Walton

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Cuomo's new plan for hydrofracking: Taking a page from the NRDC?

By Lissa Harris
6/13/12 - 12:23 pm

In today's New York Times, reporter Danny Hakim writes that Gov. Andrew Cuomo's administration is quietly pursuing an entirely new plan to regulate hydraulic fracturing.

Anonymous sources, including a senior Department of Environmental Conservation official, told the New York Times that Cuomo is seeking to limit the practice to areas where the Marcellus Shale formation is deepest, along the New York/Pennsylvania border.

Towns would also have to agree to permit hydraulic fracturing within their borders:

Even within that southwest New York region — primarily Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Steuben and Tioga Counties — drilling would be permitted only in towns that agree to it, and would be banned in Catskill Park, aquifers and nationally designated historic districts. Read more

You've got hail

By Lissa Harris
5/30/12 - 10:53 am

The dreaded tornadoes we were warned about never materialized, thankfully, but New York State was pelted with epic thunderstorms on Tuesday. And in a few places, hailstones.

A couple of Watershed Post readers sent us photos of hailstones from the deluge. Below, evidence of "toenail-sized" hail in Walton, from reader Lillian Browne:

Fleischmanns had even bigger hailstones, documented by reader Elizabeth Morell:

North of the Catskills, the Capital Region and the Adirondacks got truly pummelled. The Albany Times-Union reports that in Saratoga, Warren and Washington counties, 2.5 to 3-inch hail was seen on Tuesday, and about 4,800 people in the region are still without power. Read more

Thunderstorms and tornado warnings this afternoon

By Lissa Harris
5/29/12 - 1:59 pm

Via NY-Alert: There is a tornado watch on across northeastern New York and the Capital Region, including Greene and Schoharie counties, until 9pm.

The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm watch for Central New York that includes Delaware and Sullivan counties.

Severe thunderstorms are also in the forecast for Greene, Ulster and Schoharie counties, possibly with large hail and high winds: Read more

Police: Student plot to bring gun to Walton school foiled

By Lissa Harris
5/25/12 - 10:04 pm

A tip from a worried parent about a student's threats to bring a gun to the Walton Central School has led to the discovery of a stolen handgun at the bottom of a reservoir, the arrest of two Walton men, and the unearthing of old fears in a community that still remembers the shooting of a local teacher nearly two decades ago.

The Village of Walton Police Department reports today that on Monday, May 21, a parent told police that a student had threatened to return to the school after Memorial Day Weekend with a handgun.

Upon investigation, police discovered that a handgun had been reported stolen from the town of Tompkins on Saturday, May 19. Police say they were able to connect the stolen handgun with a student, and conducted a search of the school.

During the search, police say, they found information that led them to the arrest of 52-year-old Jody B. Campbell and 30-year-old Michael C. McCall, both of Walton. Campbell was charged with criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree, and McCall was charged with criminal possession of stolen property in the fifth degree. More charges are pending. Read more

A watershed moment

By Julia Reischel
5/25/12 - 7:58 pm

Above: Paul Rush, the Deputy Commissioner of the DEP, helps Jim Eisel, the Chair of the Delaware County Board of Supervisors, into a life preserver at the boat launch on the Pepacton Reservoir on May 24, 2012. Photo by Julia Reischel.

It's finally happened: Recreational boats are allowed on the Pepacton, the Schoharie, and the Neversink reservoirs.

Those three Catskills reservoirs, which supply the bulk of New York City's drinking water, have been off-limits for generations. Before this week, only metal rowboats were allowed on them, and then only for those with proper fishing permits. Now, canoes, kayaks, sculls and small sailboats are free to roam the waterways. (For specifics on navigating the rules and regulations, see our boating guide.)

This week, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, which runs the reservoirs, threw three separate opening ceremonies at the three city-owned lakes in three different Catskill counties. (A fourth NYC resevoir, the Cannonsville in Delaware County, has been open to boating in a pilot program for three years.) Read more

This Memorial Day, bike the Catskills

By Andrea Girolamo
5/18/12 - 6:26 pm

Above: Cycling on some Catskills roads. Photo via the Catskill Mountain Cycling Club Facebook page.

Cyclists who ride the Catskills know this is a perfect place to get on the bike for a quick 20-miler. And what better time to do it than this Memorial Day weekend, when two of our local cycling clubs are offering planned rides for cycling enthusiasts?

'Tour de Pepacton'

Billy Allison, of the Catskill Mountain Cycling Club, is the organizing brains behind this year’s Tour de Pepacton, a ride to benefit Catskill Area Hospice & Palliative Care, on Sunday, May 27. Read more