Marcellus Shale Press Coverage

09/21/17

WESTERLO — It's not the first time that Basic Creek Reservoir has experienced an algae bloom, marked by a gooey green-blue tint to the water in the city of Albany's backup water source.

Environmentalists say the bloom is a sign of foot-dragging by the state in creating buffers such as wetlands or catchments to protect the state's water sources.

"This is a longstanding problem that New York has failed to resolve," said Walter Hang, founder of Toxics Targeting, an Ithaca organization that tracks pollution across the state.

“Everyone is trying to play catchup,” he added during a press conference Wednesday at the State Capitol.

New York has 219 bodies of water that are known to undergo algae blooms, but few have been addressed despite laws that are supposed to protect the surrounding watersheds.

Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Sean Mahar said the agency is working on the problem "water body by water body every day.”

The blue-green coloration is actually due to the proliferation of cyanobacteria, which proliferate when there are excess nutrients, including phosphorus, in the water.

In addition to blocking sunlight from reaching other plants and fish, a surface bloom can release cyanotoxins that can be harmful to the skin and can lead to neurological problems if a person ingests too much.

City of Albany Water Commissioner Joe Coffey stressed that people shouldn’t be alarmed at the Basic Creek bloom, since that reservoir is a backup facility to the main Alcove reservoir.

Basic Creek is tapped when Alcove’s water level drops, typically during winter when algae blooms are much less of a problem.

Phosphorus is a component of fertilizers used on residential lawns and farms, such as those surrounding Basic Creek.

The Alcove reservoir, however, is buffered by forest land and is relatively protected against too much phosphorus runoff.

Coffey added that the city is working with the Nature Conservancy to ensure that the woodlands around Alcove stay intact in order to maintain a buffer.

That hasn’t been the case in other areas such as Owasco Lake, which supplies water to the Cayuga County city of Auburn. City officials came close to shutting down its water system in 2016 due to a large bloom in the lake, said Hang.

While charcoal can remove the toxins, that’s a difficult task for large bodies of water, said Jacqueline Lendrum, director of DEC's Bureau of Water Assessment and Management.

The blooms will typically dissolve with cooler weather, Lendrum said. But she added that it’s not even clear what causes some them.

“Some of the blooms we’re seeing now are causing researchers to scratch their heads,” she said.

Environmentalists oppose Lansing salt mine

WICB

Amanda Chin

09/21/17

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The mining company Cargill wants to expand their salt mine in Lansing, but environmentalists are raising a number of concerns. Listen to correspondent Amanda Chin’s story, and read the transcript below:

CHIN: Fourteen feet wide. Two thousand five hundred feet deep. Thirteen thousand acres…and forty two million dollars. Those are all of the components of a mine shaft that was just issued a permit by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, or DEC, to be built in Lansing.

CHIN: What’s the problem with this mine shaft? Well, many people are in opposition to this project—especially since the whole facility lies underneath Cayuga Lake, one of the deepest lakes in North America.

CHIN: One of those opposed to this project is Walter Hang, an environmentalist and president of Toxics Targeting, a database service that obtains environmental data from local, state, and federal sources.

HANG: If the Cayuga mine collapsed under Cayuga Lake, it would make the lake polluted, and that’s where 30,000 people get their drinking water. They didn’t understand in the beginning when they were mining under the lake the threat to water quality.

CHIN: Now, what is this mine shaft exactly? Walter says the mine is used to extract salt underneath Cayuga Lake, using mechanical equipment which can be used to melt ice and snow.

HANG: The problem with the existing mine is that it’s so huge that they’re in danger of not being able to allow the miners to escape in case of an accident, and that’s what this proposed shaft is all about. It would also provide improved ventilation.

CHIN: One thing’s for sure: Walter definitely does not want the mine shaft being built underneath Cayuga Lake. But he would be okay with having it built on dry land.

HANG: We want to switch the mining away from underneath the lake to under dry land. This is the perfect time to do it, because without this shaft 4 which would cost an enormous amount of money to build, they can’t mine under the lake. If you go a little further under dry land, you take away the threat of the lake. Turns out, the DEC actually told Cargill they should begin to explore this option, so it’s perfect timing.

CHIN: We reached out to the state DEC for an interview, and they replied to us with a statement. They said they reviewed all of the opposition’s concerns, and determined that the new salt mine will not have significant adverse environmental impact. However, the DEC said that their permit will not allow Cargill to build under the lake, at least for now.

CHIN: Mike Sigler, a Tompkins County Legislator, is all for this mine shaft being built.

SIGLER: I want you to imagine, if you’re seven miles underground, you literally need to shove air from the surface seven miles underground to where your people are. It’s very energy intensive to do that. Whereas if you’re gonna move the mine shaft six miles closer, then you only have to bring in air from that distance—only a mile.

CHIN: Sigler says he had some issues with the environmentalist opposition.

SIGLER: That leaves us with some folks who don’t want to believe the DEC, or think it’s somehow corrupted. I’m sorry, but I frankly don’t believe that the DEC has any kind of nefarious attempt that would threaten Lake Cayuga.

CHIN: Walter says, to Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton’s credit, he has seen a lot of support for the shaft to be built elsewhere.

HANG: I think we’ve finally gotten a very focused citizen effort, and we have a coalition letter which has almost 400 or 500 signatories. Also some very prominent people have joined this effort. So, for the first time, we really had time to crank up the pressure on the governor.

CHIN: Although he says it’s almost impossible to win big environmental victories, he is hopeful and optimistic.

HANG: What we’re showing is that you can be effective. You can stop shale fracking—we’re the only state that stops shale fracking as it spreads from coast to coast. Because of the political action we took, because of research, because of coalition building. That’s why we are hopeful that we’ll be able to replicate that victory on Cargill and be able to clean up the lake.

CHIN: After all, Walter may end up victorious with this one. The DEC was pretty vague about whether or not Cargill could build a shaft under the lake. However, this past Wednesday the Common Council passed a resolution, requiring a new environmental review before Cargill can build this mine.

SIGLER: It’s clear to me that, apparently, if you like the science that you’re gonna agree with it. But if it runs counter to what you believe, you’re going to deny that science.

CHIN: But we won’t know the result of this development until next month’s Common Council meeting.

CHIN: For WICB News, I’m Amanda Chin.

Company says DEC isn't enforcing clean water laws, resulting in more toxic algae

WHEC

09/21/17

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An environmental database company is blaming a statewide problem with toxic algae on the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

Harmful algae blooms are affecting an increasing number of water sources including several lakes in our area. The company Toxic Targeting is calling out the DEC over its clean water laws.

"A total lack of enforcement and now we are seeing drinking water contamination on a level that's unprecedented in our state's history," says Walter Hang, Toxics Targeting.

"Weather patterns are promoting these blooms right now, and we don't expect it to dissipate until I get cooler or some weather patterns change," says Dr. Jacqueline Lendrum.

Harmful blooms form in warm water from too much phosphorus or other nutrients that can be from fertilizer runoff or other dumping.

The DEC says they have water engineers out looking at the threats and problems.

Algae Blooms Threaten New York Waterways

mychamplainvalley.com

09/21/17

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ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) - According to data released by an environmental group on Wednesday, the drinking water for hundreds of thousands in upstate New York could be threatened by the growth of harmful algae blooms.

“These problems simply have not been cleaned up in nearly 20 years,” Walter Hang, President of Toxics Targeting Inc., said.

Toxics Targeting, an environmental group out of Ithaca, released a statewide map that shows the growth of harmful algae blooms in over 200 lakes and streams, allegedly threatening the drinking water for residents in Albany, Syracuse, Rochester and more.

“The next thing you know, a large body of water will literally look like pea soup.”

These algae blooms are caused by many different toxins including industrial and even farm waste run-off. These blooms release neurotoxins which in high doses, could cause health problems if consumed.

There are ways to get rid of the harmful algae blooms, but it takes extensive treatments using carbon filtering. According to Toxics Targeting, the problem is not being addressed by the state.

“The longstanding problem that New York has failed to resolve. They simply have not enforced the Clean Water Act.”

“We need to figure what we need to target to prevent those blooms from happening. Once they happen treatment is very difficult,” Jacqueline Lendrum, Director of the Bureau of Water Assessment and Management for the DEC, said.

The Department of Environmental Conservation, or the DEC, says it is are working to address the source of contamination, but it has not grown to the point where people need to find an alternative water source, such as bottled water.

“We’ll notify the public if there is any risk to their drinking water supply,” Dr. Lendrum said.

If you do spot blue-green algae in your waterways, do not touch or drink it. Immediately contact the DEC or someone in your local government.

“Don’t swim in them, don’t let your dog swim in them, don’t let your kids play in them, don’t even boat in them,” Dr. Lendrum said. If you see it avoid it and call us because it can be toxic.”

See which waterways are affected in your community.