Public Hearing: Help Protect New Adirondack Land and Ponds as Wilderness

  Protect Boreas Ponds Tract as Wilderness!

This spring Governor Cuomo finalized the purchase of the Boreas Ponds Tract and instantly added almost 21,000 acres of state land to the Adirondack Park. Boreas Ponds is located between the High Peaks Wilderness area and Dix Mountain Wilderness area and is best suited to be Wilderness too. Your input is needed to help ensure that the Boreas Ponds Tract is officially protected as Wilderness.

How YOU Can Help: 

1.  Send a message to Gov. Cuomo and his Adirondack Park Agency. It's Easy! Click here to email a form letter that you should feel free to modify as needed.

2. Attend a Boreas Ponds Classification Hearing to help make sure Boreas Ponds becomes Wilderness!

Voice your support:

• Keep the Boreas Tract motor-free
• Reject current alternative classifications - Keep it Wild!

November 28, 7:00 PM

Rochester Institute of Technology

Golisano Institute for Sustainability

Louise Slaughter Hall (parking lot T), Rochester [Map]
(Note Room Change - previously listed as 'Sustainability Hall')

Need a Ride? Hop on the BUS: The Adirondack Mountain Club and Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter are offering bus transportation to Rochester from Buffalo. Talking points, snacks, and Pro-Wilderness swag/goodies will be provided! 

ADK Members register for the bus here. Contact Cathy Pedler or Paul Gallery at 518-449-3870 or at advocacy@adk.org for more information.

Sierra Club members may contact Caitlin (atlantic.chapter@sierraclub.org) to learn more about the bus option. Please feel free to share this with anyone you may know that is interested in going!

Background on Boreas Ponds Classification

1. A Wilderness Classification is the only designation that will ensure the Boreas Ponds will remain protected from motorized use which destroys the aesthetic quality of backcountry experiences, impacts wildlife and habitat, and spreads invasive species.

2. Reasonable access for parking using a permit system could be accomodated with a wilderness buffer of at least one mile around Boreas Ponds to LaBier Flow, protecting the most sensitive areas of the tract as wilderness, but allowing access for canoes and kayaks for a put-in at LaBier Flow.

3. The Boreas Ponds  and other recent acquisitions (including the Casey Brook Tract) connect the High Peaks Wilderness to the Dix Mountain Wilderness. With a Wilderness designation these parcels would combine to form a nearly 300,000 acre Wilderness area. A Wilderness area of this acreage rivals the size of the Rocky Mountain, Mount Rainier, and Zion National Parks! 

4. With the ever present threat of climate change and invasive species, the best way to protect our public lands is to keep them pristine by only allowing footprints, not tire tracks and motorboat wake. 

For additional information, visit bewildny.org
 

CLIMATE CHANGE FILM: Watch 'Before the Flood' Online at National Geographic - Leonardo DiCaprio's 3 Year Journey

 

'Before the Flood' is one of the most compelling examinations to date of the realities we face from Climate Change. It is both a cautionary tale and a call to action—one that still rings with hope.

 Watch the Documentary Film Online ~ Click Here

#BeforeTheFlood

SYMPOSIUM: Sandy to Snowvember - Climate Change and Resilient Building Design

From Sandy to Snowvember: Climate Change and Buildings in New York State Symposium

November 4, 2016 | 12 pm-5 pm

When Hurricane Sandy made landfall in October of 2012, more than 186 people were killed, over 600,000 homes were damaged, and infrastructure was devastated across New York State. During the “Snowvember” storm in November 2014, 70+ inches of snow fell in Western New York, causing 14 fatalities, and numerous roofs to collapse. These two events suggest that building design in New York needs to shift to address varying weather patterns caused by climate change.

Register 

There is no cost to attend the event, however registration is required because we will provide lunch, coffee, and snacks.

Visit the Resilient Buildings Lab for full details 

This symposium draws together academics and practitioners from the Northeast and Great Lakes regions to address critical questions in climate resilience applicable to New York State, including how built environment professionals respond to a changing climate; how building stock can adapt to climate change in New York State; and how resilience is currently being addressed by built environment professionals. Participants will also hear results from recent research conducted by UB, L&S Energy Services, and Weather Analytics and supported by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.

Up to 3.5 CEU/PDH will be available for attending this symposium.

·                  Rosetta Elkin, Harvard Graduate School of Design

·                  Brendan Kelly, CEM, L&S Energy Services, Inc.

·                  Terry Schwarz, FAICP, Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative

·                  Amanda Stevens, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)

·                  Michael Tillou, PE, Atelier Ten

·                  Rachel Minnery, FAIA, American Institute of Architects

November 4, 2016 | 12 pm - 5 pm
University at Buffalo School of Architecture and Planning (map)
Hayes Hall, 4th Floor Lecture Hall
3435 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14214

Attendees are encouraged to take the NFTA to the University Station (link). Visitor parking passes will also be available for both the Diefendorf or Townsend lots (map), which are a short walk from the building. Accessible parking spaces are available adjacent to Hayes Hall.

National Sierra Club President to Speak at Awards Dinner

Sierra Club Niagara Group 

2016 ANNUAL AWARDS DINNER

Open to the Public

GUEST SPEAKER: Aaron Mair, President of the National Sierra Club

WHEN: Saturday, October 15, 6:00 PM - 10:00 PM

WHERE: Temple Beth Zion (auditorium), 805 Delaware Ave., Buffalo - See Map for location and Metro Rail Stations


AARON MAIR, President of the National Sierra Club, is from Schenectady, NY. He is an epidemiological-spatial analyst with the New York State Department of Health. Mair has spent over 30 years fighting for environmental and social justice and is a passionate and energetic speaker.

There will be a multi-course buffet dinner with donations for beer and wine servings. Ticket prices: $45 for those who can afford to support our fundraising efforts, and $25 for those who are students or on a fixed income. 

To purchase tickets, CLICK HERE

Awards to Local Leaders:

This year's recipients of the Bruce Kershner Award for Conservation are:

• PAUL DYSTER, Mayor, City of Niagara Falls
• THOMAS DESANTIS, Senior Planner, City of Niagara Falls
• BOB BAXTER, Niagara Heritage Partnership for their work on the restoration of the magnificent Niagara Gorge and the removal of the Robert Moses Parkway.

The Blake Reeves Award for Environmental Leadership is being awarded to individuals or organizations that have exhibited strong leadership in addressing a critical environmental issues. This year, the following union leaders will receive the award:

• TODD HOBLER, Vice President of 1199 SEIU Healthcare Workers United East for his leadership to protect Seneca Lake and in forging an alliance between 1199 SEIU and the Sierra Club in our campaign for climate justice
• DEBORA HAYES, Area Director of the Communication Workers of America WNY District office for her leadership within CWA in building a partnership between her International Union and the Sierra Club in our fight for climate justice.

 

Drinking Water Contamination: "Hero of Flint" Lead Crisis to Deliver Distinguished Lecture at UB

Abstract: The 2001-2004 Washington D.C. lead in drinking water crisis (and its aftermath to the present day) is a unique case study in the history of engineering and scientific misconduct. The multi-year exposure of an unsuspecting population to very high levels of the best-known neurotoxin, was perpetrated by multiple government agencies whose sole mission was to protect the public health. These same agencies later published falsified research reports, covering up evidence of harm and justifying ill-conceived interventions wasting hundreds of millions of dollars and which created even more harm. 

Aspiring to uphold the duty of scientists and engineers to hold paramount the public good and welfare, Marc Edwards worked alongside collaborators in the public, press and in Congress for over a decade. Their efforts exposed some of the wrong-doing by the agencies and their “hired gun” consultants, who brazenly twisted science to obfuscate the truth of what occurred. 

These experiences raise concerns about the veracity of “research” conducted and funded by government agencies, especially in crisis situations when public harm has occurred, as well as the need for checks and balances on agency power.

To register for this free event, click here

About the RENEW Distinguished Lectures: The RENEW Distinguished Lecture Series seeks to promote dialogue and interaction with UB’s faculty & staff, students and the local community with renowned leaders in science, technology and policy in academia, industry and government.

About UB RENEW Institute: RENEW promotes interdisciplinary research activities to position UB as a global leader in select areas of energy, environment and water (www.buffalo.edu/renew). Through collaborative education and research, more than 100 faculty members from seven schools are focusing on the following areas: Next-Generation Materials for Energy, Environment & Water; Sustainable Urban Environments; Freshwater Coastal Ecosystems, Stormwater and Blue Economy; Environmental Exposures, Genomes and Health; and Climate Change & Socio-Economic Impacts.

PUBLIC MEETING: New Multimodal Transit Station Downtown

Panel Discussion of Book: HALF EARTH - Our Planet's Fight for Life

Town Hall: Effect of Big Media, Big Money on Political Campaigns

World on Your Plate: 13th Annual Conference on Food & Sustainable Living

13^TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON FOOD

AND SUSTAINABLE LIVING

DAEMEN COLLEGE WICK CENTER

OCT. 7 (EVENING) & OCT. 8 (ALL DAY), 2016

Friday, October 7th 2016

5:00 - Registration (outside social room) 
5:30 - Light Dinner 
6:00 - Panel: "Farm-to-Market: Issues and Challenges" 

(15 min break) 

7:15 Round table - NY Organic Action Plan with NOFA-NY

Saturday, October 8th 2016

8:30 - registration (Coffee & breakfast items) 
8:30 - Vendors (set-up at 8 am) 
9:00 - Welcome and Introductions 
9:15 - Matthew Goldfarb (Fruition Seeds) "Resilient Seeds in a Changing Climate" 
10:45 to 11:45 - Workshop Session I (9 workshops offered—see website)
12:00 to 1:00 Workshop Session II (10 workshops offered—see website)
1:15 to 2:15 - Organic Vegetarian Lunch 
2:30 - Frances Moore Lappe (Small Planet Institute), "The Solution is on Your Plate" 

3:30 – Book-signing, raffle/auctions
4:00 to 5:00 - Celebration (music, cider/wine & cheese)

$35 at the door or $30 for preregistration, $10 Friday only. 

Students with ID & preregistration are free.  Scholarships are available.

For information &/or to register:  www.worldonyourplate.org.

To register directly through EventBrite: http://www.eventbrite.com/e/world-on-your-plate-tickets-25650040963

Questions/comments/suggestions:  Eveline Hartz, aehartz@roadrunner.com or June Licence (jlicence@buffalo.edu).