Dutchess County legislators are going to vote Monday night on a resolution asking the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to conduct a study of the potential impacts of a crude oil spill in or near the Hudson River.
There have been increased shipments of crude by rail and barge. In January of last year Governor Cuomo issued an executive order asking state agencies to perform a review of safety procedures and emergency response preparedness related to rail and water shipments of crude oil.
On average, two crude oil freight trains travel through Ulster County per day and each day one barge passes along the Hudson River between Dutchess and Ulster counties carrying more than 4 million gallons of oil.