size for the district would between 18 and 22 students. It was noted however, that in some cases, such as the fifth grade at the Phoenicia School, there would be 28 come the start of classes next month.
Trustee Dan Spencer pointed out that recent elections have shown the community wants to keep the three elementary schools open rather than consolidate students in two schools. One way to accomplish the goals of reducing class sizes and keeping all the schools open, he and fellow trustees discussed, is to redraw district lines through population clusters instead of municipal borders.
“We seem to have the right amount of kids and the right amount of buildings,” Spencer said.
It was agreed that the Board would begin taking a look at possibilities by first accumulating information on district lines and population, expecting that Dave Moraca, the District’s director of transportation, will provide the board with maps and grids so they can start at the September 22nd meeting.
Board president Laurie Osmond said the issue should be examined from a point of view that puts students first.
“It’s very important that we approach this from an educational standpoint and how class size affects our kids and which kids it affects,” she said.

Join On Up!
The Board of Education of the Onteora Central School District is seeking committee members for the following committees/task forces: Arts Task Force (created to further interaction between community members in the arts and our students), Audit (state-mandated, seeking persons with financial backgrounds), Communications, Facilities, Green, Policy, as well as the District Health and Wellness Committee and the District Technology Committee.
Committees generally meet monthly, (the Green Committee has been meeting twice-monthly), and are task-driven. Committee members from the 2008/2009 school year are encouraged to re-join for 2009/2010.
Interested persons are asked to contact the District Clerk: districtclerk@onteora.k12.ny.us or 845.657.6383 x264

Dam Safety…
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has adopted new dam safety regulations following an 18-month review and revision process, emphasizing and detailing the responsibilities of dam owners to keep structures in a safe condition and, to be consistent with the statute, enhance NYS DEC’s authority to help ensure the responsibilities are fulfilled. The statutory amendments explicitly authorize NYS DEC to adopt regulations requiring dam owners to prepare safety programs including inspections, monitoring, maintenance and operation, and emergency plans, where failure of the dam could cause personal injury, substantial property damage or substantial natural resource damage.
A single paper copy of the regulations, or a single CD of the entire rule adoption package, are available by writing damsregs@gw.dec.state.ny.us or calling (518) 402-8151.

Local Laptops
Fred Waring of West Shokan first got the idea for his great new foundation during a trip to Cambodia with his wife Tracey, in 2001, when they witnessed the needs at one of the troubled nation’s orphanages. Upon his return Fred began his grassroots campaign to help the children he saw by soliciting in-kind and cash donations. In 2005, he then incorporated The Fred Waring Foundation, Inc., allowing him to expand his vision to include the construction of a new center and manufacturing facility using Cambodia’s natural resources to create products for export. The plan is to offer to employ orphanage children when they are forced to leave their orphanages at age 18, so that they can learn a trade, earn wages, have decent housing and hope for a great future.
Since 2001, Waring, the grandson of the big band-leader, Congressional Gold Medal recipient, and inventor of the Waring Blender, has made 3 to 4 trips per year to Cambodia and each time brings donations of vitamins from GNC and medicines from New York doctors. The Waring Family has been donating toys, sporting goods, school supplies, and crafts.
They are currently looking for old laptops to be used in the classrooms of three different orphanages that house over 500 children and young adults, and in the midst of a fundraising raffle whose cut-off date is September 21, and whose prizes include a trip for two to Angkor Wat.
For further information, visit www.fredwaringfoundation.org

28 Repaving
Construction has begun on a $1.5 million project to pave 3.5 miles of state Route 28. The project will include milling and resurfacing state Route 28, beginning at the west side of the bridge over the Esopus Creek at the state Route 212 intersection, to the east side beyond the bridge over the Esopus Creek at the state Route 214 intersection.
Daily lane closures are expected with restrictions in place during peak travel hours.
The contract was awarded to Callanan Industries Inc. of Schenectady and is being funded under the federal economic stimulus program, formally known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The state Department of Transportation has received $1.1 billion for highway and bridge projects under the stimulus program, with $167 million of the funding expected to be certified for Hudson Valley communities.
Construction of this project is expected to be completed in late December 2009.

End of Season
The Belleayre Music Festival at Belleayre Mountain Ski Center is closing out its somewhat soggy but still boisterous 2009 season with a pair of upcoming concerts sure to pull a certain type. On Saturday, August 29, Mary Wilson of The Supremes will be on hand to sing Motown favorites; while on the following Saturday, September 5, an ABBA tribute band will capture the same feeling caught in last year’s film hit, Mamma Mia.
Visit www.belleayre.org for more info. And start counting down to Octoberfest and more...

Shot In Groin
An early morning struggle on Sunday, August 16 ended in a gunshot to the groin for one man inside a home on Route 214 in the Shandaken hamlet of Phoenicia. Kyle Manny, 25, was being treated at Kingston Hospital for his injury, according to state police at Ulster. Police said Manny was struck in the groin by one bullet fired from a 9mm semiautomatic handgun after getting into a fight with another person inside the residence at state Route 214 in Phoenicia.
During the altercation, the owner of the home, John S. Rymer, 68, armed himself with the handgun, which police said is a legally registered weapon.
A prepared statement by police states that in the course of the ensuing altercation one round was discharged and struck alleged assailant Manny in the groin.
Police said the investigation led to the arrest of Richard Manny, 27, who had been staying at the residence with Kyle Manny. The older Manny was charged with criminal mischief and endangering the welfare of a child, misdemeanors. Police said the criminal mischief charge comes due to Manny doing considerable damage to the home. Further charges against Manny may occur. As for the endangering the welfare of a child charge, a child was present in the home at the time of the incident, police said.
The Manny’s were friends of Rymer’s daughter…
The suspect was arraigned in Town of Kingston Court. He was released without bail. The investigation surrounding the firing of the weapon by Rymer and the actions of Kyle Manny is continuing, police said. Should the District Attorney’s office convene a grand jury and that jury decides that Rymer should be charged, police said, then charges would be leveled against Rymer.

Flu, Round 2
The global spread of swine flu will endanger more lives as it speeds up in coming months and governments must boost preparations for a swift response, the World Health Organization said last week. There will soon be a period of further global spread of the virus, and most countries may see swine flu cases double every three to four days for several months until peak transmission is reached, said WHO’s Western Pacific director, Shin Young-soo.
“At a certain point, there will seem to be an explosion in case numbers,” Shin told a symposium of health officials and experts in Beijing. “It is certain there will be more cases and more deaths.”
WHO has declared the swine flu strain a pandemic, and it has killed almost 1,800 people worldwide through last week. International attention has focused on how the pandemic is progressing in southern hemisphere countries such as Australia, which are experiencing winter and their flu season. But it is in developing countries where the accelerated spread of swine flu poses the greatest threat as it places underequipped and underfunded health systems under severe strain, Shin said.
WHO earlier estimated that as many as 2 billion people could become infected over the next two years - nearly one-third of the world’s population.
Health officials and drug makers are looking into ways to speed up production of a vaccine before the northern hemisphere enters its flu season in coming months. Estimates for when a vaccine will be available range from September to December.

Annual Meeting
The annual picnic and general meeting for The Neversink Association will be Sunday, August 30, at noon on the Meadow across from Lake Cole at Frost Valley YMCA. The featured speaker is Lisa Rainwater, Executive Director of The Catskill Center for Conservation and Development, who will discuss four invasive species, such as didymo, that threaten the health of the Neversink River and Valley. The purpose of the organization is to protect the Neversink River watershed and the conservation of the flora and fauna of the Upper Neversink Valley. All are welcome to attend.

Job Losses?
The Hudson Valley took another hit between July 2008 and July 2009 with the loss of 17,900 jobs. The state Labor Department released the latest figures recently, showing a 2.3 percent loss in jobs bringing the total number of unemployed to 745,100.
The greatest loss of jobs was in trade, transportation and utilities, which lost 5,500 jobs, while professional and business services lost 4,200 and manufacturing shrunk by 4,100 jobs. The government sector also declined by 400 jobs.
Employment gains were in education and health services, which picked up 3,700 jobs.
The report noted that the July jobless rate for the region increased to 7.6 percent from 5.2 percent a year ago, the largest July over the year increase on record since 1991.
At the same time, reports are also out noting that the weekly cost of feeding a family of four in Ulster County in the past weeks was $200.64. That was an increase of $1.65, or one percent, above the previous survey week, ending August 7.
The Ulster County Consumer Fraud Bureau, which conducts the surveys, said prices increased primarily because of fewer sale items in the meat and fish category.

New GI Bill!
SUNY Ulster has been recognized for its policies and outreach to recruit military veterans and facilitating access to new Post 9/11 GI bill benefits by G.I. Jobs magazine with the “Military Friendly School” designation in 2010. The local college was ranked among the top 15 percent of all colleges, universities and trade schools nationwide for embracing America’s veterans as students based on a survey that reviewed policies, efforts and results of military recruitment. SUNY Ulster will be listed in the magazine’s “Guide to Military Friendly Schools” that publishes in September 2009.
SUNY Ulster has been conducting informational sessions on the Post 9/11 GI Bill that went into effect Aug. 1 and provides financial support for education and housing to eligible veterans. The bill expands benefits and provides tuition, housing and book stipends, and tutoring.
SUNY Ulster will conduct workshops on the Post 9/11 GI Bill on Sept. 14 and Oct. 19, both starting at 10 a.m. at the Dewitt Library on the Stone Ridge campus; and Nov. 16 at 5 p.m. at the Business Resource Center in Kingston. College representatives will be available to discuss programs of study, transfer credits, VA tuition benefits and campus support services. These events are free and open to the public.
Meanwhile, it turns out that the successful RISE program at SUNY Ulster may be going statewide. The collaboration between the college and the Department of Social Services has been successful at taking candidates that are eligible for high school diplomas or GED diplomas and getting them out of the cycle of dependency in social services and moving them on into the college format,” he said. Funding for the students in the program comes from state and federal grants.
For more information, call 687-5022 or visit www.sunyulster.edu.

Rights For All!
A California-based federal judge being asked to declare gay marriage a fundamental constitutional right has set a January 2010 trial date and denied attempts by gay and conservative advocacy groups to join the case, already top-heavy with high profile lawyers.
About 30 lawyers crowded into a San Francisco courtroom hearing the challenge to California’s Proposition 8 same-sex marriage ban recently, a high-risk venture that will set court policy for years, if it reaches the U.S. Supreme court. Ted Olson, the lawyer whose Supreme Court arguments put President George W. Bush in the White House, and David Boies, his opponent in the 2000 case, joined forces to overturn Prop. 8, arguing precedents showed they could win.
Gay rights groups had avoided federal court in favor of a state-by-state battle for fear conservative Supreme Court justices would deny their cause. A handful of U.S. states, mostly in the northeast, have allowed same-sex marriage, but the overwhelming majority forbid it.
In respectful tones, Olson told federal district Judge Vaughn Walker participation by gay groups and social conservatives would only slow the case. Walker, clearly eager to focus and speed arguments, denied the groups’ motions but added the city and county of San Francisco to the case as a government representative. Calif. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signaled his administration will not actively join the case.
“I am surprised by the governor’s position in this case,” Walker told a state lawyer, telling him to urge Schwarzenegger, who personally favours gay marriage, to get involved. “This is a matter of some importance to the people.”
Walker set a January 11, 2010 date to start the trial, an aggressive schedule. Two same-sex couples represented by Olson and Boies say marriage is a federal constitutional right which they are being denied.
Social conservatives led by lawyer Charles Cooper say the people of California had the right to limit marriage to a man and a woman, since it is in the state’s interest to limit marriage to couples of opposite sex.

Casino Watch
Assistant Secretary of the Interior Larry EchoHawk was set to come to Sullivan County and the Catskills to meet with people on both sides of the casino issue as this issue was going to bed. EchoHawk, who heads the Bureau of Indian Affairs, will be in town at the invitation of Congressman Maurice Hinchey, who said the secretary has no preconceived opinion about whether there should be Native American Gaming.
Under the previous administration in Washington, the BIA refused to approve placing land in trust which would have paved the way for Indian gaming. Supporters are hoping to pursuade EchoHawk to reverse that and allow for land in trust.
Three Native American tribes want to build gaming casinos in Sullivan County.
Meanwhile. the Seneca Nation, which has been eyeing Sullivan County for development of a Native American gaming casino, said last week that it may purchase the entire Concord Hotel property from Louis Cappelli, who had planned to redevlop the site for a hotel-resort conference center with a racetrack and video lottery machine gaming operation with Empire Resorts.

Payback…
Ulster County Comptroller Elliott Auerbach personally delivered a check for $61,486.90 to Town of Wawarsing Officials Thursday evening. The check represents monies owed to the town from a 2007 Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) from the Nevele Grande Hotel.
Auerbach uncovered the money during an examination of payments made to the county which revealed that $24,341.88 was owed to Wawarsing’s General Fund and $37,145.02 was owed to their Highway Fund.
The comptroller continues to pursue over $600,000 owed by the Nevele to Ulster County, the Town of Wawarsing, the Village of Ellenville, the Ellenville Central School District and the Ellenville Library.
Stay tuned…

Food Fight…
Four inmates at the Ulster County Law Enforcement Center have been charged with gang assault for allegedly beating up another inmate because he refused to give them some of his food. The incident occurred in the jail recreation area of A-Pod on Friday, August 14. The four inmates attempted to coerce the inmate into giving them some of his food and when he refused, they attacked him, the sheriff’s office reported. Once the assault was over, one of the inmates then told the victim that he should tell corrections personnel he received the injuries as the result of getting elbowed during a basketball game.
The victim suffered contusions and lacerations to his head, face, neck and chest.
Authorities have charged Tarrance Daniels, 17, of Kingston; Devante Knox, 17, of Kingston; Shaquille Moore, 17, of Poughkeepsie; and Lee Gray, 18, of Kingston, with gang assault in the second degree and assault in the second degree, both felonies. Gray was also charged with intimidating a victim or witness in the third degree, also a felony.

Old Time Days
At the 10th annual “Turn of the Century Days” in Roxbury, there's always something new coming to 1898. This Labor Day weekend, Sept. 5-6, a gala fireworks display on Saturday evening will cap a full day of old-fashioned base ball, mountain music, period fashion, children's pastimes, history and architecture, horse drawn carriage rides, beer garden and all the authentic country victuals you can eat.
All Labor Day weekend, the Harry M. Keator vintage base ball games will be afoot in Kirkside Park with the hometown Roxbury Nine hosting the Mountain Athletic Club of Fleischmanns and the Bovina Dairymen, and from the gritty city, the Brooklyn Atlantics. Games start at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 5 and at 11 a.m. on Sunday.
All weekend, you'll be serenaded by roving minstrels and Roxbury Brass marches. The Children’s Tent will be humming with hand crafts, old-fashioned activities and toys like hoops and stilts. At the popular Teddy Bear Tea on Saturday afternoon at the original Gould children's playhouse, girls and boys can bring their teddies and dolls on a high society date. There will even be demonstrations of how to make Victorian woven-hair jewelry!
On Sunday afternoon, there will be a Fashion Parade of 19th century dress, from haute couture to work-a-day wear.
The decade-long Labor Day “Turn of the Century” festivities helped Roxbury earn the prestigious “Preserve America” designation by the White House in 2005, for its ongoing commitment to preserving and revitalizing its historic heritage and for bringing "all the agreeable pursuits of 1898" to life with painstaking authenticity. Call 607-326-3722 for more information.

Eat Smart!
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County’s Eat Smart New York Program is pleased to announce a new program “Healthy Nutrition Habits”, a free six part series will run continuously every Monday, from 1:00pm to 2:00pm. Sessions will take place at the CCEUC Extension Education Center located at 10 Westbrook Lane in Kingston.
This program is open to all food stamp participants and low to moderate income families and individuals residing in Ulster County. Sessions will include various topics including food budgeting, serving sizes, learning about food groups, eating healthier by making better food choices, food safety and more! Participants will gain valuable kitchen skills through hands-on food demonstrations with CCEUC Nutrition Program Educator, Danielle J. Garris. One on one session’s in the home can be arranged for those without transportation.
All participants who complete six sessions of the program will receive a Certificate of Completion from the Cornell Cooperative Extension Ulster County’s Eat Smart New York Program.
For more information or to attend please call Barbara Grumberg at 340-3990.

Boomers Bust
There aren’t just fewer jobs in a recession. There are fewer babies, too. U.S. births fell in 2008, the first full year of the recession, marking the first annual decline in births since the start of the decade and ending an American baby boomlet.
The downturn in the economy best explains the drop in maternity, some experts believe. The Great Depression and subsequent recessions all were accompanied by a decline in births. And the numbers have never rebounded until the economy pulled out of it, according to historians.
It’s not clear that it’s the only explanation, however. Another expert noted a recent decline in immigration to the U.S. may also be a factor.
The nation recorded about 4,247,000 births last year, down about 68,000 from 2007, according to a new report from the National Center for Health Statistics.
This recession began in December 2007, and since then the economy has lost almost 7 million jobs. Housing foreclosures worsened in 2007 too, and fell into a state of crisis in 2008.
The largest decline in births were in California and Florida, two states hit hardest by the housing crisis.
Of course, 2007 was also a year in which more babies were born in the United States than any other year in the nation’s history. In the past, a fluctuation of births by 1 or 2 percent would not be seen as very significant, especially from such an unusual year.

Climate Change
The cost of tackling climate change will be paid for by benefits that would come from better energy security, employment and health, Rajendra Pachauri, the head of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, is saying. Measures needed to tackle global warming could save economies more money than they cost.
Until now, estimates of the price of preventing dangerous climate change have all indicated significant costs. The most authoritative study, the 2006 Stern report, concluded that 1% of global GDP would be required, and he has since said 2% is now more likely.
Funding for reducing and adapting to climate change is one of the most difficult issues in the negotiations towards a global deal at a UN summit in December in Copenhagen. But Pachauri argues that if the costs are negative, then “inertia and vested interests would be washed away. As the Americans say, it would be like dollar bills lying on the sidewalk.”
The associated benefits Pachauri pointed to include better energy security, protecting consumers from oil price spikes, new employment in green industries, more productive agriculture and lower air pollution, and cutting health costs. He said one good example was insulating draughty homes and installing better energy control systems. “This can yield very high rates of returns, with pay back in one year.”
Meanwhile, photos from US spy satellites declassified by the Obama White House provide the first graphic images of how the polar ice sheets are retreating in the summer. The effects on the world’s weather, environments and wildlife could be devastating.
The pictures, kept secret by Washington during the presidency of George W Bush, were declassified by the White House this month. President Barack Obama is currently trying to galvanize Congress and the American public to take action to halt catastrophic climate change caused by rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
One particularly striking set of images - selected from the 1,000 photographs released - includes views of the Alaskan port of Barrow. One, taken in July 2006, shows sea ice still nestling close to the shore. A second image shows that by the following July the coastal waters were entirely ice-free.
Disappearing summer sea ice poses considerable dangers, scientists have warned. Ice shelves are used by animals such as polar bears as platforms for hunting seals and other sea creatures. Without them, they could starve. In addition, ice reflects solar radiation. Without that process, the Arctic sea could warm up even more. The phenomenon threatens to set off runaway heating of the planet, say climatologists.
The latest revelations have triggered warnings from scientists that they no longer have the funds to keep a comprehensive track of climate change. Last week the head of the US’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Professor Jane Lubchenco, warned that the gathering of satellite data - crucial to predicting future climate changes - was now at “great risk” because America’s ageing satellite fleet was not being replaced.
The NOAA is under additional pressure to provide environmental data because of the re-emergence of the El Niño climate phenomenon, where warming of the tropical Pacific causes heatwaves, droughts and flooding around the world. June’s land and sea surface temperatures were the second hottest on record, and scientists are predicting this will be the warmest decade in recorded history. The last major El Niño was in 1998, the hottest year in recorded history.

Help The River
The Hudson River Watershed Alliance is accepting nominations for the 2009 Watershed Stewardship Award, seeking individuals, organizations, or government officials that exemplify leadership through successful local watershed protection, management and restoration of the Hudson River watershed. The purpose of this award is to recognize the efforts of local partners that contribute to the protection, conservation and restoration of the water resources of the Hudson River basin. The award will be presented at the State of the Hudson River Watershed Conference, scheduled for September 29-30, at The Henry A. Wallace Center at the FDR Museum and Library. Nomination forms can be found online at http://www.hudsonwatershed.org . Nominations submitted for last year’s award should be re-submitted for the 2009 Watershed Steward Award. For questions, call 486-1556.
Also, in response to the Quadricentennial Commission’s call for a continuing dialogue to advance a vision for the future of the Hudson Valley in the next 100 years, the Hudson River Watershed Alliance is sponsoring an online forum called OurHudson.org. Talk about getting involved easily…

K-9 Passing
Regan, a retired police dog who had served the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office for nine years, died on Thursday, August 20, according to Sheriff Paul Van Blarcum.
The second dog to join the Sheriff’s Office, on March 1, 1999, Regan was partnered with Deputy Tom Lattin for his entire career and continued to live with Lattin after being retired last August.
The sheriff said a public memorial is planned.
On Monday afternoon. police came out to the Ulster County Fairgrounds to pay their respects to New Paltz K-9 Zeus, who died as a result of injuries he sustained during a car accident while on patrol July 31st. Zeus was just shy of eight years old when he died.
Zeus, from the Czech Republic, was donated to the NPPD in 2003.