Latest news with #DEC
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
State DEC to complete report on inspection of city's hydro plant this month
May 31—WATERTOWN — City council members hope to hear soon more about the results of a state inspection at the city hydroelectric plant two weeks ago to determine whether the facility is in federal compliance. The state Department of Environmental Conservation completed an on-site inspection of the Marble Street hydro plant on May 15 after a group of river activists alleged that the facility on the Black River was not in compliance with its Federal Energy Regulatory Commission license. Six DEC staffers spent a couple of hours taking a tour of the plant. Councilman Robert O. Kimball thinks that City Manager Eric Wagenaar will update council members about it during a future work session. "In general, it went well," Mayor Sarah V.C. Pierce. "Awaiting more details from Eric." In March, the DEC requested the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission look into the city-owned hydro plant after recognizing that the situation with the facility is serious enough that FERC should "address this matter." A few days after the DEC inspection, Wagenaar sent out "a quick update" in an email to council members that read: "The DEC came with six staff members and spent a couple of hours with our team," the mail said. "I would like to wait for the DEC report for the details, as we all see things differently and I do not want to get ahead of them. The visit was cordial and productive for us and the DEC," it was added. For weeks, the city prepared for the inspection. City Engineer Tom Compo, Water Superintendent Aaron Harvill, city civil engineer Jeffrey Hammond and Ampersand NY Operations, the Boston-based company responsible for the day-to-day operations of the hydro plant, planned on joining the DEC during the visit. The inspection was prompted after members of a river group, New York Rivers United, brought up their concerns to FERC in December. New York Rivers United, a group of whitewater advocates and rafting enthusiasts, outlined numerous instances in a 35-page document claiming the city's FERC license — known as P-2442 — was out of compliance for years. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, another stakeholder in the FERC license, also attended the inspection. FERC also has notified the city that it has until June 14 to submit a report to respond to each of 11 allegations that maintain that the plant does not adhere to the commission's license. In 1995, the river group, the DEC and FERC negotiated the terms of the current license, designed to mitigate significant commercial, environmental and recreational impacts identified during the relicensing process. Other regional and national rivers groups — American Rivers, American Whitewater and Appalachian Mountain Club — also urged the DEC to notify FERC about the issues with the hydro plant. One of the most serious allegations involves aerial photographs from 2003 to 2024 that indicate downstream fish passage facilities appear to be out of compliance with the license. According to the license, the hydro plant is supposed to allow for fish to bypass the facility to prevent them from entering the facility. The city could be fined $27,893 a day for that violation. Wagenaar has questioned the motives of the river group, wondering why people who don't live in the state are interested in the city's hydro plant. Under the 1995 agreement, an account was set up to distribute funding for river accessibility projects. The city and Rivers United, which advocates for accessibility to the river, have been at odds about who decides how to spend that money. Wagenaar was out of town and unavailable for comment. DEC officials did not respond to written questions about the Watertown visit.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Two hikers call 911 and say their friend had died on trek... the truth was more bizarre
Hikers trekking through a New York mountain frantically called 911 to report that their friend had died during their adventure, only to be met with an unexpected twist upon rescue crews' arrival. While celebrating Memorial Day Weekend with a hike through the Cascade Mountain in North Elba, two friends found themselves in a nightmare scenario - they were lost, and their buddy was believed to be deceased, according to a press release. But when officers arrived, something truly bizarre occurred - against all odds, their friend, presumed dead, seemingly rose from the grave. As it turned out, the two pals weren't just high up on the mountains. They were also high on hallucinogenic mushrooms. On May 24, around 9am, Forest Ranger Praczkajlo received an emergency call from distressed hikers on Cascade Mountain, located near Lake Placid, according to the state's Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). The mountain, part of the Adirondack High Peaks, ranks as the 36th tallest in the range. During the call, the two hikers reported that their friend had died while on the trail. They also informed authorities that they had encountered a Cascade Summit Steward earlier and admitted they were lost. 'The steward determined the hikers were in an altered mental state,' the agency said in the press release. Ranger Praczkajlo eventually reached the trailhead, where an ambulance was already waiting, and escorted the two panicked hikers back to the vehicle. However, as they made their way back, a single phone call changed the entire situation - turning a straightforward rescue into something far more confusing. On the other line was the 'dead' friend - alive, unharmed and seemingly unaware of the chaos unfolding around him. According to the release, the group had allegedly eaten hallucinogenic mushrooms during their hike. The effects of the drug are highly unpredictable and heavily influenced by the user's mindset and the environment in which it's taken, as reported by Desert Hope Treatment Center. Given the unforeseeable nature of the drug, users may endure 'bad trips' - intense, distressing reactions that can be both frightening and disorienting. Intense hallucinations, anxiety, panic and fear are just a few of the possible effects during a 'bad trip', often triggered by unfamiliar or chaotic surroundings. Thankfully reunited, all three friends were escorted back to their campsite, where they could finally find safety and calm after their odd ordeal. Bad trips leading people to behave in wild or erratic ways are not an uncommon experience with mushrooms, though the intensity can vary greatly from person to person. For some, a 'bad trip' might mean intense anxiety and a pounding heart - unpleasant but bearable - while others unfortunately end up in dangerous or painful situations. Last year, a man on vacation in Austria who took these 'magic mushrooms' entered psychosis that led him to amputate his penis and store it in a snow-filled jar. Doctors labeled the heart-stopping incident as the first case of its kind - and a harrowing reminder of the dangers of psychedelic drugs. The 37-year-old man ate four or five mushrooms before blacking out and taking an axe to his penile shaft - ultimately chopping it into several pieces. As he came to, he staggered out of the home and dragged himself down a nearby street, bleeding profusely, searching for help. In the middle of the night, around 2am, a passerby picked him up and brought him to the nearest village, and then to the closest hospital. He was immediately carted to the operating room, where doctors got the bleeding under control and disinfected the myriad pieces of the man's penis in the snow and soil-filled jar. Some damaged parts had to be removed, but the head of the penis and shaft were intact. After cleaning the wound, doctors successfully reattached the penis, despite it having been without blood flow for about 9 hours total (5 hours warm and 4 hours cold). After inserting a catheter, the surgeon reconnected the tissues of the penis using dissolvable stitches. The scrotal skin was then sewn back to the cleaned skin of the amputated part. Some of the skin on the tip of the man's newly reconstructed penis started to die about a week later - a condition called necrosis due to lack of oxygenated blood flow there - but doctors were able to treat it and reverse the damage. Despite all this, the man was still experiencing hallucinations, even trying to break out of the hospital at one point. Doctors found that he had smuggled mushrooms into his hospital room, finding a handful of them in his nightstand in the urology ward.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
New York State invests $120M to modernize fish hatcheries
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — A big investment is reeling in major improvements for New York State's fish hatcheries. The Department of Environmental Conservation is announcing a $120 million investment to modernize freshwater fish hatcheries across the state. The announcement took place at the historic Caledonia Fish Hatchery, the oldest in the Western hemisphere, just in time to kick off the annual Caledonia Trout Festival this weekend. The funding marks the start of a three-phase project to upgrade 12 hatcheries statewide, ensuring the continued success of fish stocking and conservation programs. And as it happens, Friday, the New York State Senate confirmed the first openly gay DEC commissioner Amanda Lefton. We heard from her today on the investment. 'So our hatcheries systems in NYS really stock over 1,000 water bodies all across New York,' Lefton said. 'So, we have anglers that go out and catch fish. And they might not even know that we helped raise those fish and these stocking efforts are really so helpful to help with restoration efforts but for the angling communities. And what's so neat about Caledonia is the history, a lot of people grew up going to this hatchery.' These hatcheries support a recreational fishing industry that already contributes $5 billion annually to New York's economy. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Newsweek
3 days ago
- Business
- Newsweek
New York Democrats Want to Limit Cows on Farms
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. New York State Democrats are pushing legislation to rein in massive cattle farms by strictly limiting the number of permits for industrial-scale livestock operations, known as Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), in the state. Newsweek reached out to the bill's sponsors and New York State's Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) via email for comment. Why It Matters Currently, New York State has around 500 CAFOs, with the vast majority dairy farms with 300 or more cows and associated livestock operations, according to the DEC. A large CAFO is defined as a farm with over 700 mature dairy cows; smaller farms typically do not require a permit unless specific environmental factors are present, such as the farm being a significant contributor of pollutants. Over 1,000 cattle or calf pairs also qualify as a large CAFO. The dairy industry is the largest sector of the state's agricultural industry and is the country's fifth-largest producer of milk, as well as the largest producer of yogurt and cottage cheese, according to the state's agricultural department. What To Know The bill, introduced by representatives from New York City, Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal and Senator Jabari Brisport, seeks to limit the number of CAFOs that can exist in the state by lowering the number of permits available. The bill, S.6530 and A.6928, states that "The department shall not issue a license or permit or approval for the operation of a new large concentrated animal feeding operation, or an addition to, or expansion of, an existing animal feeding operation if the addition or expansion would cause the animal feeding operation to become a large concentrated animal feeding operation or increase the animal stabling or confinement capacity of an existing large concentrated animal feeding operation." Cows stand at a milking station at Twin Birch Dairy in Skaneateles, New York, on March 21, 2025. Cows stand at a milking station at Twin Birch Dairy in Skaneateles, New York, on March 21, 2025. Caitlyn Daproza via AP The bill won't suspend current CAFOs, but it will not allow more to gain permits. It is unclear what will happen to permits that expire. Mass farms have been criticized for environmental issues, notably the release of methane gas and the contamination of waterways by manure. Methane is one of the most significant gases contributing to global warming, and it traps approximately 80 times more heat than carbon dioxide over a 20-year time scale, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Livestock account for around 32 percent of human-caused methane emissions, according to the United Nations Environment Programme. Dairy cows produce around six to seven gallons of milk a day. On average, since 2018, the price of milk per gallon in the United States has increased, with a notable dip in May 2024. The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis reports that the average cost of milk in U.S. cities is around $4 per gallon as of April 2025. What People Are Saying Jefferson County Agricultural Coordinator Jay Matteson told 7 News: "They haven't done their research. They've never been on dairy farms. How dare they try to regulate something they know nothing about. Even though we may think they're really big by Jefferson County standards, in the grand scheme of things, those are small businesses and very critical to the communities." New York GOP spokesperson David Laska, in a statement: "The whiff of manure from Albany Democrats is stronger than usual this week. Dairy farmers should not be the villains in an imaginary climate change narrative - they should be respected as part of the backbone of our state's rural economy and heritage. "Senator Brisport and Assemblywoman Rosenthal should accept the invitation from Jefferson County Agricultural Coordinator Jay Matteson and trade in their soy lattes for a day on the farm - maybe then they'll stop micromanaging rural life without understanding its realities." State Senator Jabari Brisport, a Brooklyn Democrat, said: "These factory farms wreak havoc on the environment, they are also pretty much always in direct impact marginalized communities, especially with the runoff, fumes, and the way they affect local waterways, and also the way they affect local economies." What Happens Next The bill, which was introduced in mid-March, has been referred to the respective environmental conservation committees in both chambers.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Health
- Time of India
‘Dead' friend turns up alive: How a mushroom triggered an 'emergency' panic call to 911 by lost hikers in NY
A false alarm at 4,098 feet Live Events Mushrooms, not mountain missteps Stewards on the summit A walk that ended with a ride (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel Two hikers in New York's Adirondacks sparked a dramatic emergency response last week after calling 911 to report a tragedy that never occurred. The men, found on Cascade Mountain on 24 May, claimed their hiking companion had died and they were lost. According to the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), the rangers quickly launched a what they discovered wasn't a body — it was confusion, hallucinations, and a still-very-much-alive friend.'The two hikers were in an 'altered mental state' and had ingested ' hallucinogenic mushrooms ,'' stated the DEC in a press Ranger Praczkajlo responded to the distress call at 9 a.m., near the summit of Cascade Mountain in Essex County. The trail, sitting at 4,098 feet above sea level, is the 36th-tallest of the Adirondack High Peaks. According to it's considered a 'challenging route' that is 'very popular for hiking and snowshoeing.'But for this group, the danger came not from the terrain, but from what they had placing the emergency call, the two hikers encountered the Cascade Summit Steward. In addition to reporting the supposed death, they also said they were lost. The steward immediately noticed something was off and flagged their mental state to the authorities.'Rangers eventually found the third person sober and uninjured and walked with them back to the group's campsite,' the DEC source of the panic was not altitude sickness, but psilocybin — the chemical compound in certain mushrooms, often referred to as 'magic mushrooms.' According to Medical News Today, psilocybin can cause effects ranging from euphoria and distorted thinking to full-blown seems the two hikers had taken these mushrooms during their Memorial Day weekend trip, unaware of just how far from reality it would take DEC added, 'Forest Ranger Praczkajlo escorted the two hikers who had ingested the hallucinogenic mushrooms to a waiting ambulance and a New York State Police unit.'Their friend, who had been presumed dead, had simply gone on ahead and was later found alive and Mountain is regularly visited by volunteers and professionals under the Adirondack Summit Stewardship Program . Started in 1990 with only two staff members, the programme now includes five full-time stewards, three botanists, and 20 volunteers (as of 2024). Their role is to assist hikers, conduct scientific research, and help maintain the ecological integrity of the this case, the steward's presence helped avert further emergency call ended not in grief but with a reunion — and an ambulance ride for the two men under the influence. No charges were reported, and the DEC has not released the identities of those was, in the end, a false alarm rooted not in injury or misadventure, but in the forest officials put it, the hikers had mistaken 'tripping' for tragedy.
