The Adirondack Council has issued its latest “State of the Park” report reviewing government actions and the status of the 6 million acres of protected lands in New York.
The report traditionally gives thumbs up or down on actions taken by the governor and legislature, the courts, the Adirondack Park Agency and the Department of Environmental Conservation, and local and federal government.
Among the ratings in this edition of the report, Governor Kathy Hochul received more praise than criticism. She was given thumbs up for eventually funding items such as clean water grants and the Environmental Protection Fund. But she was chastised for not nominating candidates to serve on the Adirondack Park Agency board. The state legislature received mostly good grades but failed regarding finding new uses for closed prisons and addressing lack of cell phone coverage across the Adirondacks.
John Sheehan is the report author.
“We had some progress on clean water and also on wastewater treatment facilities and a big move forward in how affordable those things are inside the Adirondack Park in that the state has now doubled the amount of money available for grants for wastewater treatment facilities,” Sheehan said. “So that is a big deal because it means both better facilities, cleaner water in the Adirondacks but it also means lower taxes. This will mean good things for the economy in the Adirondacks and long-term protecting water is always a good idea.”
Adirondack Mountain Club Interim Executive Director Julia Goren says the State of the Park is a comprehensive document that reviews a number of issues.
“There was a lot to celebrate this year. So many different successes like the governor’s budget and the support from the legislature to really protect our public lands and to make sure that there’s money for stewardship and money for issues like diversity,” said Goren.
Adirondack Wild: Friends of the Forest Preserve Managing Partner David Gibson says his group is aligned with the details in the report, but he feels that it could provide a longer-term assessment of the Park.
“I always say this in a friendly tone to the Council that there’s so many thumbs up and thumbs down that sometimes the whole forest gets missed for the trees and the larger picture sometimes can get lost,” noted Gibson. “It’s a very positive report in many ways. It does shine a spotlight on a myriad of important matters facing the Adirondack Park and the North Country. But my interest is on the larger picture.”
Goren notes that one of the key issues in the report that will continue to be a concern is the visitor use management planning for state lands in the Adirondacks.
“We expect to see recommendations be put forth by the Department of Environmental Conservation looking at management of the recreational use of the High Peaks,” reported Goren. “And how the department proceeds with this I think is going to be crucial in thinking about recreation, of visitor experience, of local economies and most importantly of our wilderness experiences and the natural resources of this area.”
The report has been issued annually for 43 years and Sheehan has authored it for 33 years.
“Primarily when I first started acid rain was the greatest threat to the Park,” recalled Sheehan.” But climate has taken a much bigger role. It is impossible to ignore now and something that I think we’re taking much more seriously than we did say 30 years ago. At the same time road salt has become much more prevalent in our work. I think that continuing to work on water quality will be something that is probably the common element that runs through the whole period.”
The Adirondack Council will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2025.
