6/3/2010
Safe Water...
The New York City Department of Environmental Protection
has announced that it has concluded a study that indicates
that the presence of pharmaceuticals and personal care
products in New York City's source waters pose no public
health risks. The one-year pilot program tested for the
presence of pharmaceuticals and personal care products
in New York City's three upstate watersheds, finding only
extremely minute quantities of these compounds.
"The findings of this study confirm that pharmaceuticals
and personal care products do not pose a health risk in
New York City's drinking water," said DEP Commissioner
Cas Holloway in a press release. "Our top priority
is to ensure the quality of the drinking water that nine
million New Yorkers need every day, and we perform more
than 500,000 tests each year to monitor water quality.
Though there was never any indication that pharmaceuticals
and personal care products presented a health or quality
risk to our water supply, we undertook this study as part
of our ongoing efforts to rigorously analyze all aspects
of water quality. Pharmaceuticals and personal care products
are part of our daily lives, and the fact is traces of
these products are present in the environment. We want
to be sure that the presence of these products in our
water supply did not rise to a level that impacts the
quality of drinking water, and that is what this study
shows. DEP will continue our rigorous and comprehensive
monitoring every day, to ensure that we continue to deliver
the healthy, great tasting water that New Yorkers expect."
Throughout 2009, DEP conducted quarterly tests at three
source water locations in the Croton, Delaware, and Catskill
watersheds to determine whether a target group of pharmaceutical
and personal care products could be detected at any level
in New York City's water supply. After collection, the
samples were tested at two different laboratories in each
of the four rounds of sampling during the year. The samples
were tested for the presence of 78 compounds - including
antibiotics, hormones, prescription medications and endocrine
disrupting compounds. Of the 78 compounds tested, 16 pharmaceuticals
and personal care products (PPCPs) were detected at least
once, and eight compounds were detected in three or more
quarters of sampling. None of the 16 detected PPCP compounds
were found at a concentration that would present a potential
public health concern.
Pharmaceuticals have probably been present in water and
the environment for as long as humans have been using
them. Drugs that are consumed are not entirely absorbed
and are excreted and passed into wastewater and surface
water. Some pharmaceuticals are easily broken down and
processed by the human body or degrade quickly in the
environment, but others are not easily broken down and
processed, so they enter sewers or septic systems.
Up until recently, hospitals and other health care facilities
have often flushed out-of-date or excess drugs down toilets.
DEP is currently working with the state and its watershed
partners to develop alternatives to disposing of unneeded
medications that do not pose a threat to the water supply.
Wastewater treatment plants are designed to remove solids,
chemicals and microorganisms but not at miniscule concentrations.
The one-year pilot testing program, initiated in January
2009, focused on pharmaceuticals that have been detected
in surface waters, groundwater and treated water discharged
from wastewater treatment plants in national and regional
studies conducted by the United States Geographical Survey
and New York State Department of Health.
The results of this pilot study will be used to help assess
the need for a continued program on emerging contaminants
and to develop a more targeted program for subsequent
years, if necessary. A summary of DEP's study can be found
at www.nyc.gov/dep.
Uncertain, now, is what happens to a recent investigation
of local hospitals and nursing homes by Attorney General
Andrew Cuomo that led to settlement actions and fines
and talk of a new state policy on such matters, which
surfaced in a number of meetings and news stories this
past January.
Upcoming, on Friday, June 11, there will be a special
summit on all such matters to be held at CWC headquarters
in Margaretville, starting at 10:00 AM.
Stay tuned...
Road $$$
At mid year, it remains unclear whether much paving will
occur on Shandaken town roads in 2010. As paving crews
blaze westward on the state-owned Route 28, making it
to Broadstreet Hollow Road at press time, Shandaken Highway
Superintendent Eric Hofmeister said that putting blacktop
on any local roadways is on hold.
"We're still waiting for our CHIPS funding from the
State," he said. "It's held up along with the
budget."
Leaders of the two statewide associations representing
locally-elected and appointed highway superintendents
and public works commissioners have called on Governor
David A. Paterson to include funding for local road and
bridge projects in future emergency spending bills. But
to date, no such actions have taken place.
CHIP's, the Consolidated Highway Improvement Program,
provides state capital funding for counties, towns, cities
and villages to maintain roads and bridges under local
jurisdiction.
For Hofmeister, and presumably other highway superintendents
in the region, this means no paving, as it remains unclear
how much CHIPS funding the town will receive. He describes
the amount of CHIPS funding expected, and hoped for, as
being less than one quarter of the total highway department
budget, but still being "a substantial amount."
Late season snow and ice cost his department slightly
more than what had been budgeted. Hofmeister, who said
that no special projects are planned for any town roads
this year, doesn't feel the extra cost for spring snow
removal will hurt in the long run.
Good news, he added, was that the town is saving on routine
maintenance of many of Shandaken's unpaved roads. Where
usually, his department must grade these muddy thoroughfares
and then cover them with a material known as Item 4, a
type of crushed stone that must be purchased and trucked
in from areas far away, this year it is the millings from
the Route 28 repaving project that will stand in for the
Item 4. And not only is there no transportation charge
for it, the material itself is free.
"That's why there's a whole pile of it up at Glenbrook
Park," the superintendent said.
Farmstand?
Recent letters between the lawyer representing the Hanover
Farms farmstand on Route 28 and Ulster County planner
Dennis Doyle are revealing a means for achieving a long-sought
means for a new law allowing such entities in Shandaken.
"As I recall the comprehensive plan for the community
speaks to the need to
preserve the Rt. 28 corridor as a succession of field
forest, activitycenter, hamlet," Doyle wrote to Pat
Ellison recently. "The Town very deliberately provided
for both residential and commercial uses along the corridor
each in its place and restricted the commercial uses within
the residential zones so as to preserve the pattern articulated
in the comprehensive plan... As the community considers
allowing what in many respects could become commercial-like
uses in residential zones their concern about the scope
of
that use is warranted and in keeping with their comprehensive
plan."
Doyle said he would aid the town by helping it reach a
consensus on where it would allow farm stand activities,
and not get bogged down in other concerns.
According to Ellison, discussion is also moving towards
the idea that both farm stands and farm markets should
be able to obtain a special permit to locate on a parcel
now zoned residential, IF the parcel has adequate frontage
either on Route 28, or on a county road. Only very small
roadside stands would be permitted on a residential parcel
lacking frontage on a major road thus keeping commercial
activities out of purely residential neighborhoods.
The date for a second meeting is expected shortly, according
to Shandaken town supervisor Rob Stanley.
At Onteora...
At the June 1 Onteora Board of Education meeting past
school board trustee Rita Vanacore criticized the current
board for not budgeting a Superintendent search and accused
the board of backroom deals. "I see nothing on the
agenda to date indicating that our Superintendent contract
is under renegotiation," said Vanacore, noting that
current super Dr. Leslie Ford's contract is due for renewal
June 2011. "Is it true that the board has already
picked its successor internally, thus alleviating an external
search? I take personal affront to a board who puts their
personal agenda ahead of the welfare of our entire student
population." Vanacore asked a series of questions,
requested answers, "in a timely manner," and
said she will publish them alongside her letter.
According to the Saratogian newspaper in Saratoga Springs,
Ford applied for a superintendent position at South Glens
Falls School District. She is one of two candidates vying
for the seat of 19-year veteran Superintendent James P.
McCarthy. The position begins July, 2010. His contract
was not renewed by the district's Board of Education with
no reason given. Both candidates were scheduled for an
interview May 25.
Ulster Dems...
Ulster County Party chairman Julian Schreibman was confident
as he addressed his party's recent nominating convention
at the Kingston Holiday Inn, where endorsements were made
without opposition for Democratic incumbents Congressman
Maurice Hinchey, Assemblyman Kevin Cahill, Assemblyman
Frank Skartados, Sheriff Paul Van Blarcum, and Comptroller
Elliot Auerbach, as well as for Andrew Cuomo for governor,
Thomas DiNapoli for state comptroller, Charles Schumer
and Kirsten Gillibrand for U.S. Senate.
Harley Doles was given the nod to run for the 39th Senatorial
seat, currently held by Republican William Larkin; and
David Sager to pursue the 42nd Senatorial seat currently
held by Republican John Bonacic.
In separate news, Ulster County Executive Michael Hein's
name briefly surfaced as one of several in the running
as a possible Lt. Governor running mate for Cuomo, although
the would-be governor named Rochester Mayor Robert J.
Duffy as his choice for the position at the state Democratic
Convention in Westchester County just before Memorial
Day, when the biggest news seemed to be the fact that
incumbent governor David Paterson did not show. A final
okay for Cuomo's pick will take place in September, when
a formal primary vote takes place.
Ulster County Republicans are set to hold their own non-official
nominating convention on Tuesday June 8, site to be announced...
Arts For Ulster!
UlsterCorps and the Woodstock Artist Association and Museum
are joining together for a first-ever project, Arts for
Ulster, that brings together 50 works by 50 artists set
to benefit 50 separate causes... a unique series of events
designed to foster volunteerism, build community, and
raise money to support services for Ulster County residents.
All events will be at WAAM, 28 Tinker Street in Woodstock,
with a Gala Preview Reception on Friday, June 11th from
7:00 - 9:00 PM, and continuing with a five week gallery
exhibit in the artist association and museum's Towbin
Wing featuring works by A-list artists Judy Pfaff, Gillian
Jagger and Richard Segalman.
More than 50 artists in all are donating work to benefit
organizations providing a wide range of important services
throughout our region. A complete list of the artists
and the organizations participating can be found on the
UlsterCorps website, www.ulstercorps.org.
The Gala Preview Reception will also include a special
chamber music performance of Mozart's Eine Kleine Nachtmusik
by Esopus Musicalia. Saturday, June 12, will be a public
opening reception for the show. On Friday, June 18th,
7pm, there will be a Special Performance by Rebecca Martin,
the critically acclaimed singer songwriter, at WAAM.
The breadth of artists involved, and the causes being
helped by their sales, is as valid a cross-section of
the region's cultural scene as can be seen these days.
Organizations benefiting range from cultural institutions
to food kitchens, a variety of social service agencies,
and community projects.
Arts for Ulster will culminate with a Live Auction fundraiser
on Saturday, July, 17th from 6-10pm with auctioneer James
Cox and a classical guitar performance by Liam Wood. Auctioned
will be the more than fifty works of art each by a different
artist, each benefiting a different not-for-profit.
Tickets for these events can be purchased at WAAM or online
at www.woodstockart.org or www.ulstercorps.org or by calling
845-679-2940 extension 300.
FCC Muck Up...
A total of 248 congressional members are raising concerns
about the Federal Communications Commission's plan to
reshape the regulatory framework for broadband services
in order to adopt net neutrality rules. Republicans say
doing so will reduce investment in broadband networks
and kill jobs. Some Democrats say the FCC should wait
for further direction from Congress.
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski does not need Congressional
approval to adopt net neutrality, a set of rules that
would require Internet service providers to treat all
Web traffic equally. Genachowski, who has the support
of President Barack Obama in pursuing net neutrality,
has received political cover to move forward despite increasing
lobbying efforts from the cable and telephone industries,
including biggies AT&T, Comcast and Verizon, who are
sending the message that the FCC's actions likely will
be challenged in court. They and congressional supporters
are also trying to say that net neutraility or any sort
of regulation of Internet business plans would be a distraction
from "the more important priority of expanding broadband
services to rural areas."
The Senate and House Commerce Committees, meanwhile, have
announced plans to consider rewriting the Communications
Act to clarify the regulatory status of broadband.
The net neutrality fight has all but consumed the FCC
over the past two years. In 2008, the agency under the
Bush administration ordered Comcast to stop slowing traffic
to file-sharing sites. Earlier this year, a federal court
reversed that order, deciding that the FCC did not have
the authority to regulate Internet services. To regain
that authority, Genachowski proposed reclassifying broadband
services so a decades-old framework will govern them designed
for copper phone lines. Hoping to ease Internet companies'
fears, Genachowski said he would not impose the most burdensome
aspects of the traditional rule. But the telecom providers
say a future FCC could easily reverse that promise.
Consumer advocates and Silicon Valley technology companies
who support net neutrality rules, including the likes
of Google, Amazon, eBay, Consumers Union and public interest
groups, argue the FCC has the authority to protect consumers'
interests on telecommunications networks. An updated communications
bill could take years to pass, they say, stalling other
FCC priorities.
Meanwhile, in terms of opening up radio waves to low power
community stations, which has been blocked by the major
radio industry and National Public Radio in recent years,
the Local Community Radio Act is being readied for passage
over the summer months.
The Local Community Radio Act was approved by the House
last year. When passed, it will relax restrictions on
licensing for the low-power, community radio stations,
allowing numerous new opportunities for local news and
music via hundreds of new low-power stations across the
country.
Better Economy?
Unemployment eased locally and statewide in April, the
New York Department of Labor reported recently. The statewide
jobless rate in April was 8.4, down from 8.6 percent in
March, and the state gained 31,5000 private-sector jobs
during that period, labor officials said.
Locally, unemployment rates in April were as follows.
ï Ulster: 7.2 percent, down from 7.9 percent in March.
ï Dutchess: 7.4 percent, down from 7.9 percent.
ï Greene: 8.1 percent, down from 8.6.
ï Columbia: 6.9 percent, down from 7.8.
ï Delaware: 8.2 percent, down from 9.3.
ï Sullivan: 8.8 percent, down from 9.9.
New York City's jobless rate dropped from 10 percent to
9.8 percent.
Meanwhile, housing sales were up yet again for the same
period, both in terms of volume and prices, although it
should be noted that April was the last month for special
tax credits.
Let's see where things stand for May...
Creek Cleanup...
The Ashokan Watershed Stream Management Program (AWSMP)
Stream Stewards program will be hosting a cleanup of the
Esopus Creek on Saturday, June 12 followed by a Potluck
Barbeque and entertainment for volunteer clean-up crews
at the AWSMP Main Office located at 6375 Route 28, in
Phoenicia (across from the former Margo's Restaurant).
Volunteers will meet at the AWSMP Office that morning
at 9:30am and carpool to cleanup stream access sites.
Gloves & trash bags will be provided for the cleanup.
Participants are asked to wear sturdy shoes & dress
appropriately for sun/rain. Prizes will be awarded to
everyone and also for the most interesting trash items
found!
Immediately following the clean up at 12:00pm, volunteer
clean-up crews will return to the AWSMP office for the
Potluck Barbeque which will feature music by singer, Peggy
Atwood. Burgers, veggie burgers, hot dogs & buns will
be provided - Volunteers are asked to bring a side dish
to share.
Stream Stewards are full and part time residents of the
Ashokan Watershed who participate in a myriad of important
and beneficial activities. The purpose of the program
is for volunteers to get involved in stream-based projects
in the community as a way to visibly model positive stream
stewardship practices and assist AWSMP in carrying out
a wide range of community activities.
Please RSVP no later than Thursday, June 10 by calling
Colleen Griffith at 845-688-3047 or cas55@cornell.edu.
AWSMP is funded by NYC Department of Environmental Protection.
Water Releases
The Rondout-West Branch Tunnel portion of the Delaware
Aqueduct of the New York City reservoir system will undergo
a planned shutdown this fall to perform the next phase
of work related to the long-term repair of the tunnel.
In October, DEP will install a backup support - a giant
plug - behind an existing hatch that ensures that water
in the tunnel does not go into the shaft, which workers
need to access to install pumping equipment that will
be used during the long-term repair. Ahead of the three-week
shutdown, DEP has agreed with the states of Delaware,
New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania on a program, starting
this week, to manage the incremental release of water
from reservoirs during the summer months that otherwise
would be diverted during the planned shutdown.
In February, DEP announced that work had begun on the
Operations Support Tool, a cutting-edge, $5.2 million
computer system that will enable DEP's water supply operators
to more accurately predict water storage levels in the
City's reservoirs so that DEP can better manage the movement
of water throughout the reservoir system. The initiative,
the first of its kind in the world, will improve the City's
water management systems by predicting events that could
affect water quality much earlier than is now possible,
and incorporating more data in the computer models used
to determine water flows. It is being implemented on a
rolling basis and is expected to be complete by 2013.
The 85-mile Delaware Aqueduct is the world's longest continuous
tunnel and conveys drinking water from the Cannonsville,
Neversink, Pepacton, and Rondout reservoirs to the City's
distribution system, and provides approximately 50 percent
of the City's daily water needs.
Since 2002, Mayor Bloomberg has invested approximately
$493 million in preparation work for the eventual repair
of the Delaware Aqueduct. The City has committed another
$100 million for additional work over the next four years.
The shutdown will allow workers to perform work on a shaft
necessary to ultimately repair the Aqueduct. Earlier this
year, divers investigated the area around an existing
hatch in the shaft that leads to the Aqueduct. In the
fall, this area will be reinforced, which will lay the
groundwork for the next phase of work, the installation
of a pumping station in the shaft.
Over the next 12 months, DEP will temporarily increase
the amount of water available for release from its Delaware
Basin Reservoirs as part of the Flexible Flow Management
Plan, an agreement between the four basin states of Delaware,
New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and the City of New
York to manage the water storage levels and releases of
the Cannonsville, Pepacton, and Neversink reservoirs.
Parks Stay Open
New York Gov. David Paterson reached an agreement last
week to have all 178 state parks open on Memorial Day
weekend and beyond. His administration had targeted 41
parks and 14 of the state's 35 historic sites for closing,
along with service cuts at others, to help reduce the
state's budget gap. Locally, Mills Norrie State Park in
Dutchess County and Taconic State Park in Columbia County
were to have their hours and/or services reduced.
Paterson said negotiations would provide $11 million for
full operations this year, effectively offset by money
from the Environmental Protection Fund, which would be
cut by about $74 million. The measure also is expected
to keep the targeted historic sites - including Olana
in Columbia County - open this year, as well as Department
of Environmental Conservation campgrounds targeted for
closing. Among those campgrounds was Devil's Tombstone
in nearby Lansesville.
According to administration officials, lawmakers still
need to find another $2 billion to $2.5 billion in spending
cuts to close the deficit and adopt a balanced budget
of roughly $130 billion for this year. The state budget
for 2010-11 was to be completed by April 1 and is now
nearly two months late.
Crossbows?
Assembly Bill 924 and Senate Bill 6793, bills authorizing
the state Department of Environmental Conservation to
promulgate rules for the use of crossbows for hunting
in New York, are pending consideration in the Assembly
and Senate Environmental Conservation Committees, respectively.
Proponents are saying an "aggressive expansion of
hunter choice and opportunity" is needed at a time
when hunter retention and recruitment rates are declining,
putting "our proud hunting heritage in serious jeopardy."
Opposition is coming from vertical bow hunters and those
concerned with the deadliness of crossbows, especially
in increasingly suburban-like settings.
Talk about another strange set of battle lines...
Metal Week!
The long held and popular tradition of an annual metal
pick up by the Shandaken Highway Department is once again
upon us. Starting on Monday, June 14th, crews with dump
trucks and loaders will comb every nook and cranny of
town and pick up any old lawn mower, washing machine,
tire rim, rusty BBQ grill, hot water heater, and just
about any other metal object that you no longer want.
The key word here is metal. Please do not expect your
old tires to be carted off, or your old plastic pool.
And please have you old refrigerator, air conditioner
or freezer free of Freon please, before putting it out
at the curb.
Highway Superintendent Eric Hofmeister said Tuesday, "Please
try to have everything out on Sunday June 13."
For more information call Hofmeister at 688-9901.
Tower Vols?!?
The "Friends of the Catskill Fire Towers," supported
by the Catskill Center in Arkville, acting under volunteer
agreements with the Department of Environmental Conservation
is looking for volunteers to be part of this unique group
interested in helping maintain and interpret the Hunter
Mountain Fire Tower in Greene County and Mount Tremper
Fire Tower in Ulster County. Fire tower volunteers will
be part of a larger effort to improve connections with
local communities and the greater Catskill Park.
Those interested in more information on Hunter Mountain,
please contact Gordon Hoekstra at 201-497-8910 or at ghoekstra@optonline.net.
For Mount Tremper, please contact Matt at 917-204-2032
or tremperfiretower@gmail.com. For all fire tower information,
please contact George Profous, Forester, NYSDEC at 845-256-3082
or The Catskill Center for Conservation and Development
at 845-586-2611. For a brochure, call DEC to request "Fire
Towers of the Catskills: A Guide for Hikers and History
Buffs." The towers are also featured in "The
Catskill Adventure" brochure.
Frost Valley!
The National Inclusion Project recently awarded a $10,000
grant to the Frost Valley YMCA to implement "Let's
ALL Play" Inclusion in Recreational Programs. The
grant will allow children with developmental disabilities
to enjoy a successful summerexperience in an inclusive
setting at the camp, which has served children with special
needs for over thirty years.
The National Inclusion Project has been actively developing
its Let's ALL Play Program since the program's inception
in 2004. Today, the Project supports over 35 recreational
programs across the US.
Let's ALL Play helps bring an inclusive recreational experience
to children with disabilities. It gives children with
developmental disabilities the same experience as those
without. Children with disabilities and their peers who
are typically developing come together to participate
in recreational activities such as swimming, arts and
crafts, community service, physical fitness and more.
The National Inclusion Project provides services and financial
assistance to promote the full integration of children
with disabilities into the life environment of those without.
The Project strives to create awareness about the diversity
of individuals with disabilities and the possibilities
that inclusion can bring.
Financial assistance is available for campers. For pricing
and registration information, call 845 985-2291, or visit:
www.frostvalley.org/day-camp-local-events/.
Also at Frost Valley, the entity, in partnership with
The Childrenπs Hospital at Montefiore, is introducing
Hearts in the Valley camp, a summer camp experience for
children who have chronic heart disease or heart transplants,
to be held August 8 - 20. This first year will be a pilot
camp for 6-8 children from the tri-state area. The Childrenπs
Hospital at Montefiore will be providing a team of doctors
and nurses, including a Cardiologist, who will oversee
all medical aspects of the camp. Frost Valley YMCA will
be providing the camp experience and programming.
Frost Valley YMCA is seeking additional funding sources
to be able to provide families with full scholarships
for the children to attend camp and build the program
to serve more children in the years to come. For information
please call (845) 985-2291 or e-mail info@frostvalley.org.
Arrested...
Deputies from the Ulster County Sheriff's Office report
the arrests of Rodney Cooper, 48 of Latham, and James
Lambert, 45 of Latham, for Attempted Grand Larceny in
the 3rd Degree. The two turned themselves in on May 20,
after learning that they had warrants for their arrests.
Rodney T. Cooper, a third defendant, had previously turned
himself in. All were charged with Attempted Grand Larceny
in the 3rd Degree, a class E Felony, for being involved
in a driveway sealing scam where they preyed upon an elderly
homeowner offering to seal her driveway for a reduced
price due to the homeowner's age. They advised the homeowner
that the job would only cost her a few hundred dollars.
When they were finished, the cost had jumped into the
thousands of dollars. The homeowner did not have the money
they were asking for and they offered to drive the homeowner
to the bank to remove the funds for payment. An alert
bank employee stopped the transaction before it could
be completed and alerted authorities.
Rodney Cooper and James Lambert were arraigned at the
Kingston City Court and were remanded to the Ulster County
Jail with no bail. Rodney T. Cooper was arraigned on May
11 and remanded to the Ulster County Jail on $5,000 bail.
They were set for arraignment in Marbletown court.
Celebrating Cindy
Most knew or were touched by Cindy VanBuren of Olivewhose
battle with cancer ended on March 11. A Celebration of
Life for the woman will be held at Davis Park, West Shokan,
on Sunday, June 13, beginning at 12 noon (earlier if one
can volunteer to help set up). Many are bringing side
dishes to compliment the chicken, hot dogs and hamburgers
that will be grilled all day. Live music will be provided
by Ben Rounds Bank, X Files, The Pontiacs, Doraine Scofield
& Chris Walsh, and Murali Coryell and a co-ed softball
tournament is being set up (teams should sign up through
June 9). Plus darts...
Prizes are being donated from local businesses and residents,
which will be used for some of the events as well as separate
raffles for some larger prizes that have been donated
for the event (a painting by Kate McLoughlin, a truck
load of firewood). T-shirts and other handmade souvenirs
will be for sale during the day and there will also be
a 50/50 raffle.
All proceeds for the day will go to the VanBuren Family
Fund, which will fund an annual scholarship (to be given
to local students in Cindy's name), and a donation will
be made to the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodge, which
offers cancer patients and their families a free, temporary
place to stay when their best hope for effective treatment
may be in another city. If you cannot be at the event
but would like to make an early donation, you can send
your contribution to the VanBuren Family Fund at Wilbur
National Bank in Boiceville. Early funds will help to
purchase anything needed for the celebration that isn't
being donated.
Born March 8, 1962 in Hicksville, Van Buren was the daughter
of the late Albert and Jean Shultis Klippel and had resided
in the area for over 30 years. She was a graduate of Onteora
Central School, class of 1980, and was on the girls varsity
softball team. She was also a booster for the Onteora
wrestling team in recent years. She was active in the
operation of her parents' restaurant, Al and Jean's Landmark
in Boiceville, for 22 years and was a teacher's aide at
the Onteora High School the. She was active in local sports,
including coaching volleyball and softball, and she played
for Olive Women's League Softball and Budweiser Dart League
in the town of Olive.
For further information and donations contact Amanda at
657 8106 or e-mail her at avanburen_616@yahoo.com. Visit
cindyscelebration.webstarts.com/index.html for further
details.
Iraq Silence
he British official inquiry team examining the origins
and conduct of the Iraq War met with some relatively senior
former officials of the George W. Bush administration
on a weeklong visit to the U.S. earlier in May. But neither
Bush, Dick Cheney, nor any other very senior Bush-era
policymaker, military, or intelligence official appears
to have been willing to speak to the inquiry team, which
is led by Sir John Chilcot, a former senior civil servant.
Only a written statement submitted by Paul Bremer, the
former ambassador (and de facto viceroy) in Iraq, has
so far been published on the inquiry's Web site. In it,
Bremer takes some pains to defend two of his, and the
Bush administration's, most controversial and consequential
post-invasion decisions regarding postwar Iraq: the decision
to disband the Iraqi Army, which had been one of the foundations
of Saddam Hussein's regime, and the decision to ban Saddam's
Baath Party and begin a process of "de-Baathification"
that is still roiling Iraqi politics today.
A British official familiar with the inquiry's activities,
who asked for anonymity when discussing sensitive information,
indicated that the list of Americans published by the
committee was almost certainly a complete list of U.S.
people who had spoken to the inquiry team, and that it
was unlikely, though not completely impossible, that other
American witnesses had cooperated with the inquiry in
secret.
Many other high-level Bush administration officials, from
the president and vice president themselves to key Iraq
policy officials like Condoleezza Rice and Pentagon officials
Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, and Douglas Feith, to
key intelligence officials like former CIA director and
deputy director George Tenet and John McLaughlin, either
would not respond to questions as to whether they would
meet with the inquiry or indicated rather forcefully that
they were not interested in cooperating with it.
Teacher Help?
A Democratic plan to send $23 billion to the states to
save the jobs of 100,000 to 300,000 public school teachers,
librarians, counselors and other employees slated for
layoffs looks dead for the time being.
The layoffs already have begun. Advocates for teachers
are calling them catastrophic. Critics of the emergency
aid say states need to clean up their fiscal acts and
make changes. In the meantime, large, populous states
such as California and Texas, for example, are each expected
to absorb the loss of more than 30,000 teachers and other
personnel, according to White House estimates.
Schools are cutting staff and programs because the recession
has depleted state tax revenues, which pay for public
education.
Democrats in the House of Representatives had hoped to
pass the $23 billion emergency bailout as part of a spending
bill for the war in Afghanistan that was slated for passage,
but fiscally conservative members from tough districts
weren't happy about having to defend another vote that
would increase the deficit. And so the school aid measure
never came to a vote. Nor did it have any more luck in
the Senate, where some Democrats were equally jumpy about
spending, and the majority couldn't secure the necessary
60 votes for passage.
DEC Projects...
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
(DEC) Regional
Director Willie Janeway has released a list of potential
land stewardship projects planned for the upcoming year,
based on Governor David A. Paterson's proposed budget
(and ready for anything better).
"By supporting funding for stewardship projects,
we ensure that state lands can continue to be used to
their fullest, expanding tourism opportunities and enabling
greater access to New York's natural resources,"
said Janeway.
Pending projects in DEC's Hudson River Catskill Region
include trail maintenance on 330 miles of trails on DEC
managed State Lands in the NYC Watershed to help protect
water quality by addressing erosion and to better accommodate
public recreation; work to repair and maintain waterway
access sites throughout the region and basic maintenance
at DEC owned campgrounds.
Specific additional project needs include:
Fishing Access Sites, Boat Launch Sites and Waterway Access
Sites across the region, $34,000 for repairing, installing
seasonal docks, opening facilities, repairing emergency
lighting, grading and maintaining parking lots at sites...
Woodland Valley Campground in Phoenicia and Kenneth Wilson
Campground in Mt. Tremper, (Ulster County), $26,000 to
replace aging infrastructure and achieve compliance with
environmental and health regulations, including construction
of replacement shower buildings to replace aging toilet
buildings, reconstruction of water, sewer and electric
systems, construction of accessible parking and repair
of eroded roads, construction of recycling stations and
rehabilitation of eroded shoreline areas.
Kenneth Wilson Campground in Mt. Tremper (Ulster County),
where there is currently no ADA access to the shower building
from the parking lot, $35,000 to complete priority campground
improvements and build shower building access to come
into compliance with ADA guidelines.
Great Vly Wildlife Management Area (Ulster County), $10,000
to repair, regrade and reopen the parking lot and access
road while resolving enforcement issues by moving the
lot closer to the county road.
The projects detailed above are pending projects which
require funding through the EPF Stewardship category,
which was cut to keep state parks open. The actual projects
DEC will be able to complete are dependent upon the availability
of funding.
Keep your fingers crossed...
Voting Machines?
Ulster County elections commissioners are expecting to
move entirely to optical-scanning voting machines for
the Sept. 14 primary because of consolidation of polling
sites throughout the county. The same election districts
will operate, with 89 polling sites and a total of 130
to 140 new digital scanning machines throughout the county.
Officials currently have 108 machines and have ordered
another 40 to be sent to the state for certification.
The commissioners said they expect some confusion during
the first year of use, but have found demonstrations easily
resolve questions from voters about use of the machines.
The new machines are considered an improvement over lever
machines because a hard copy of each ballot will be available
to count instead of relying solely on electronically recorded
vote totals.
Republican Commissioner Thomas Turco said voters will
recognize the system from standardized tests taken during
school and noted their safety... with voters marking paper
ballots then read by the scanners and all items then sealed
for review.
The commissioners said the county is basing the number
of machines needed on about one per 1,500 voters instead
of the one per 3,500 voters recommended by the state.
Ballots will be filled out prior to using the machines,
possibly shortening the overall voting time.
"Where you used to wait in line to use the machine,
pulled the lever and, then, you left, now you are going
to get a ballot, go to a privacy area, fill out the ballot
at your own convenience and just walk up and feed it into
a machine," Turco said.
We'll see how it all shakes out... guess we know why this
is being tried out in a year without much on the local
election front... or a presidential race, for that matter...
