A Voice from the Eastern Door
A Voice from the Eastern Door
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Submitted by Paul Hetzler Senescence is the decline in vigor that happens to all creatures great and diminutive as they close in on the life expectancy of their species. People my age suddenly find they require reading glasses to see the phone book. Though I suppose by definition anyone still using a phone book is old enough to need glasses, right? The onset of this process varies—you probably know of families whose members frequently retain good health into their 90s, and other families where that is not the case. Of course environment is i...
Earth’s 2015 surface temperatures were the warmest since modern record keeping began in 1880, according to independent analyses by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Globally-averaged temperatures in 2015 shattered the previous mark set in 2014 by 0.23 degrees Fahrenheit (0.13 Celsius). Only once before, in 1998, has the new record been greater than the old record by this much. The 2015 temperatures continue a long-term warming trend, according to analyses by scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Spa...
WASHINGTON— On December 28, 2015, President Obama signed into law a bill phasing out the manufacture of facewash, toothpaste and shampoo containing plastic microbeads by July 1, 2017 and the sale of such beauty products by July 1, 2018. Following in the footsteps of California’s historic microbead ban enacted earlier this year, the Microbead-Free Waters Act (H.R. 1321) bans all plastic microbeads from beauty products, including those made from so-called “biodegradable plastics,” most of which do not biodegrade in marine environments. “Our oc...
(11/20/15) The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is investigating the deaths of waterbirds found along the shores of Lake Ontario in Wayne, Oswego and Jefferson counties since mid-October, the agency announced today. Preliminary examination by DEC’s Wildlife Health Unit indicates type E botulism is the likely cause of death. Confirmatory testing will be completed in conjunction with the New York State Department of Health. Similar mortality events have occurred in piscivorous (fish-eating) waterfowl and waterbirds on...
Albany – Recently, the Albany County Legislature became the fifth statewide to pass a ban on microbeads, the tiny plastic pellets found in personal hygiene products like face wash and toothpaste; the legislation awaits the signature of County Executive Dan McCoy. Since summer, a total of 11 municipalities has introduced or passed legislation following the state Senate’s failure to vote on the Microbead-Free Waters Act; that legislation, which was sponsored by nearly 60 percent of all senators, passed with a vote of 139-1 in the Assembly. The fo...
October 18, 2015 – Ottawa, Ontario – Environment Canada Today, the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of the Environment, Minister of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and Minister for the Arctic Council, announced a panel of three independent scientific experts to undertake a review of the City of Montreal’s plan to discharge eight billion liters of raw sewage into the St. Lawrence River. As a result of Environment Canada’s review of the City’s information, the department has determined that the environmental impacts o...
The state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) officially prohibited high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) on June 29, 2015 in New York State by issuing its formal Findings Statement, completing the state’s seven-year review of this activity. “After years of exhaustive research and examination of the science and facts, prohibiting high-volume hydraulic fracturing is the only reasonable alternative,” said DEC Commissioner Joe Martens. “High-volume hydraulic fracturing poses significant adverse impacts to land, air, water, natural...
1. Gardening Mistake No. 1: Starting Out Too Big It’s difficult to resist those tempting photos of perfectly ripe vegetables and fruits in seed and nursery catalogs. It’s all too easy to order more vegetable varieties than your garden space and time will permit. Planting too large a garden is a mistake that can place too heavy a workload on a gardener and lead to frustration and burnout. A better gardening strategy is to start small in the first year and plant only a few of your favorite veggies. This will allow you more gardening success and...
You’ve probably heard of these dastardly microbeads by now: The tiny pieces of plastic, billed as miraculous exfoliators in facial wash and whitening scrubbers in toothpaste, are basically impossible to get rid of. They’re too small for waste water processing plants to filter out, so they’re ending up in the sea -- building up in the water and posing risks to marine life and water quality. In recent years, researchers have reported finding the microbeads in the Great Lakes. Further research has found them in the Saint Lawrence River, which conn...
There are many reasons to garden in raised beds. Gardening in raised beds helps to keep out planted seeds and roots from contaminated soil, its very good for the elderly and or disabled person, and if high enough raised bed gardening can keep out critters and keep precious veggies above the dog pee zone. Once the soil in your raised garden beds are filled with the proper soil you have no need to improve upon it, but to maintain the quality of the soil. If the initial bottom layer is properly...
Hand Planting Guidelines for Barefoot Trees and Shrubs...
By Julia Jacobs, Environment Outreach, SRMT Environment Division Summer is almost here and vegetable gardens will be moving into high gear with the warm weather and sunshine. The only problem is . . . so are the weeds, insects and fungus! You can beat the bugs without harsh chemicals using herbal remedies. Natural Recipes The following mixtures are inexpensive, easy to make and environmentally friendly. Tomato Leaves, Crushed: To avoid chemical sprays, try using crushed tomato leaves for leaf-spot diseases. Tomato leaves contain solanine, a che...
Submitted by Kaiatahente Cole, AFS Teacher As soon as Midwinter was celebrated, and acknowledgements were given to all plant life for supporting the people, fish and animals in the previous and upcoming year, our minds turn to thinking about spring and gardening. We look outside at snow falling, hoping enough snow will cover the Earth and soak into the ground. A beginning for our gardens. Time passes and we observe the outside and feel the warmer weather, watching the constellations, thinking ab...
The Akwesasne Cultural Restoration Project Horticulture and Basketmaking masters and apprentices are always busy, but in the springtime they are especially busy. Besides getting their soil ready, watering their seedlings and preparing for the busy summer months ahead they took a quick moment to share a number of their projects to help the beginner gardener. There are several ways to start planting your first garden. For sure the biggest reward in gardening is the harvest after preparing the...
Corn has been planted, tended, harvested, stored and transported across centuries and thousands of miles since corn began growing more than 5000 years ago in Central America. It was said it was the women who transformed a wild grass into the heritage and contemporary corn we have today. Haudenosaunee women share an intimate relationship in that our Creation Story as the Sky Woman descends to Turtle Island with the seeds of corn and other sacred pants clutched in her hands. The first corn plants emerged from the body of Sky Woman’s daughter, d...
Paul Hetzler, Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County Based on recent excavations in northern NY State, archeologists have reached a stunning conclusion. Apparently, beneath layers of snow and ice there may still be “soil” in our region. It’s been so long since the presence of soil was confirmed, many people had begun to doubt its continued existence. With the issue of object impermanence resolved, gardeners can get ready to start seeds indoors. If you’re new at this, the materials list can be perplexing. You’ll need to scrounge...
Paul Hetzler I had such high hopes for global warming, but when the first week in March was just as cold as February, I felt so disappointed. Betrayed, even. I thought the planet was supposed to be heating up. All my plans for a northern NY citrus and banana orchard, out the window. Turns out it’s easy to mix up climate and weather, two very different things. There’s a saying in the Adirondacks (and elsewhere, I’m sure) that if you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes. That’s weather: what we experience in a given day, week, season or...
Paul Hetzler, Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County Every winter I teach several tree identification classes to Biology students. Cold or colder, it’s always outdoors, but if student evaluations are on the level, it’s always fun. Demonstrating how to tell one leaf-bereft hardwood from another on is one thing; explaining why they should bother is trickier. The short answer is, “It’s on the test.” Beyond that, there are more interesting and practical reasons. If you’re camping, lost or stranded—or all of the above—you can get safe...
Paul Hetzler, Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County Given the prolonged deep-freeze we’ve been having, it’s hard to believe vacationers are flocking to the North Country for its comparative warmth. When the mercury (or whatever that red stuff is in today’s thermometers) drops down and stays there a while, several arctic and sub-arctic bird species shift farther south to “tropical” climes such as ours. The first time I saw a gray jay, I thought a blue jay must’ve gone through the wash with a little bleach. Dark gray above with...
Submitted by Paul Hetzler, Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County Seems odd to put National Invasive Species Awareness Week smack in the middle of winter—whose idea was that anyway? This year it’s February 22nd through the 27th. Wouldn’t it be better to move it to summer when more invasive nasties are around? Of course, summer’s a busy time, and maybe all the good time slots were reserved for Hamster Appreciation Week, National Lawn Edging Week and the like. One of the invasive species that deserves our attention is the emerald...
Submitted by Paul Hetzler, Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County Where agriculture is concerned, dairy is king (or is dairy queen?) in northern NY State. But with the kind of winter we’ve had so far, I wonder if we shouldn’t start producing other crops, ones particularly suited to our region. How about we raise snow peas. Or iceberg lettuce, perhaps. OK, so I’m indulging one of life’s most futile activities, griping about the weather. But for farmers, foresters and gardeners, there is an up-side to all this snow. Snow has bee...
Submitted by Paul Hetzler, Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County It may be time to tell the CFL to get the LED out. No, the Canadian Football League doesn’t need to shape up, but there are some compelling reasons to think about switching from compact fluorescent lighting (CFL) to bulbs that use light-emitting diodes (LED). A diode is an essential component of all electronics, ensuring electricity flows only in the direction you want it to. The batteries integral to my home’s solar-electric system would “leak” their sun-gen...
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources voted 13-9 on January 8 to pass S. 1, “To Approve the Keystone XL Pipeline” – the first Senate bill of the 114th Congress. The bill was introduced two days earlier by Senators John Hoeven (R-ND) and Joe Manchin (D-WV). The controversial $8 billion Keystone XL Pipeline, a project of the massive Canadian-owned TransCanada Corporation, would carry more than 800,000 barrels of oil a day from tar sands in Alberta through Indian country and American states all the way to the Gulf of Mexico, if comp...
Submitted by Paul Hetzler, Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County Don’t look now, but the sky is falling. Again. This time it’s poised ominously over our hemlock trees, whose verdant canopies shade many a North Country stream and glen. Although hemlocks make lush hedges for home landscapes, they’re best known as stately forest giants that form cathedral-like stands in the Adirondacks and elsewhere. It’s hard to believe these titans are being killed by a tiny insect less than a sixteenth of an inch long. Native to Asia, the hem...
WHEN: THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 LOCATION: SENIORS CENTER, HOGANSBURG A FREE Traditional Meal will be served at 6:00 p.m. included turkey, roast beef, ham, meat pie, dressing, mashed potatoes, hash, salads & desserts Presentations will follow from 7:00-10:00 p.m. Presenters include: Dr. David O. Carpenter Sam Burn Georgia Brookes Julia Ravenscroft Edward Fitzgerald Ken Jock Lawrence Snell Joan Newman Bita Behforooz Gayl Morse Henry Lickers ALL ARE WELCOMED TO ATTEND!...
