Dear Concerned Citizen,

The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is a destructive invasive insect that has already killed over 50 million ash trees in neighboring states, and has now been detected in seven counties in New York State.  The first step to effectively manage EAB is to identify current infestations, and slow the spread.  To do this, we need more people aware of the insect to be able to report possible infestations, and to help slow the spread by not transporting firewood.

This year NYS DEC is working to get a Governor’s Proclamation for Emerald Ash Borer Awareness Week.   EAB Awareness Week has been proclaimed by many other states for the past several years.  This will be the first year for New York.  We hope to have a press release about it, but in addition we need to take actions to increase EAB outreach and awareness.

This year, we would like to implement the EAB ash tree tagging program.  This is an outreach tactic that other states have used, and has been reported as very successful.  To do this we will create and print cards (or tags) that will be attached to ash trees using ribbon to tie around the tree.  Please see the attached picture for an example of what the tag will say.

The goal is to get as many ash trees tagged as possible during awareness week (May 22- 28).

To do this we will need many volunteers across the state to place tags in their local community, or park/recreation area.  If you or your organization would like to participate in this project to tag ash trees, please contact the DEC at the contact information listed below by April 29^th.

NYS DEC will provide you with all the tags and ribbon that you need.

In addition, I will also need to know the intended location for deployment of the tags to guarantee that we do not have overlap between groups, so please let me know the specific locations of tag deployment (neighborhood, park name etc.).  Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) will also be doing this project for Arbor Day, and they will hopefully leave their tags up through Awareness Week as well.   CCE will be sharing their deployment sites with me to avoid overlap.

The tags can be removed anytime.  However, I do recommend removing them before the end of summer, to avoid them breaking and becoming litter.  Plus, some land owners may only want them left up for a week or so.

Possible sites for tagging: (remember to get permission from land owners early, try to pick locations that are heavily visited, and do as many sites as possible!)

County, City or Town parks

Community street trees

Forest recreation areas: trailheads, Campgrounds, other popular spots

Also, if you are near current EAB infested areas (see map in attached document), focus around towns near infestations.

I hope you are as excited about this project as I am, and please let me know if you have any ideas on how we can make this a success.

Jason Smith

NYS Department of Environmental ConservationDivision of Lands and ForestsOffice of Communication, Training and Enforcement Coordination

625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233-4250Email: jpsmith@gw.dec.state.ny.usOffice: 518-473-6227Mobile: 518-522-0034 Freshen up the air around you with New York source seedlings.  Tree and shrub seedlings are available for sale from the Saratoga Tree Nursery until Mid May.  All products grown on site. Quality is what we strive for.
Go to http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7127.html for more information.

Opening Presentation

4:15 – 4:45 The Bronx –East of the Bronx River in The NYC Waterfront Plan

Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance

SoundView to Eastchester Bay – A Panel of Progress

4:50- 5:20 Soundview Park    Pugsley Creek and the nearby Watefront – Ferry Point Park Redevelopment

Pelham Bay  Landfill – What’s Next – An Interactive Discussion

5:25 – 6:00  Charles McKinney – Principal Urban Designer NYC Parks Andrea Vannelli – Co-Planner Pelham Bay Landfill project

Westchester Creek and the Hutchinson River – Panel

6:15- 6:45 Friends of the Hutchinson River

Refreshments and Table Displays 6:50- 7:30 or so.

Will the boom in hydrofracking natural gas drilling contaminate our water supply?

Natural gas is often considered the “lesser of evils” in energy resources because it burns cleaner and is in plentiful supply. But a new process in gas drilling to extract those plentiful supplies—a process called hydrofracking or “fracking” raises concerns about health and environmental risks.

“Gasland: the Movie” is the Oscar-nominated documentary by Josh Fox about the current boom in gas extraction, and the environmental dangers it poses. Come see this movie and learn about “fracking” and what you can do about it.

Sponsored by Campus Ministry & Social Action, Just Peace (MC), Northwest Bronx for Change, Bronx Council for Environmental Quality, Friends of Van Cortlandt Park, Church of the Visitation Social Action Committee. Riverdale Neighborhood House, Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club, American Society of Civil Engineers (MC), MC programs in Environmental Studies and Peace Studies

Join other local leaders to make a Blueprint for Green Jobs in the Bronx!

You have been selected as a candidate to attend the Bronx Green Jobs Summit, a project of the Bronx Green Jobs Roundtable.

Register for the Summit here: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/X6ZC89Z

The event will be hosted by

Bronx Community College Center for Sustainability on April 7th, 2010 from 9am – 5pm in the Lower Colston Hall.

You can get directions here: http://www.bcc.cuny.edu/directions/directions.htm

If you would like to recommend others to participate in the summit, you can
invite them directly or email us with their contact information and we will
reach out to them.

This summit is a result of a grassroots initiative within the borough to ensure
“green” development is good development—benefiting Bronx workers and addressing the longstanding environmental injustices with which our Borough has been burdened. It is designed to bring together leaders across the Bronx to build a shared analysis and blueprint for green workforce development in the Bronx. Our focus topics are: Small Business & Industry development; Local Food Justice; Air & Water; Remediation; Housing; Energy and Job Training.

As a roundtable, our goal is to ensure that Bronx Green Jobs resources– from training programs to Environmental Justice experts– know about each other and understand how existing resources can be used to benefit the community. Then together we can identify where gaps exist, and work to ensure that all this new interest and money in “green” flows to where it is truly needed to empower Bronx community members. Active participants in the roundtable include The Point, Sustainable South Bronx, Bronx Community College Center for Sustainability, the Osborne Association, Goodwill Industries, Mothers on the Move, the Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition, Green Workers Cooperative, Local 10, the Mary Mitchell Center, Youth Ministries for Peace & Justice, Urban Agenda, the Consortium for Workers’ Education and Congressman Serrano’s office.

9^th Water Conference and 39^th Annual Membership Meeting

“Examining Harlem River Water Quality:

Inputs, Effects and Solutions”

Wednesday, March 17, 2010 from 2:30 pm – 5:30 pm

Manhattan College, Leo Engineering Building

3825 Corlear Avenue @ West 238th Street, Bronx, NY (#1 train or Bx9 to W238th Street)

Last year, waterfront stakeholders formed the Harlem River Working Group to work toward restoring the Harlem River; reconnecting the waterfront with the people; recreating the water’s edge; and reinvigorating in-the-water recreational and commercial activities. This year’s conference will map places of interest along the river’s edge; advocate for sensitive area status for the Harlem River; review the river’s past; examine the river’s future; and discuss the State of the Sewers.  Our goal will be to create a permanent organization for the Harlem River.   Breakout groups will organize.  Refreshments will be served. The public is invited to attend this free event.

RSVP or to set up a Table:  harlemriver@bceq.org or call 646-462-4132.  If the link does not work for you , you can send  email to (no spaces) harlemriver @ bceq.org

Sponsors include:  Borough President Ruben Diaz; New York City Soil and Water Conservation District; Partnerships for Parks, Con Edison, Manhattan College, National Parks Service, Friends of Brook Park, Urban Divers Ecology Center, Highbridge Community Life Center and the Harlem River Working Group.

Nanci and I went turkey shopping at Stew Leonard’s in Yonkers to buy a free-range bird. There was a picture of SL surrounded by his unrestrained flock. While shopping we ran into Christina and Sarah of FVCPk. I was pleased to read the many healthful sounding labels, e.g. natural, organic.

Because I no longer go into Bx Science, I’ve been going to more meetings than in the past. If you too are so inclined, please check out the calendar that I personally keep updated on an almost hourly basis: www.bceq.org/calendar

I attended both recent meetings presenting the suggested alternative routes for Hudson River GreenWay from Inwood to Yonkers. At the Inwood Library meeting, I had a chance to chat again with our new BxBPOffice Environmental & OpenSpace Planner, Jessica Noon. Excellent choice on RD’s part. JN also attended last week’s HRWG Meeting.

The WaveHill Meeting (hosted by CB8, RNP, FHRG [Bronx chapter]) included presentations by H.J.Mann (NYCMTC) & Joshua Laird (Gail W’s spouse)

I finally got to meet Frances G. Beineke, after having heard her on Leonard Lopate Show describing her new book, “Clean Energy Common Sense”. Jane promised to get FB to pen an autograph, so I ordered “CECS” and Al Gore’s, “Our Choice: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis “(printed on 100 percent recycled paper for a savings of 2,000 trees and 150,000 pounds of carbon dioxide) from Borders. Regarding my personal hopes for a HRG: I hope it gets built along the river while I’m still able to pedal my 10-speed. Jodie tells me there’ll be no “motorized vehicles” so my thoughts of riding to Battery Park on an electrified trike have been dashed. Speaking of Riverdale meetings, “Climate Change” was the topic elucidated by Dan Miner, Sierra NYC President (Queens resident) at Ethical Culture Society. A good talk, followed by lots of good homemade foodstuffs. Dan mentioned an issue of shared concern, i.e. hydrofracturing for gas in the Marcellus Shale (Catskill Watershed). All our resources need not be used up for short-term gain. Let’s leave something un-usurped for future generations to inherit. It really pisses me off when the city sells off assets that have been in our possession for so many years. I was informed thru our website ContactUsForm that trees on Pelham Parkway will be cut to make room for a barrier. Contact BCEQ Corresponding Sec’y, Jorge Santiago, if this issue interests you.

The Partnership 4 Parks’ Volunteers Appreciation Dinner @ Bronx Zoo was classy. Lots of us BCEQ’ers were being appreciated. The food was excellent, the vino flowed, and Adrian gave a funny speech. I look FW to another 4 years working with him and Hector as supporters of a Greener Bronx. We have our differences, but that’s what environmental activism is all about, right? Dealing with Parks Dep’t is way better than dealing with another Dep’t, if U know whom I mean, right?

I was disappointed that Omar didn’t show up for his GreenWorkers’ sponsored GreenDrinks at the G-Bar. Fried Calamari, enough to share. Not so cheap, though.

There is an “invitation only” Holiday Dinner Meeting coming up on the second Weds in December. If interested, use the website contact form for details. Seating is very limited.

KeepINTouch!!! ***icle***

All Things Parks and Environmental

Meet your neighbors, Become a member of BCEQ or FVCP, Talk about Parks and Environmental Things

Wednesday, November 4th

6:30pm to 8:30pm

Monroe College

Annex Building

2426 Jerome Avenue

1/2 block south of Fordham Road on the east side of the street,

right next to the Subway restaurant.

Mass Transit – IRT, IND, local buses;

Municipal Parking Garage – one block north of Fordham Rd.

Appetizers & Finger Food

Unveiling new BCEQ Brochure

(funded by Partnerships for Parks Capacity Fund)

Networking & Invited Guest Speakers
Check www.bceq.org for Guest Speaker updates.

Co-sponsored with the Friends of Van Cortlandt Park (FVCP)

For more information, directions or to RSVP,

Email: Karen@bceq.org or Christina@vancortlandt.org

or call 718-601-1460

The public is invited to attend this presentation. A representative of the New York City Comptroller’s office will present the September 1, 2009 Audit Reports listed below:

The audits can be found at the following links:
• DEP’s Oversight of Costs to Construct the CWTP, FR09-110A, 9/1/2009 – http://bit.ly/AI5Pr
• DEP’s Progress in Constructing the CWTP, FR08-121A, 9/1/2009 – http://bit.ly/1a4a3E

VLADECK HALL, Amalgamated Housing Co-op, 74 Van Cortlandt Park South, enter off of Hillman Avenue, Bronx, NY 10463.

Parking is limited, please use public transportation.

Bring a friend
Refreshments

Join us for our

Annual Holiday Party at

The Yankee Tavern

(corner of E161st Street & Gerard Ave)

Wed. December 9th

6:30 pm

Check www.bceq.org in November for more information, cost or to R.S.V.P.