bkaa celebrations - thebashakill

Volume 29, Number 4 Winter 2015-16

Maureen Bowers and Ronnie Pfeister, advisors of MonticelloHigh School Eco Club, accept award for the group’s effortsin enhancing environmental awareness of area youth.

BKAA CELEBRATIONS

Eileen Lake receives awardfor her volunteerism andadvocacy with the BKAA.

Mortimer the Saw Whet Owl, with Bill Streeter, enchants attendees at the BKAA Nature Watch fundraiser. Time for a closeup (inset).

Photos by Linda Lou Bartle

Maryallison Farley presentsPatricia Diness with an awardfor years of work with BKAANature Watch program.

BKAA

Nature WatchFundraiser

43rd Annual Meeting

BKAA GUARDIAN Winter 2015-16

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CONTACT THE BKAAPaula Medley 845-754-0743, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. email: [email protected] website: www.thebashakill.org

CONTACT THE DECForest Rangers: Logan Quinn 845-240-6792 (cell) Alexander Virkler 845-905-6000 (cell)

Conservation Officer: Michael Bello 845-665-5489If Mr. Bello is not available, call 24-hour Law Enforcement Dispatch 1-877-457-5680

The Guardian is published quarterly by the Basha Kill Area Association Inc., PO Box 1121, Wurtsboro, NY 12790.President: Paula Medley • Vice-President: Anita Altman • Treasurer: Monique Lipton

Corresponding Secretary / Membership: Marcia Briggs Wallace • Recording Secretary: Christine SawardBoard Members: Linda Lou Bartle • Jackie Broder • Fred Harding • Bill Lucas • Susan O’Neill

Publicity & E-mail Coordinator: Susan O’Neill • Alerts Coordinator: Hattie GrifoWater Testing & Facebook Coordinator: Linda Lou Bartle

Nature Watch Co-Leaders: Maryallison Farley, Kevin Keller & Cathy LiljequistGuardian Editor: Paula Medley

Mission Statement: Since our founding in 1972, our mission has been to protect theBasha Kill Wetlands and surrounding area from ecological degradation,

to promote education and respect for the environment in general, and to preserve the beauty of the area.

We welcome new members who are interested in protecting the environment. Dues are $10 per person per year.BKAA is a not-for-profit corporation and donations are deductible to the extent allowed by law.

website: www.thebashakill.org • e-mail: [email protected]

MAILBAG:Dear BKAA,Thank you for your ever-present vigilance! I am quite gladI was able to attend yesterday’s meeting. It was entertainingand educational. So happy to hear the favorable prognosison Thompson Learning Center. While TLC is not ready forthe post-mortem yet, it is so good to hear that it remainsstopped in its tracks and apparently is on life-support.Very interesting to learn of the vast mining project that cameon to your radar screen (and Mamakating’s radar screen)almost by accident.Then there is the discovery of the lack of required protectivefencing on the Dragon site, which will hopefully be rectifiedquickly now that the BKAA and its expert are hot on the trail.Then there was the plan by Thompson Learning Center toimproperly honeycomb its land with several invasive roadsfor test sites. Only the keen scrutiny of the BKAA put athankful stop to that.I can only think: if the BKAA was not around to do battleagainst so many threatening special interest projects, thedeep pockets of those special interests would have riddenroughshod over less battle-tested opponents. The BKAAhas shown several “Goliaths” a thing or two. The Goliathsmay not have known what hit them going in, but they knewit when they left with their tails between their legs.Without the BKAA and its legal and engineering teams

keeping close watch, the Thompson Learning Center(formerly China City) would probably have alreadybulldozed through hundreds of pristine and “protected” ruralacres.Over the past decades, special interests bent on theexploitation of our region have come and gone. They cameto profit at the irreparable expense of our area’s threatenednatural resources and undisturbed scenic beauty. Mostlythey left empty-handed, under-estimating the tenacity andarmor of the BKAA. In the process, the special interestscame face to face with an incorruptible organization thatcannot be “bought” and that will not give up.There is not a single doubt in my mind that the future of myfamily and our Mamakating home is brighter and better,thanks to the “watchdog” vigilance of the BKAA.Many deepest thanks to the dedicated leaders andmembers of the BKAA team. Gambling may not be mybailiwick, but no one should ever bet AGAINST the BKAAin my humble opinion.Best regards, Galen, Pam, and Eric Booth

Dear BKAA,On behalf of the Mamakating Lions Club, I would like tothank you for your support and sponsorship. The Journeyfor Sight held on Saturday, October 17th, at the Basha KillWinery was a great success.

MAILBAG continued on page 4


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Winter 2015-16 New Members & DonorsWinter 2015-16 New Members

Allison G. Cappella — Kurt Carney — Rhodora Evadne Giannini — Janet S. GleasonLinda L. P. & Dennis M. Kujawski — Yumei & Mitch Leventhal — Jay M. & Lisa Frishtick Levine

Holly & Daniel Meyerhoff — John O’Flaherty — Joe Ralli — JoAnn L. Roe — Alana Sherman — Patti SonnenscheinAntoni Sousa — Leanne Stuhlmiller — Jeffrey Walker — Andrew Weissberg

Winter 2015-16 DonorsJack Austin — Jacqueline L. Broder — Adeline Bruni — Eileen Carney — Kurt W. Carney — Ann L. Cartwright

Kerry Clair — The Cottonwood Foundation, Inc. — William H. Cutler II — Deborah DeMott — Kevin Forbes Doyle, Jr.Margaret Perkins Dreyer — William & Jayne Fiero — Ira Finkelstein — Donna L. Gaffigan — Janet S. Gleason

Adrienne & Alexander Goodman — Walter Greenberg & Geraldine Miller — Vera B. Ioannou — Alva JonesAudrey Winter & Daviid Kahn — Michael & Kelli Kavanaugh — Linda L. P. & Dennis M. Kujawski — Chris Leser

Yumei & Mitch Leventhal — Andrew D. Lewis — Robert Lewis & Barbara Wasserman — Monique LiptonRobert J. McMahon — Dusanka Marusic — Paula & Michael F. Medley — Monticello High School Eco-Club

William R. Morishita — Vivian Multari-Ginsberg — Nora & Frank Brusinski & Susan O’NeillCynthia & Angelo Pagano — Elizabeth C. Parker — Marcia Anne & Richard Pavlica — Kimberly A. PhillipsPhillipsport Community Center — Glenn Pontier — Patricia M. Remer — Barbara Restaino — Nicole Slevin

Joseph M. Stifano — Lance Verderame — Jeffrey Walker — Irene C. Warshauer — Andrew B. WeilIn Honor of Jack Weiser — Jane Jordan

ANNUAL MEETING continued on page 4

Each Annual Meeting serves as a key organizationalbenchmark, causing us to reflect on past accomplishmentsand prepare for upcoming challenges, like at this year’s43rd gathering on Saturday, October 24, 2015 at thePhillipsport Community Center, attended by 50 avidmembers.Most arrived early, registering at a welcome/informationaltable overseen by board members Monique Lipton, JackieBroder, and Susan O’Neill, who dispensed Annual Reportsand other agenda related materials. Prior to the Call toOrder, participants socialized, enjoyed refreshmentslovingly organized by Marcia Briggs Wallace and ChristineSaward, perused BKAA merchandise also arranged byMarcia, and sought water testing coordinator Linda LouBartle, whose dynamic Water Assessments by VolunteerEvaluators (WAVE) display piqued significant interest. The meeting commenced with a moment of silencerecalling members and friends, Catherine Abate, DavidGinsberg, Andy Helgesen, Judith Leire, Pastor RobertMeyer and Sal Tornabene, who passed away during theyear. President Paula Medley then highlighted major BKAAissues, such as amendments to Mamakating’s ZoningCode, 7 Peaks, Thompson Learning Center, DragonSprings and Hopper Hill LLC sand and gravel mine. Eachgenerated questions and/or comments from an engagedaudience. Linda Lou’s recounting of BKAA participation inDEC’s WAVE program also elicited curiosity and positiveremarks.

A special presentation, “Birds of the Bashakill” by LanceVerderame and John Haas reminded everyone that theBasha Kill resource remains the catalyst for BKAAeducational initiatives and and advocacy. John Haas’poignant photography, along with images by Lance andMatt Zeitler, accentuated by Lance’s enlighteningcommentary, furnished a peaceful interlude following theearlier “prickly”-oriented reports. Next occurred the most critical responsibility of each AnnualMeeting, Election of the Board. Following “in the footsteps”of the late, much missed Catherine Abate, Stephen Ernyoffered the 2015-2016 Slate of Candidates: President -Paula Medley, Vice President - Anita Altman, Treasurer -Monique Lipton, Corresponding Secretary/MembershipChair - Marcia Briggs Wallace, Recording Secretary -Christine Saward, Board Members - Linda Lou Bartle,Jackie Broder, Fred Harding, Bill Lucas, and Susan O’Neill.As there were no challenges, the slate was unanimouslyapproved.Two extremely worthy recipients were honored by theBKAA this year, Monticello High School’s Eco-Club, andEileen Lake. Advisors Maureen Bowers and RonniePfeister accepted the BKAA’s award on behalf of the Eco-Club, recognized for enhancing environmental awarenessamong area youth. The group’s involvement in the BKAA’sAnnual Clean-up and other cooperative ventures wasfurther noted. Epitomizing the best in volunteerism, Eileenwas lauded for tirelessly volunteering with Nature Watchand our water testing program, coordinating refreshmentsfor BKAA venues, and engaging in advocacy via letter

43rd BKAA Annual MeetingPaula Medley


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Saturday, March 26, 8:30 amEarly Spring Waterfowl Migration

Meet walk leader John Haas at the parking lot on HavenRoad at 8 am. Bring binoculars and a scope if you haveone. We should see an array of early ducks, geese andmergansers. We will go to the Main Boat Launch whenfinished at Haven Road to walk the Birch Trail to seeadditional species. Boots may be of help in this area. Thewalk lasts about 2 hours.

Saturday, April 2, 9:30 am – 12 noonNature Watch Training

at the Church Hall of the Community Church, 134 SullivanStreet, Wurtsboro. Become a BKAA Volunteer at theBasha Kill! Come to this training to learn about the birds ofthe Basha Kill including bald eagles and ospreys so thatyou can volunteer with the Nature Watch Program. If youlove the Basha Kill and like to talk with people, thisprogram is for you! Nuts and bolts of the program will alsobe explained. After training, you sign up for three shifts(three hours each) on Saturdays or Sundays from April16ththrough June 19th. A quick field trip to the boat launchfollows to become familiar with our spotting scopes andthe location for our program. For more details and toregister for the program, please call Kevin Keller at 845-434-6209 or Maryallison Farley at 845-888-0261.

Saturday, April 9, 8pmStar Walk with Bob Fiore

Very dependent on weather! Meet at Haven Road DECparking lot (209 side). Call Bob to register and/or checktrip’s status at (845)498-9001.

Saturday, April 1635th Annual Basha Kill Clean-up

9:30-10am (Registration and site assignments)

2016 BKAA Calendar of EventsAll activities free and open to the public!

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All proceeds will be used for the Town of MamakatingCommunity to aid residents who are experiencing sightand hearing problems. Again, we thank you for yoursupport of Mamakating Lions Club.Save the date for 2016: October 15, 2016Sincerely Yours,JoAnn M. SalamoneSecretary 10/15To: Paula Medley and all our friends in the BKAA.Kudos for all your good volunteer work to protect andexpand the value of such a treasure as the Basha Killwetlands and our Town overall.Thanks, From Your Friends at the Phillipsport Community CenterDear Mrs. Paula and BKAA,I would just like to say thank you. I feel I haven’texpressed deeply enough the gratitude I feel for you & allthat you’ve done for me. You not only provided me with agreat job shadow with your husband but also publishedmy writing! This is something I never thought I would gainthe amazing opportunity to do and for this I am not only abetter writer, but more confident in my writing. You alsogave me the opportunity to go to camp where I couldexpand my horizons & knowledge. For all this & more Ithank you & am eternally grateful.Natasha (Duran)

MAILBAG continued from page 2

writing and attending public hearings. Throughout, Eileenis invariably generous, efficient, unassuming, neverseeking accolades nor extra attention. Each honoree’sframed certificate was truly a unique work of art ,ingeniously fashioned by Sue Grabowski, Paula’s sister.The occasion’s grand finale was a drawing for myriad doorprizes, all donated from members like Alva Jones, JohnMiller, and the Muller Family. Thanks to them, everyoneacknowledged earlier in this article, PhillipsportCommunity Center, Chris Leser, Bill Lucas, MichaelMedley, and Andy Weil, who facilitated a successful event.See you at the BKAA’s 44th!!!

Celebrate Earth Day! Enjoy a walk and fresh spring airwhile ridding the wetlands of debris. Garbage bags areprovided. Wear boots, work gloves, and insect repellant.Bring chairs as lunch, supplied by the BKAA, will be eatenal fresco in the Haven Road DEC parking lot (209 side);also event’s registration site. BKAA merchandise will beon sale and door prizes awarded. Call Paula Medley at(845)754-0743 for further information.

Weekends from Saturday, April 16through Sunday, June 19

Nature Watch at the South Road Boat LaunchJoin trained BKAA Nature Watch Volunteers at the SouthRoad boat launch to learn more about the many residentsof this amazing wetland. View the nesting bald eagles andother birds. Equipped with two powerful spotting scopesand lots of information, the Volunteers will help you get toknow the Basha Kill a little better. Bring your children, otherfamily members and friends of all ages for some fun in theoutdoors! From 10:00 am to 4:00 pm every Saturday and

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Sunday between April 16th and June 19th. Call KevinKeller at 845-434-6209 or Maryallison Farley at 845-888-0261 for more details.

Sunday, April 17, 10 amHike to Gobbler’s Knob with Mike Medley

Enjoy views of a beautiful 650 acre Shawangunk Ridgeproperty, which is also site of the proposed BasherkillSubdivision. The hike gains 450 vertical feet from theparking area to the Knob, which is almost 1,000 feet high.Wear comfortable, sturdy shoes; bring water andbinoculars. Trip takes two hours. Meet at the South Roadfishing platform (Westbrookville end). To register or formore information, contact Mike at (845)754-0743.

Saturday, May 14, 8 amSpring Migration Warbler Walk with John Haas

We will meet at the “Stop Sign Parking Area” off HavenRoad at 8 am. Bring binoculars. We should see an array ofspring migrants including warblers, orioles, and grosbeaks.We will move to the Nature Trail from there and finish up atthe Main Boat Launch. The walk will last at least two hours.

Saturday, June 4, 8 amBirding for Beginners with Scott Graber

Experience the variety of birdlife that inhabits the Bashakill with naturalist Scott Graber. This walk will focus on thebasic identification of birds by sight and sound. If you’renew to birding or have always wondered what birds existbeyond your backyard, this is the field trip for you!Binoculars are required and wear sturdy walking shoes.We’ll meet at the Haven Road DEC parking lot (Rt. 209side). Call Scott to register and/or for additional informationat 914-799-1313.

Sunday, June 5, 10 amHappy for Herps with Bill Cutler

Join herpetologist Bill Cutler on a search for amphibiansand reptiles. Kids as well as adults love learning aboutthem. Bring binoculars. Meet at the Haven Road DECparking lot (209 side). Must register by calling Bill at(845)482-5209.

NEW EVENTSunday, June 12, 8am

Natural History Walk with Dr. Marty BorkoStroll 2-3 miles on level terrain with Basha Kill naturalistextraordinaire Dr. Marty Borko as you see and listen towhat’s nesting, growing, and maturing. Bring binoculars,insect repellent, and wear good walking shoes. Meet at the Stop Sign parking area off Haven Road. From Route 209,cross Haven Road bridge and take first left, just before

Haven Road ends at South Road. For information, contact Marty Borko at (607)565-2636.

Saturday, June 18, 8:30 pmMoonlight Canoe/Kayak Adventurewith Scott Graber and Mike Medley

Experience the Basha Kill from a unique perspective! Bringyour own vessel and binoculars. Meet at South Road BoatLaunch. Must register and check trip’s status with Mike at(845)754-0743.

Sunday, July 17, 5:30 amSunrise Walk with Gary Keeton

Rise and shine! Enjoy the Basha Kill’s wonders from adifferent view. Bring binoculars. Meet at Haven Road DECparking lot (209 side). Call Gary at (845)386-4892 forinformation.

Sunday, July 31, 10 amHistory of D&H Canal with Gary Keeton

Join Gary for a walk through time. Ever wonder about localstone walls and foundations? Curious about how peoplefarmed the rocky soils or the relationship between theBasha Kill and Pine Kill? Oh, and learn about the canal,too! Meet at the DEC access road on Route 209 acrossfrom the Hometown Deli in Westbrookville. Bringbinoculars. Contact Gary at (845)386-4892 for particulars.

Saturday, August 13, 10 amReprise of History of the D&H Canal with Gary KeetonJoin Gary for a walk through time. Ever wonder about localstone walls and foundations? Curious about how peoplefarmed the rocky soils or the relationship between theBasha Kill and Pine Kill? Oh, and learn about the canal,too! Meet at the DEC access road on Route 209 acrossfrom the Hometown Deli in Westbrookville. Bringbinoculars. Contact Gary at (845)386-4892 for particulars.

Friday, August 19, 8:30 pmMoonlight Walk with Gary Keeton

Amble along Haven Road and the Railroad Trail. Enjoymoonrise over the ridge as you discuss the area’s naturalhistory. Meet at the Haven Road DEC parking lot (209side). Contact Gary at (845)386-4892 for additional facts.

Saturday, September 24, 10amCanoe/Kayak the Basha Kill

with Scott Graber and Mike MedleyJoin naturalists Scott and Mike for a late season ventureon this first day of autumn. Bring your own vessel andbinoculars. Meet at the South Road Boat Launch. Call Mikeat (845)754-0743 to register and for more details.

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IN MEMORIAM:ANDREW HELGESEN and

PASTOR ROBERT A. MEYER“Andy” Helgesen, former long-time Chairman of theEllenville Planning Commission and passionate devotee ofthe Delaware and Hudson Canal, was a valued BKAAfriend. Generous with his expertise, Andy consulted onseveral crucial BKAA challenges, most notably YukiguniMaitake, where he invariably furnished thought-provokingcommentary in writing and at public hearings (projectinghis distinctive “booming” voice).Pastor Robert A. Meyer of the Community Church ofWurtsboro facilitated annual use of the church’s CommunityRoom for the BKAA sponsored Ravensbeard Live BirdShow during Wurtsboro’s Winterfest. More recently, NatureWatch has utilized this same space for its orientation. Inour dealings, Pastor Meyer was always kind, helpful, andnon-plussed even when we completely rearranged hisfacility or when birds defecated on the premises.The BKAA is extremely saddened by the passing of thesetwo remarkable gentlemen and send heartfelt condolencesto their families and friends.

Sunday, October 9, 9:30 amHike the Shawangunk Ridge with Mike Medley

Moderately difficult hike, lasting 4-5 hours. Wear comfortablesturdy shoes and bring water, lunch and binoculars. Meet atthe D&H Canal Kiosk at the Pat Moore Memorial PicnicGrove on Sullivan Street in Wurtsboro. Must register bycalling Mike at (845)754-0743.

Sunday, October 23, 9 amHike the Minisink Trail at Huckleberry State

Forest in the Town of Greenville with Mike MedleyJoin Mike on a beautiful 5 mile loop hike on the ShawangunkRidge. Wear comfortable sturdy shoes and bring water andlunch. Bring binoculars. Carpool or travel in a caravan led byMike. Meet at South Road fishing platform (Westbrookvilleend) at 9:00am. Absolutely must register for this trip bycalling Mike at (845)754-0743.

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In its 13th year of operation, a dedicated cadre of 46BKAA Nature Watch volunteers worked as educationalambassadors for the Basha Kill during a season that ranfrom April 18th through June 28th. Volunteers counted1,720 visitors at the boat launch on those week-ends andinteracted with many of those visitors. In addition,volunteers counted a total of 374 boats (including bothcanoes and kayaks) coming through the site. Even in a season without growing eaglets to watch, thevisitor numbers for the 2015 Nature Watch Programdocument the continued strong interest in the Basha Killby a variety of recreational users. This yearunfortunately our resident bald eagle pair did not have asuccessful hatch. We think, as happened with at leasttwo other established bald eagle nests in Sullivan Countythis year, the eggs were damaged by extremely coldtemperatures. In this area, bald eagles who are part ofa long established pair can lay their eggs as early as lateFebruary. The unusually cold temperatures (some sub-zero nights) in late February with ongoing lows into earlyMarch could have proven harmful. We officially wrapped up our 2015 season on Sunday,September 27th with a successful fundraiser for theBKAA at Paul Deninno’s beautiful BashaKill Vineyards.Many thanks to Paul for again generously providing hisfacility and delicious wines and beer for our Fundraiser.Bill Streeter of the Delaware Valley Raptor Center offeredanother outstanding live raptor program as thecenterpiece of our well-attended event. Drawingbetween 150 and 200 attendees, we grossed almost$3,900 for the BKAA! Special thanks to local artisanElwood Ennis who donated one of his hand-craftedplaques for our raffle, bringing in $850 of our total.Members of the Vero family of Pine Bush were the luckywinners. Many thanks also go out to Eileen Lake, whowith assistance from her daughter Kelly, supplieddelicious appetizers and to Paula Medley, Nora Brusinskiand Kevin Keller who made up our wonderful meet andgreet crew. Melinda Meddaugh kindly provided aportable sound system that allowed Bill Streeter to beheard throughout the Vineyards. Thanks also to JimCarney and Mike Medley for handling the set-up and toKevin Keller and Steve Frederick for dismantlingeverything at the close of the event. Finally, the Program is only possible because of ourdedicated volunteers who stuck with us during a seasonwithout an active bald eagle nest. Co-Leaders CathyLiljequist, Kevin Keller and Maryallison Farley were alsokey members of the Nature Watch team. Cathy is our

admin. expert, handling much of the email communicationwith volunteers, as well as the data input and compilation.Kevin assists hands-on with our volunteers, spending mostof his time at the boat launch. Basha Kill birderextraordinaire, John Haas, completes our team as our keybirding resource person. Meantime, sadly, Patricia Dinessstepped down from Nature Watch this year. At theFundraiser, we acknowledged her great work as VolunteerCoordinator and recognized her years of service since 2006by presenting her with a beautiful, framed photo of one ofour bald eagles, taken by volunteer Linda Kantjas in 2014.

Nature Watch Wraps Up 13th Season with BKAAFundraiser Maryallison Farley


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Samples are scraped off rocks.

SEE ARTICLEoN PAGE 8

Mike Bartle wades in for samples at theCounty Road 61 test site.

Below left: Linda and Mike Bartle get samples intoa 5 gallon bucket.Bottom right: Species that are alike are sorted intoice cube trays.Right: Buckets are poured into large trayfor sample removal.

The BKAA Participates in DEC’s WAVE Program


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Water Assessments by Volunteer Evaluators ( WAVE) Is aCitizen-based water quality assessment programdeveloped by the NYS Department of EnvironmentalConservation (DEC). The Purpose of WAVE is to enablecitizen scientists to collect biological data for assessment ofwater quality on wadeable streams in NY State.The goals of the WAVE project are to: 1) Identify stream segments with “No Known Impact”. Thisassessment corresponds to the highest quality categoryassigned to stream segments in the NY State WaterbodyInventory and the DEC trend reports. The WAVE metricsfor identifying stream segments with No Known Impact arevery robust and the DEC has high confidence in this data. 2) Identify stream segments that are possibly impaired.Impaired stream segments are those that do not supportaquatic life and include water bodies with moderate andsevere impacts. This data serves as a red flag to identifysites that might deserve further investigation at theprofessional level.The data will be included in federal andstate water quality reports and help to direct professionalassessments and local restoration efforts to where they aremost needed.In August of 2015 I was trained by DEC TrainingCoordinators and on Sunday September 20th, 2015 myhusband Mike, Max our dog and myself headed out to thetown park in Accord NY to meet with our local WAVEcoordinator, Ben Ganon. This was our first MacroInvertebrate testing on the Basha Kill. Ben provided us withspecialized nets and paperwork for my DEC pre-approvedsites at Gumaer Brook-Mcdonald Road site (Headwaters)and County Rd 61-at South Road. Mike and I wereprepared with fishing waders, 2 different colored large 5gallon buckets, boots and our jeep for transporting thewater back to the town park in Accord.Arriving at the County Rd 61 site, I followed step by stepInstructions, locating the best riffle at the sample site, wherethe water bubbles over the rocks and consists of abalanced mix of loosely embedded boulders and gravel.The water was high and really moving so Mike went out inhis chest waders kicking a total of 5 meters of substrate intothe Net in several spots. We scraped and emptied our netsamples into our 5 gallon bucket each time and loaded thebucket filled with water and samples from that site into thejeep.Next stop was the Gumaer Brook, not as deep so I as ableto get right out there with Mike and help hand scrape rocksand kick up samples. Max the dog is not much for the water

so he was just there for support. It was an incrediblybeautiful early fall day. The water at both sites was clearand I was feeling like we had great samples to explore.Our next step took us back to Accord where we met withother WAVE’s and began the fun of sorting. Pouring a largeamount of Basha Kill water into large white trays severaltimes, we began to identify as many different types oforganisms as possible from the sorting tray. Observing thetray to see what had been collected, we started to removeorganisms and placed them into ice cube trays with othersthat were alike to the best of our ability. Mike and I had todo this twice because we had two sites to submit.We had fun identifying our “Bugs” and walked aroundchecking the other WAVE participants catches, noticingwho had something others did not. Apple pie and cider weredonated so we did have a little time to share our Macrostories.For us the last step was to bottle up one of each type oforganism into a vile containing rubbing alcohol.We placeda label into the voucher container with stream name,latitude/longitude coordinates, date, and my name. WAVEdatasheets, User Perception Surveys and HabitatAssessment Sheets were filled out and our part was done.Our data and samples were then sent to the StreamBiomonitoring Unit in Troy NY. I don’t expect any word fromthem until after the New Year since they were collectingpackaged data from around the state until November 30th,2015.The DEC WAVE Program will be conducting officialtests in this area in 2016. I am hoping to Macro test in theBasha Kill again in 2016 with approval from the programmanagers and coordinators.Mike and I enjoyed our Macro Adventure very much anddid drive back to our test sites to pour the sample waterback in the proper places, getting the leftover macros backto their home turf.

Macro Invertebrate Testing at the Basha KillBy Linda Lou Bartle


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“Forest is a dream where you may find yourself and dreamis a forest where you may lose yourself!”

— Mehmet Murat ildanNate Ermer, wildlife biologist for the Bashakill WildlifeManagement Area, is the latest steward appointed by theDepartment of Environmental Conservation to manage theArea’s habitat and wildlife. We met on a sparkling fallafternoon at the DEC Region 3 sustainably-built, greenoffices in New Paltz. After passing a giant stuffed sturgeonin the hall on the way to a conference room, we sat downunder an intricately-patterned rattlesnake skin mounted onthe wall.Nate has the clear eyes and healthy complexion of ayoung man who has spent his life outdoors. Growing up inWestern New York as the son of a DEC wildlife biologist,he was accustomed to hearing about the concepts ofwildlife and habitat management from his father. Afterattending the prestigious SUNY College of EnvironmentalScience and Forestry in Syracuse, Nate went on to earn amaster’s degree in Fish and Wildlife Science atPennsylvania State University. Prior to his current position,he was a forester in Warrensburg in the Adirondacks.Federal funds used for the benefit of the wetland requireNate to produce annual plans and reports. Seeing this asa time of transition for management of the Bashakill, he is

formulating long- and short-term goals for acomprehensive management plan. He would like toenhance diversity of habitats. One project that excites himis the new statewide Young Forest Initiative — an endeavorthat would convert 10% of New York forests back to youngforest habitat. This is believed to be the percentage of thisephemeral stage of forest development created in the pastby beavers, forest fires, Native Americans and majorstorms. Today this habitat is created by mechanicaltreatment such as harvesting by local loggers. This policywould provide a niche for grassland and shrublandspecies, who have lost significant amounts of this habitat,to thrive. These plans will be discussed in greater detail inthe future, with opportunity for public input.One of Nate’s goals is that people are able to use theBashakill to interact and connect with Nature. I asked himwhat his view was of the relationship between the BKAAand himself as the DEC representative.“Very positive,” was his reply. He went on to explain thatthe various efforts such as the annual cleanup, continuingoutreach and nature events show that the BKAA can offervisitors to the Bashakill programs that the DEC does nothave the time, funding or staff to provide. We look forwardto a long and fruitful collaboration with Nate as the face ofthe DEC at the Bashakill and some new methods to restorethe wetland and surrounding forests to age-old diversity.

Bashakill Welcomes New Stewardship BiologistBy Susan O’Neill

NEWS BRIEFS:BKAA Brochure Sports an Updated LookPaula MedleyEarlier this year, the BKAA’s brochure underwent a partial“face-lift”, emerging with a fresh portrayal, while stillretaining familiar images associated with the BKAA’sbrochure brand. Facilitating this successful transformationwere the graphics expertise of Susan O’Neill and artistryof new contributing photographers Linda Lou Bartle,Michael Dunckley, and Kevin Kreischer, whose worksjoined those of Gary Keeton and Alan A. Minkus in yieldinga visually appealing, vital public relations tool. Again,thank you to the Cottonwood Foundation for funding thisreprinting. (See page 15)

BKAA Jack Orth Memorial ScholarshipMarcia Briggs WallaceOur members will recall that the Jack Orth legacy, left tothe BKAA, was turned over to Sullivan County Community

College (SCCC) in 2003 to fund scholarships in theenvironmental sciences. Currently, two majors at SCCCare involved—Environmental Studies and Green BuildingMaintenance and Management. I am informed by CindyKashan, Vice President for Institutional Advancement andEnrollment Management at SCCC that, while they aresoliciting applications for the current (fall 2015) semester,a decision is still pending. An update will appear in the nextGuardian.

BKAA Awarded Special Grant fromCottonwood Foundation, Inc.

Paula MedleyThe BKAA recently received a special grant for $700,targeted for DEC Camp sponsorships, from theCottonwood Foundation, Inc. A year ago, the Foundationawarded us $3,000 for camp scholarships and ourbrochure reprinting. Special thanks to Maura Muller forfacilitating this latest successful outcome.


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Do You Know a Boy or Girl from 11-17 Years of Age Who Would Like toAttend an Environmental Camp for One Week Next Summer?

The Basha Kill Area Association (BKAA) is sponsoring two children for one week each at aNYS Department of Environmental Conservation Camp during the summer of 2016.

Camp choices include:Camp Colby (Saranac Lake)

Camp DeBruce (Livingston Manor)Camp Rushford (Caneadea)Pack Forest (Warrensburg)

BKAA will pay $300.00 of the total camper’s fee ($350.00) for each child selected.Primary requirements are that campers be

between 11 and 17 years old and be interested in the outdoors.Priority will be given to first-time applicants.

Types of Camper ExperiencesCampers 11-13 years old

Teen Ecology Camp 14-17 years old

To Apply:Please have the interested child send us a letter with the following information:

1. Why you are interested in the environment.2. Your name and names of your parents or guardians.

3. Your address and phone number.4. The grade you are in and which school you attend.

Send your letter to:Paula Medley, BKAA President, P.O. Box 1211, Wurtsboro, NY 12790

or email: [email protected]

We must receive your application by January 15, 2016.

WHO WE ARE:The BKAA, formed in 1972, has some 800 members who are dedicated to

preserving the wonderful 3,000-plus acres of the BashaKill Wildlife Management Areaand surrounding areas in the Town of Mamakating, New York.


11

Summitville Hawk Watch 2015John HaasWe experienced an extremely mild fall again this year. For the third year in a row, our watch was plagued by east southeast winds. These created beautiful fall days and lots of time to spend outdoors. At the watch however, they made forvery light flights of raptors. When winds are continually out of the east and south, the birds migrate entirely different routesthan they do on west northwest winds. Those winds bring us great flights of birds, but haven’t been seen since the fallof 2012. We always get some birds regardless of the winds and we managed to eek out just over a 1000 birds this year.Broad-winged Hawks were actually up by a few birds with a total of 926 this season. All other species were downconsiderably. Our final total once I stopped for the year was 1,014 raptors. Besides the migrants, we experiencedregular flights of resident Vultures daily. Our daily high counts were about 2 dozen Turkey Vultures and a high count of9 Black Vultures.

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12

Ducks On The HorizonTruth MullerIt’s Wood Duck migration season again, when hundredsof squeaking, squealing waterfowl hurtle over themountains and through the Basha Kill Wetlands. For thethird year running, I joined my fellow members of theSullivan County Audubon Society in recording this uniqueavian spectacle. On the evening of September 24th, justas day met dusk, five birders and I set out our foldingchairs, put up a spotting scope… and waited. A little Common Yellowthroat slunk in the tall grasses, itsblack bandit’s mask fitting its secretive movements. Onelone sparrow chirped; “possibly a song sparrow” someoneoffered. I spotted a Pied-billed Grebe, but to my dismay itvanished like a phantom before any of the others couldsee it. A Great Blue Heron stood sentry over the PickerelWeed and Arrow Arum. All in all it was quiet, and it wasstill, almost abnormally so. One of our party inquired aboutwho still had humming birds at their home feeders. Thegeneral consensus was that most of the tiny little creatureswere still hanging around, but had just begun to move out.A sure hint at the change of seasons. A goose honked from somewhere in the water weeds, andlooking up, Renee Davis (leader of the count) spotted thefirst flock of Wood Ducks. Straight as an arrow, wingsflapping with mechanical rapidity, the small group shot overour heads and away, streamlined crests of green andbrown feathers cutting a fine silhouette against thedimming sky. As the sun dipped lower, the cleft in the

mountains created by Route 17 began to issue forth groupafter group of “Woodies”. The size of each flock began toclimb almost exponentially, by fives, by tens, by a score ormore. Flocks converged into each other with fantasticswooping dives, so groups of two, five and seven wouldplunge below the horizon and emerge again a flock fifty,sixty strong. Mixed into the Woodies were plump Mallardsand shadowy Black Ducks. These often seemed to be ona path straight for us, then would break away and spiraldown into the water, landing with a graceful flutter. Greatstrings of clamorous geese honked like ill-temperedcabbies plowing through the tiny Woodies on a straightand determined course. The ducky derecho then began to wane, and our eyesstrained through our binoculars as the sun sank into thetree line and vanished. The mosquitos had us then, bigblack ones, the kind that only seem to materialize duringa Duck Watch. Seven P.M., our intended cut off time, waspostponed when a second eruption of waterfowl appearedfrom a point to the left of Rt. 17. At 7:15 P.M. with light goneand mosquitos on the warpath, we finally bundled our gearinto our cars as the last few Wood Ducks made tracks tocatch up with their friends, their path illuminated by thewaxing Gibbous Moon.For the ducks this migratory event is a commonplace,though necessary part of their lives. To me it is an annualwonder, courtesy of The Basha Kill.

Hike with Mike on Huckleberry RidgeGil Kulick

On a bright, crisp autumn morning, the finale of the BKAAoutings season, ten or so aging stalwarts met at the BashaKill fishing pier and set out to explore one of the mostbeautiful hiking trails in our area. Led at a steady pace bythe intrepid, indefatigable Mike Medley, our five-mile trekalong Huckleberry Ridge, near the town of Port Jervis, tookus up and down through forests ablaze in hues of red,orange and gold foliage; open meadows; and knife-edgerocky outcroppings. At the summit we enjoyed panoramicviews of the Neversink Valley and Port Jervis, taking invistas of three states – New York, Pennsylvania and NewJersey.Along the red- and white-blazed trail the happy hikerspursued a wide range of interests. The woods abounded ina wide variety of mushrooms (presumably non-poisonous)for our amateur mycologists to collect. Geology buffsmarveled at many imposing rock formations. Serious tree

huggers encountered an imposing stand of rare old-growthhemlocks. For bird watchers, however, the trip might havebeen a bit of a disappointment, since the woods seemed,save for a couple of turkey vultures overhead, barren ofvisible or audible avian life, and no four-footed creatureseither.Judging from the enthusiastic exclamations of theadventurers, I expect we’ll see many of the same faceswhen the 2016 activities season opens next spring.


13

An Early Fall Day Afloat on the BashaBill LucasOn a mostly clear and cool morning an enthusiastic grouplaunched a fleet of 15 kayaks into the Basha Kill from theboat launch off South Road. This scheduled event onSaturday, September 26th was led by outdoor educatorsMike Medley and Scott Graber. Many of those taking partwere Basha veterans and a few traveled from as far as theHudson River area to join this excursion. This was mymaiden voyage on such a water bound expedition,although I had done some kayaking in the Basha with mygrandson and his friends years ago. As we were launching, a weathered fisherman pulled inwith an impressive bucketful of a catch, including about 12inches of Bowfin. He claimed, to our surprise, that theBowfin, the prehistoric predator common to the Basha, inaddition to being a good fight, was itself “good eating”.Hmmmm.The day was perfect on the water with good light and justa bit of wind making for easy paddling through routinepatches of loose grass and some seasonally shallowstretches. The event was to enjoy an early fall day on theBasha with some bird spotting and watching. Normallythere is a considerable drop off in birding activity by thistime of year and, as Scott noted, less bird sounds to guideus. The largest volume of bird songs and activity occurs inthe spring with a wide variety of lovelorn migratory andresident bird species active in the Basha wetlands. TheBasha is famously home to some 200 plus species forbirds over the course of a year.The tour initially headed north along the channel towardsthe Osprey nest (currently unoccupied) where the groupwas treated to Scott pointing out two Red Tail Hawkschasing each other above the tree line to the west. Scottand Mike pointed out what to look for and how to spot thehawk activities while sharing binoculars with those of usthat forgot ours.We then turned and headed south past the boat launch tothe island that houses the huge eagle’s nest, the site ofconsiderable BKAA Nature Watch eagle watching activitiesduring the spring. On the way we witnessed two Great BlueHerons launch majestically out of the kill, a wetlands treatthat never gets old.The area just below this island is the deepest point andone of widest parts of the channel in the Basha. While the birding activities were seasonally limited, anytime spent floating in the Basha is both a serene and astimulating activity at the same time. A great time was had by all thanks to Scott and Mike fortheir guidance and making this a special Basha Killexperience. If you are fortunate enough to have access toa kayak, a canoe or any other shallow hull vessel underpaddle power, please consider getting out into the heart ofthis wonderfully scenic, diverse and interestingenvironment.

MARTA (Mid-Hudson AreaRetired Teachers Association)walks the D&H Canal Tow PathMary Lou DeitrichOn a truly spectacular fall afternoon, a few MARTAmembers took a walk on the D&H Canal Towpath. It wasa perfect fall day October 7, 2015, sunny and warm, toexplore this part of the Basha Kill. We started our walk onthe towpath in Westbrookville and ended on Haven Road.Once again, we were thrilled to have Mike Medley fromThe Basha Kill Area Association lead our hike. He is trulya wealth of knowledge and we always enjoy walking withhim. He pointed out so many sites we would haveoverlooked had he not been with us. He explained the roleof the DEC in maintaining the Basha Kill. Mike providedus with quite a bit of history about the D&H Canal. Welearned that men using picks and shovels completed this108-mile canal in three years. This is truly amazing,considering how long it takes to build a tunnel or bridgenowadays with all the technology available. He explainedthat the reason for building the canal was to transport coalfrom Pennsylvania to New York. As we were enjoying ourwalk on the towpath, crunching the colorful leaves beneathour feet, it was amazing to realize that many years ago,small children and mules walked this same path.Throughout all types of weather, they trudged the towpathfrom dawn to dusk, guiding the barges through the canal.We saw foundations of old buildings that used to housethe Locktender’s house, perhaps a Pie Shop, and otherbusinesses that provided the goods and services neededby the people coming through the canal.Along our stroll down the towpath, one of our MARTAmembers, Kate, spotted all types of little friends, from redefts and tiny little frogs to a colorful snake. Mike and theother members identified various types of vegetation. Westopped to smell a fern, check out a huge mushroom andsnoop in a wood duck box to see if anyone was home.In a clearing, we saw a bald eagle soaring above and thena lone angler boating in the Basha Kill. Mike explained thedifferent species of fish that make the Basha Kill theirhome. A few feet off the path, we explored an abandonedcemetery, trying to determine if the headstones dated backto 1802 or 1862. The headstones were extremely worn;therefore, it was difficult to make out the dates.There was so much to see, smell, touch, photograph andexplore, that almost 3 hours flew by. When we foundourselves back out on the road, it seemed we had beenwalking a lot less than 3 hours. Everyone had such a greatday, that before getting back into our cars, we were allasking Mike when and where we could hike with him again.This is MARTA’S third walk at the Basha Kill with Mike andwe love this area!We are so lucky to have this natural treasure so close forour enjoyment!!


14

BKAA Participates InMamakating LionsJourney for SightWalk and WinePaula MedleyThe BKAA was a sponsor of the fourth annual Lionsfundraiser, held at the Bashakill Vineyards on Saturday,October 17, 2015. It was an extremely lively affair, withcomplimentary wine tasting, refreshments, silent auction,50/50’s, door prizes, and a guided walk on the railroad trailled by naturalist Gary Keeton, as well as access to spottingscopes and information from BKAA board member LindaLou Bartle at the nearby boat launch.This event was overwhelmingly successful, garnering$2035.00 for use in Mamakating communities by this vitalservice-driven organization with an impressive resume`ofassisting those in need. For example, Mamakating Lionsawarded four local scholarships, helped Lions District 20-0 purchase two new vision screeners, so areakindergarten, Headstart, and day care children could betested for early vision problems, and supplemented costsof eye exams, glasses, and hearing aids. They alsodonated bunnies for the town’s Easter egg hunt, pumpkinsfor Chase students to decorate, sent a child to the town’ssummer camp and funded a Little League team. Theylikewise hold a Wurtsboro Boy Scout troop’s charter andyearly finance a scout to camp. Notably, Mamakating Lionssponsor a cabin in Spencer, New York for special needschildren, which entails annually readying the building forseasonal use. The BKAA truly appreciates partnering with thishardworking, civic-minded group. If interested in joining orhave questions, contact Lion Missy Durr [email protected].

The 3rd Annual Delaware River Watershed Forum (DRWF)was held in the city of Newark Delaware at the Universityof Delaware. Once again hosted by the Coalition for theDelaware River Watershed (CDRW), the theme of thisyear’s event was development of a watershed-wide vision.The Forum started with a “Big Picture” look at theWatershed, followed by updates on trans-formative workunderway around the region and opportunities to contributeideas for the development of a watershed-wide vision. Arecord number of people were in attendance, but whenthey asked who was there from New York, I was the onlyone who raised my hand. This was the first DRWF inDelaware where about 80% of the water is in trouble onsome level. Therefore it made sense that local attendancewas high. This was one of those conferences I wished I could havebeen in three places at one time. I attended all the WaterQuality and Quantity forums. Each one had a differentfocus in areas of; education and outreach, policy andadvocacy and learning from other landscapes. The overalltheme was that CDRW is in the development stages andpeople are here to help. Speakers were from the Healingour Waters Coalition of the Great Lakes, Choose CleanWater Coalition of the Chesapeake, The Susquehanna andConnecticut Rivers, and The Governor of Delaware!Governor Jack Markell made a pitch for finding ways toclean Delaware’s waterways, stating that signifigantfunding is needed to ensure clean water and envionmentalheath . Markell also urged nonprofit workers and scientiststo come forward with a unified plan and regional approachthat would be difficult for legislators to ignore. He said, “Ihope you can make it more difficult for them to say no. AndI think there’s power in numbers here”.

It was hard to choose from this years outings to nearbysites that showcased local efforts to protect and restoreresources. I signed up for the Delaware birding and trailhike at the Thousand Acre Marsh, located in Port PennDelaware, comprising approximately 1,300 acres of tidalwetland in northern Delaware. The marsh is bordered on itsnorthern edge by the Chesapeake and Delaware Canaland by a coastal dike (Route 9) on the eastern edge. Theseextensive freshwater wetlands are a well known birdingdestination that are also at risk for a wide range of impactsdue to rising sea levels. We had a beautiful afternoon forour tour and heard about the efforts of a multi-agencypartnership to expand the habitat and bolster ecotourism,while combating a failing levee, related erosion issues andother challenges. The highlight of this tour were the birds!No surprise I had avid birders on the bird hike so I made alist with some help for a total of 20 species including, 30+American Bald Eagles, Soras, Little Blue Herons, KingRails.. it was amazing. But for a container ship in theDelaware Canal background, it could have been the Basha

Kill. Reality check!The Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed is anorganization for nongovernmental groups workingthroughout the Watershed to protect and restore the River,its tributaries, and surrounding lands. Coalition membersinclude watershed associations, land conservancies,recreation and outdoor interests, nature centers, andadvocacy groups. The Coalition provides a forum formembers to share information and network with each other,as well as the opportunity to coordinate efforts andadvocacy around shared interests such as the DelawareRiver Basin Conservation Act. The CDRW asks that yousupport them by liking them on Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/DelawareRiverCoalition/?fref=ts

Delaware River Watershed Forum 2015Linda Lou Bartle


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Huge Threat Looming on the Horizon – Hopper Hill LLCSand and Gravel Mine Proposed Next to Wurtsboro AirportPaula MedleyHopper Hill LLC, aka theTetz concrete family,purchased a 109-acreparcel, subdivided fromthe original WurtsboroAirport property, tooperate a sand andgravel mine on 68 acres,removing 8 million cubicyards of materials during25 years and generating100 daily truck trips.Located where the BKAAhad recommendedcreation of a restricteduse buffer between theD&H Canal andprevailing Light IndustrialOffice Zoning District,this proposal is within250 feet of the D&HCanal Towpath, withinthe Shawangunk RidgeTrail’s viewshed,adjacent to Valley Streamand Blue Sky residentialsubdivisions, next to theWurtsboro Airport, andencompasses DECregulated wetlands (seemap).Currently, Hopper Hill stillseeks a mining permitfrom DEC. This projectlikewise requires aspecial use permit andsite plan approval fromMamakating’s planningboard, but there hasbeen no application foreither.A major conflict with Hopper Hill is that, until recently,present town leaders were unaware of this venture’sexistence, despite several years of communication betweenDEC and the developer with some correspondence copiedto the Town. Obviously, town officials were uninformed,because they never indicated a mine was planned for thevery area where the BKAA was advocating a buffer.

Clearly, something went wrong, which forces us to play“catch up.”Undoubtedly, this undertaking “flies in the face” of all theTown and BKAA have endorsed throughout the two yearzoning saga. Therefore, the BKAA will do everythingpossible to deter this mine’s establishment.We will inform members of pertinent updates.

SITE OFPROPOSED

MINE


17

UPDATES Paula Medley

Mamakating Zoning Code and MasterPlan - Phase llAfter a two year largely successful effort to amendMamakating’s Zoning Code to reflect the Town’s MasterPlan, work now commences on Phase II. This secondstage focuses on reviewing the Master Plan to ensure itsupports Town goals of advancing lower density (bothresidential and commercial), maintaining Mamakating’srural residential character, and stimulating eco-tourism inachieving economic sustainability. Notably, Phase II willaddress uses currently permitted or sanctioned with aspecial use permit in zoning districts to safeguard that theyappropriately express the Town’s Vision.The BKAA will actively participate in this process andinform members of pertinent benchmarks and need forintervention.

7 PeaksThis project remains “stalled” in the draft FinalEnvironmental Impact Statement (FEIS) stage of the StateEnvironmental Quality Review (SEQR). But, while notappearing before Mamakating’s planning board sinceNovember, 2014, it has not gone away either. Moving ata “snail’s pace,” this endeavor is still progressing, havingrecently disseminated a redesigned road plan.Still, 7 Peaks has miles to go. For example, whenpreparing for a workshop with 7 Peaks experts on July 14,2015, Mamakating’s consulting engineer Larry Paggipresented a twenty page document updating 7 Peak’sresponses to earlier Paggi remarks delivered on 9/2 and9/30/14. Importantly, in most instances, his commentsremained pertinent (see extrapolated sections fromPaggi’s 7/14/15 report).As always, the BKAA will closely scrutinize 7 Peaks statusand convey relevant information when it surfaces.

Thompson Learning Center (TLC)Although TLC has not been before Thompson’s planningboard for ages and seems “dead as a doornail” sinceaborting attempts to drill seven test wells and criss-crossits property with myriad roads earlier this year, TLC, like 7Peaks, is merely in a holding pattern.That TLC intends an eventual resurrection is blatantlyevidenced by its ongoing, relentless campaign toutingsponsorship and involvement in Sullivan County’seconomic development and education (see latestpromotion in SC - Democrat). While this “commercial” did

not promise, JOBS, JOBS, JOBS, it demonstrated TLC’sforging of relationships and establishing networks thatmight be supportive when TLC foists its next scheme.Though the aforementioned view is rather pessimistic, theBKAA never underestimates its opponents. Most appearto possess nine lives!!!Meanwhile, there has been no response from the U.S.Securities and Exchange Commission investigation. Also,a while ago, several local attorneys sued TLC for backpayments. As always, we will regularly inform members of pertinentproject happenings.

Dragon SpringsWhile the BKAA’s primary role in Dragon Springs’ latestexpansion entails tracking potential impacts to the BasherKill from enhanced wastewater treatment discharge, ourorganization also alerted DEC, along with Deerparkofficials and residents, of other germane concerns.For instance, following examination by BKAA consultingengineer Andy Willingham, it was determined that DragonSprings’ increased wastewater discharge mandated anamended permit from the Delaware River BasinCommission (DRBC). (See Willingham DRBC letter toDeerpark Planning Board).In another case, a local resident’s tip about escalatingturbidity in the Basher Kill, possibly caused by bridgeconstruction on neighboring Dragon Springs’ property,prompted a field visit by Paula Medley and subsequentcorrespondence with DEC (See Willingham and DanWhitehead emails). Likewise, the BKAA advised a Galley Hill homeownercoordinating a movement to rezone her road to prohibitenormous commercial/residential undertakings. Thecatalyst for this was a pending application for a GalleyRoad venture proposing 21,000 sq. feet of commercialspace, divided into seventeen retail shops and tworestaurants. Additional components included 32,400 sq.feet of residential space, divided into 30, two, three or fourbedroom apartments above the storefronts. All this isplanned on 8.75 acres near Dragon Springs!!!Moreover, Dragon Springs has advanced an extensivesolar operation atop the Shawangunk Ridge in the Town ofMt. Hope. However, the BKAA will not intervene there asour resources are limited and an organized local effort,challenging this endeavor, already exists. As always, we will regularly apprise members of relevantinformation and need for further action.


18Paggi’s Report continued on page 19

Some Highlights of Mamakating Consulting EngineerLarry Paggi’s 7/14/15 Status Report of 7 Peaks Draft FEIS1. 9/2/14 Comment. Stormwater Management: Thetreatment and control of stormwater runoff generated duringconstruction and by the post construction developed sitehas been identified as a significant concern. The concernhas been acknowledged by the applicant via multiplerevisions of the Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan(SWPPP). The most recent revision appears to proposemultiple additional management practices. We will reviewthe SWPPP in detail for conformance to the latest generalpermit (GP-0-10-001). We note that the proposed practiceswill require long term maintenance guarantees to insurecontinued successful operation. The SWPPP will berequired to include a detailed site specific phasing plan toproperly implement stormwater practices as well as erosionand sediment control practices in a logical and effectivesequence.9/30/14 Applicant Response: SWPPP comments from theengineer are pending. A phasing plan has been included inAppendix M-1.6/15/15 Comment: We recommend that a constructionand erosion control sequencing schedule be providedto reflect the proposed construction phasing. The totalarea of disturbance for each construction phase is tobe noted.2. 9/2/14 Comment: Well yields and diminishing groundwater levels have been identified as significant concerns.The applicant has addressed this concern by referencingstate regulations and standards for design. We believe thatthe diminishing groundwater levels warrant additional studyto protect the future home owners from chronic watersupply issues. The rate of ground water recession shouldbe extrapolated into an appropriate length of time todemonstrate the realistic duration that each lot will becapable of providing potable water in conformance withminimum required standards.9/30/14 Applicant Response: As part of the analysis of theaquifer test data completed on bedrock wells W-3 and W-8 background water level data was collected prior to thepumping of the wells and also duringpostpumping recovery.Itwas noted in the report that water levels in the pumpingwells did not fully recover after pumping. It was also notedthat in wells not effected by the pumping of the W-3 and W-8 bedrock wells that water levels were naturally decliningduring the time period of data collection. Since groundwaterwater levels are rarely in a steady-state condition of nochange it is necessary to collect water levels both prior

andpost aquifer testing to see how natural water levelchanges may be affecting the water levels in the pumpingwells. As stated above for this time period water levels werein a general decline. The time period of water level datacollection during aquifer testing was significantly short andit is not possible to make a generalized statementconcerning the overall hydrogeologic conditions for the sitebased on that data. In fact we expect water levels to riseandfall throughout the water year (defined as Octoberthrough September) based on available recharge,evapotranspiration and local recharge/discharge to anysurface water bodies. In order to demonstrate the potentialchanges in groundwater levels at the site it is proposed tocontinuously monitorwater levels in bedrock well W- I for atleast a one month period during the September/Octobertime frame to determine the change in groundwater levelsduring the historical change period from generalsummertime ground water discharge to the start ofgroundwater recharge during the fall months and the end ofthe major evapotranspiration time period.6/15/15 Comment Remains Pertinent: The applicant hasindicated that additional. monitoring is to be provided.Further review of this issue is deferred to the PlanningBoard’s hydrogeological consultant.3. 9/2/14 Comment: The capacity of the individual lots toaccommodate subsurface sewage disposal systems (SDS)has been identified as a concern. The applicant hasprovided soil investigation results to demonstrate thatapplicable standards can be met. The applicant also hasindicated that State approval of the SDS designs is notrequired since each lot area will exceed 5 acres. We notethat this plan of action will require each lot to individuallypursue SDS approval prior to issuance of a building permit.The design of each lot is, in essence, incomplete until SDSapproval is granted. If this approval is deferred, the planningboard relies on the applicant to sufficiently demonstratesubsequent SDS approval is viable, and should define theextent of information and review that will be required tomake such a determination. We note several concerns thatwe request the applicant to address relative to this matter.The percolation test data indicates significant rate increasesafter the first runs for numerous tests, suggesting that theholes may not have been presoaked. The applicant shouldverify that presoaking was performed. The deep test pitresults indicate mottling as shallow as 1 1 inches. Mottling,

19


indicates periodic presence of groundwater. The shallowtrench designs will not provide adequate separation tothese groundwater elevations. As stated above, since therewill be no State review of this information during thesubdivision process, the planning board should establishwhat information it will require for its own review.9/30/14 Applicant Response: A percolation test report tablewas provided aspart of the soils test report. The commentletter references “significant rate increases after the firstruns for numerous tests, suggests that the holes Inaynothave been presoaked. “We believe that there may be someconfusion as to what the data in the percolation test tablerepresents, as only stabilized rates arc presented, For eachparcel, two separate percolation tests were performed asrecommended in section 4.7.1 of the New York StateDepartment of Health Residential Onsite WastewaterTreatment Systems Design Handbook. The 3rd column ofthe Percolation test table, titled “Test No.I”, reflects thestabilized rate for test hole number I. Similarly, the 4thcolumn, titled ‘Test NO.^”, reflects the stabilized rate for testhole number 2. The 5th column, titled “stabilized rate”, isthe stabilized rate for the parcel, which is the slower ofeither test hole number I or test hole number 2. The 6thcoluInn, titled “design rate “, is the design percolation rateutilized for the syste In. In almost all cases, we have chosena slower design rate then the stabilized rate to provide fora conservative design. We confirm that percolation testholes were presoaked.The deep soils test results do note the presence of mottlingon some parcels. The mottling noted is the result ofseasonal or perched water. To address the potential forseasonal or perched water tables, all systems are proposed

to incorporate a curtain drain up slope of the system. Adetail of the curtain drain is provided on the water andsewage disposal system detail sheet. The curtain drainsarc designed in accordance with section 9.3 of the NYSDOH Residential Onsite Wastewater Treatment SystemsDesign handbook. The curtain drains are shown on theFEISplans but not labeled. The revised plan submittal willinclude curtain drain labels for the individual lots.The wastewater disposal system currently shown on eachparcel has been designed for that parcel based upon thepercolation and deep soils test results. It is our opinion thata suitable area for each parcel has therefore been identifiedfor the Planning Board.6/15/15 Comment: The Applicant’s Engineer hascertified that percolation test holes were presoaked. Toaddress the potential for seasonal or perched watertables, all systems are proposed to incorporate acurtain drain up slope of the system. The PlanningBoard should determine if it has sufficient informationto make its determination of environmentalsignificance for this project. The Planning Board maywish to consider directing our office to review thisinformation in the absence of a review from theNYSDoH.4. 9/30/14 Comment: It appears that additional soil testsmay be required to demonstrate the viability of theproposed subsurface sewage disposal systems.Furthermore, it appears that the sewage disposal systemsare intended to demonstrate each lot’s capacity toaccommodate a four bedroom home. Any resolution ofapproval granted by the planning board should clearlyidentify that the lots approved are for four bedroom homes.6/15/15 Comment remains pertinent.

Paggi’s Report continued from page 18

20


Thompson Learning Center Paid Advertisment in Sullivan CountyDemocrat’s Catskill-Delaware Magazine, Fall - Winter 2015


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Willingham Letter to Deerpark PlanningBoard Regarding Dragon Springs Needfor an Amended Permit from theDelaware River Basin Commission

September 25, 2015Dear Chairman Vicaretti & Members of the Planning Board:Our firm has been engaged by the Basha Kill AreaAssociation (BKAA) to provide engineering consultationand representation regarding the Dragon Springs BuddhistMonastery project approvals. As you may know the BKAAserves as a watchdog, monitoring developments thatthreaten the valuable natural resources located in theBashakill Wetland System, such as Dragon Springs, whichhas a history of violations and inconsistencies for notappropriately adhering to permit requirements.Currently, Dragon Springs proposes to expand theiroperations to include a new Residence Hall and anaddition to the Rehearsal Hall, which is currently under SitePlan review by your Board. Recent proposedimprovements also encompass a new wastewatertreatment plant and substantial increase in wastewaterdischarge, which is further discussed below.The purpose of this correspondence is to inform the Board,Lead Agency under the State Environmental QualityReview Act (“SEQRA”) of a discrepancy in the SEQRAdocumentation, involving omission of the Delaware RiverBasin Commission (“DRBC”) as an Involved Agency. Sincethe project is located in the Neversink River Watershed,which is a Special Protection Area as identified by theDRBC, wastewater discharges over 10,000 gallons perday (“gpd”) in these areas necessitate DRBC’s approval.The Applicant is aware of this requirement as they have acurrent wastewater discharge permit from the DRBC for18,400 gpd (Docket 2007-021, approved by the DRBC on03/02/11). However, recent submissions by the Applicant tothe NYSDEC include a new wastewater treatment plantwith a surface discharge of 100,000 gpd.Consequently, increased wastewater discharge mandatesan amended DRBC permit before reatment plantconstruction can proceed. Nevertheless, per our review ofthe Dragon Spring's Long Form EAF submitted to thePlanning Board dated April 7, 2015, Part I (B) incorrectlyomits the DRBC as a Regional Involved Agency. Therefore,now informed of additional DRBC stipulations, the Boardshould require DRBC's listing as an Involved Agency inSEQRA documentation and ensure that wastewatertreatment plant construction does not occur without therevised DRBC permit. These are the Board'sresponsibilities as Lead Agency for this project.Thank you for your assistance in this matter and pleasedon't hesitate to call with any questions.Sincerely,Willingham Engineering, PLLC, Andrew Willingham, PE

E-mails Between Willingham and DECConcerning Potential Negative Impactsto the Basher Kill from Dragon SpringsBridge Construction

October 14, 2015Dear Mr. Whitehead:As you know, our firm has been engaged by the Basha KillArea Association (BKAA) to provide engineeringconsultation and representation regarding the DragonSprings Buddhist Monastery due to a history of violationsat that property. The purpose of this email is to inform theNYSDEC of ongoing activities at the site, to ensure properpermits are in place and streams are being adequatelyprotected.Per the inspection of Paula Medley, president of the BKAA,the bridge that crosses a tributary to the Basher Kill,located at the main entrance to Dragon Springs (off GalleyHill Road) is currently under construction/replacement.Large piles of soil are placed on the stream banks with nosilt fence visible. Members of the BKAA have recentlywitnessed the Basher Kill running “black” in areasdownstream of this point, which may be an indication ofinadequate erosion controls at the Dragon Springs bridge.Per our review of the NYSDEC Environmental Mapper, thetributary stream is Class C(T) and therefore a streamdisturbance permit is required. The stream is located only75 yards from its discharge into the Basher Kill which inturn discharges into the Neversink River approximately 1/4mile downstream from that point.We request that your department investigate this potentialviolation further. Thank you for your attention to this matterand let me know if you need further information.Andrew Willingham

Mr. Willingham:Thank you for your email. The Dragon Springs BuddhistMonastery has a valid Stream Disturbance Permit (3-3328-00150/000017) for the replacement of the north and southbridges. I will refer your observations to the relevant stafffor follow up.Daniel Whitehead

Dan:Thank you for the quick response, we appreciate it. Gladto hear they have the permits in place. Again, the BKAAjust wants them to follow the rules like everyone else.I imagine BKAA members will continue to monitordownstream water quality. We will let you know if we haveany further observations to share. Thanks again.Andy


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Forty Third Annual BKAA Report, October 24, 2015Paula Medley, President

Ever the opportunist, the BKAA utilized each occasion topromote the wetlands and our organization, whichultimately enhanced networking, outreach, and educationalpro- grams.BKAA Board: For the first time in years, the board remainedunchanged.Developments in the Basha Kill Watershed: It was anextremely busy year, characterized by major spurts ofactivity followed by quiet interludes. Proposed amendmentsto Mamakating’s Zoning Code, 7 Peaks, ThompsonEducation Center (TEC), possible exemptions to SullivanCounty’s 239 reviews, and Dragon Springs generated themost BKAA advocacy.Proposed Amendments to Mamakating’s Zoning Code:• March 25 - BKAA representative Paula Medley attended

a workshop on potential zoning changes.• April 28 - Paula attended a special zoning presentation

before Sullivan County planners.• June 2 - Paula represented BKAA at the Town Board’s

first public hearing on amendments.• June 16 - Second public hearing.• June 30 - Another workshop.• July 21 - The Town Board approved all proposed

amendments except the one pertaining to Wurtsboro’sAirport buffer, which the BKAA strongly desired.

7 Peaks:• November 10, 2014 - In a 95 page document, the BKAA

petitioned DEC to reclassify certain project wetlands asDEC jurisdictional, which would have mandated 100 footwide buffers around those wetlands.

• November 18 - The Town Planning Board held a publicinput session.

• December 19 - DEC Regional Director Martin Brandinformed the BKAA of our petition’s denial.

• January 8, 2015 - Paula addressed Orange County LandTrust’s (OCLT) Board about OCLT assuming aconservation easement on a possible 7 Peaks ridge toptrail.

• May 13, June - Private workshops were held between 7Peaks’ and Town consultants.

• August 6 - BKAA consulting engineer Andy Willinghamwrote the Town Planning Board requesting that additionalsoil testing be conducted during the environmental reviewrather than later. Concerned Residents of Wintertonreinforced this appeal with over 100 supporting signatures

from local homeowners.Thompson Education Center (TEC) aka China City :• December 2014 - TEC purchased 568 acres in

Thompson plus an adjacent 5 acres off Renner Road inFallsburg.

• January, 2015 - The BKAA rebutted TEC’s paidadvertisement published on 12/26/14 in the Times Herald-Record and Sullivan County Democrat.

• In order to prevent TEC from drilling 7 test wells,necessitating extensive road construction, the BKAAinitiated the following:

March 20 - BKAA attorney John Lyons challenged theseactions in correspondence to Paula Kay, ThompsonPlanning Board attorney.April 22 - Andy Willingham communicated with PatriceChester, Chair, Thompson Planning Board, statingTEC’s well drilling/road building were illegal withoutapplicant first securing a State Pollution DischargeElimination System (SPDES) General Permit forStormwater Discharge from Construction Activities fromDEC and preparing a Stormwater Pollution PreventionPlan (SWPPP).

• August 10 - Once again, the BKAA rebutted another TECpaid advertisement published on 7/24 in the previouslymentioned newspapers.

• Currently - TEC is under investigation by The Securitiesand Exchange Commission.

Proposed Exemptions to Sullivan County 239 Reviews:• May 1 - John Lyons outlined BKAA opposition to several

potential exemptions.Dragon Springs:• May 13 - The BKAA participated in Dragon Springs DEC

permit renewal process via correspondence from AndyWillingham to DEC’s Permit Administrator.

• September 25 - Andy Willingham letter to DeerparkPlanning Board underscoring Dragon Springs’ need foran amended discharge permit from the Delaware RiverBasin Commission.

Networking: The BKAA carefully nurtured new contacts andconstantly revitalized connections with long-standingfriends and supporters. These priceless collaborators, withtheir myriad resources, positively influenced BKAAaccomplishments.• Cathy Dawkins, Come Clean Coordinator, continued

networking with property owner David Groskin to maintain

43rd Annual Report continued on page 25


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a gorgeous “Gateway to the Bashakill” garden at the oldMoose Lodge.

• The BKAA retained its affiliation with Sullivan CountyVisitors’ Association (SCVA), whose website andpublications highlight our programs and wetlandsecosystem. On December 4, 2014, Michael and PaulaMedley attended SCVA’s Annual Meeting and HolidayParty and participated in SCVA’s Annual LiteratureExchange at SUNY Sulli- van on May 7.

• While the Shawangunk Ridge Coalition (SRC) nowfunctions on an “as needed” basis, SRC’s individualmembers’ support and direction were critical, especiallywith the proposed zoning amendments and 7 Peaks.

• BKAA continued partnering with TrailKeeper, a coalitionof Sullivan County organizations who promote theirevents on a collaborative website, and also joinedSullivan County’s Trail Committee.

• BKAA maintained membership in the Coalition for theDelaware Watershed and Linda Lou Bartle attended its3rd Annual Forum in Newark, Delaware from October 5-6, 2015.

• Christine Saward continued as BKAA’s liaison withMamakating’s Rural Community Coalition.

• BKAA minimally networked with area politicians.• BKAA enjoyed consistent backing from loyal supporters.

Catskill Mountainkeeper, Concerned Residents ofWinterton, Friends of the Shawangunks, NY-NJ TrailConference, Orange County Audubon Society, OrangeCounty Land Trust, Phillipsport Community Center, RockHill Neighborhood Coalition, and Sullivan CountyAudubon Society.

• Due to TEC’s threats and the proposed zoningamendments, we received invaluable assistance fromYankee Lake Preservation Association, Masten Lake’sMamakating Park Property Owner’s Civic Association,Wanaksink Lake Club, and Wolf Lake.

• On behalf of the BKAA, Paula mentored several groupsand individuals from Sullivan County communities.

• March 4, 2015 - Linda Lou participated in SullivanCounty’s Non-Profit Summit at Bethel Woods.

• March 26 - Paula attended a Trail Forum focusing onwestern Orange County.

• April 25 - Paula managed a BKAA table at SullivanRenaissance’s Spring Forum.

• October 16 - Michael and Paula attended Sullivan CountyAudubon Society’s Annual Meeting.

• October 18 - Susan Erny and Paula addressed southern“Gunks” issues at Friends of the Shawangunks’ Annual

Meeting.Town of Mamakating Activities:Town, Planning, and Zoning Board meetings weremonitored on an as needed basis.

Come Clean2015 ReportThe BKAA Come Clean Teammaintained two gardens this year:The “Laundromat Garden” whichwe installed in 2012 and the“Gateway to the Basha KillGarden” which we installed in2013.Laundromat Garden: the Laundromat Garden wascreated in 2012 to help improve the appearance of thisbusiness right in the Village of Wurtsboro. This spring wetrimmed shrubs and grasses, freshened mulch; weeded,extracted cigarette butts (the biggest problem with thisgarden). Property owner has taken an active interest andhas assumed much of the routine maintenance, includingwatering.Gateway to the Basha Kill Garden: Working on pre-existing funds – no new grants – we did an early andmid-season clean-up of this garden.1) Noted that our four trees came through the winter

beautifully. All appear healthy and happy and are “ontheir own” with respect to water.

2) Many of the new bulbs planted last fall were up andmade for a colorful spring. Daffodils, hyacinths, and avariety of unusual bloomers added color and interest.

3) We again planted “Dragon Wing Begonias” a colorful andlong-lasting annual. However, this year, either deer orwoodchuck nibbled throughout the season.

4) The lavender Russian Sage and the ornamental grasseswere a huge success.

5) Birdhouses were repaired in early summer and at leastone will be replaced from the original works of the EmmaChase Students.

Our final expenditures were as follows:Expense Reimbursement Report Summary

Date Vendor Purpose Amt5/1/2015 Monticello Farm

Home & Garden Annuals $ 16.80ToTAL Expense $ 16.80

Local Environmental Activities:• January 31, 2015 - BKAA sponsored Ravensbeard’s “Live

Bird Show” at Wurtsboro’s Winterfest. Linda Lou, Jackie

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Broder, Nora Brusinski, Fred Harding, Monique Lipton,David and Janet Lybolt, Martin and Frances Nankin,Susan O’Neill, Michael and Paula all assisted.

• Linda Lou, Chris Leser, Marcia Briggs Wallace, and Paularepresented the BKAA at Wurtsboro Founders’ Day.

• Paula addressed a Sullivan County ProfessionalWomen’s Association meeting at Danny’s in Wurtsboro.

Campers:In 2015, Danyle Morgan and Ryan Weiner attended CampDeBruce in the Catskills, while Natasha Duran, JordanMeyerhoff, and Madeline Roche experienced Camp PackForest in the southern Adirondacks. Wherever they“landed,” they encountered adventures that enhanced theirself confidence and environmental awareness.Jack Orth Memorial BKAA Scholarship:Desmond Oxford McDaniel was this award’s Fall 2014recipient.John Winkler Memorial Water Testing Program:Coordinated by Linda Lou, this key BKAA initiative testswater at several Bashakill sites twice monthly. Volunteersinclude: Bill Bradl, Cindy Coker, Eileen Lake, Bob, Maura,and Truth Muller, Daniel Smith, Dennis Solow, along withMatt and Tricia Zeittler.Linda Lou and Michael Bartle participated in WaterAssessments by Volunteer Educators (WAVE), a citizen-based water quality assessment program developed byDEC. WAVE enables citizen scientists to collect biologicaldata for water quality assessment on wadable steams inNew York State.The BKAA will receive $1100.00 in funding from SullivanCounty’s Plans and Progress Program Grants, which willreplace worn water testing equipment.Basha Kill Walks and Education Calendar:These activities are crucial to the BKAA core mission, whichteaches the value of wetlands, the Shawangunk Ridge,and surrounding areas, along with ways to safeguard them.Paula established the BKAA’s 2015 educational itineraryand assembled the experts who implemented it.Fortunately, the weather cooperated, so Michael led twoguided cross-country skiing outings, one with 7 participantsand the other with 6. John Haas took 17 birders on his“Early Spring Waterfowl Walk, and another 25 on his“Spring Bird Migration” venture. Bob Fiore had several “StarWalk” devotees. Mike shepherded 6 hikers up Gobbler’sKnob, and a group of 8 along Huckleberry Ridge. ScottGraber introduced 6 neophytes to his “Birding forBeginners.” Bill Cutler captivated 35 visitors with his “Happyfor Herps” outing. The prolific Gary Keeton escorted 10

followers on a Moonlight Ramble, several on his SunriseWalk and others on outings featuring D & H Canal history.Jack Austin led 11 aficionados on his “Natural History” trip.Scott Graber and Michael guided 24 vessels during theirpopular Moonlight Paddle and “captained” a flotilla of 15 inlate September.• November 5, 2014 - Michael took Natasha Duran, a juniorfrom S. S. Seward Institute in Florida, New York on a guidedBasha Kill paddle as part of Seward’s job shadowingprogram, where Natasha indicated interest in becoming anenvironmental writer• April 11, 2015 - The BKAA and HUB, public computercenter at Port Jervis Free Library, co-sponsored a MichaelMedley led hike on the D & H Canal Towpath.• April 18 - BKAA launched its 34th Annual Basha KillCleanup with 125 volunteers.• May 7 - Jack Austin, Michael Dunckley, MaryAnn Halchak,Michael and Paula conducted Monticello High Schoolstudents on interpretive walks though the wetlands andfurnished spotting scopes to enhance their experiences.• May 20 - Michael escorted a Mid-Hudson Area RetiredTeachers’ (MARTA) group on the Long Path through theBasha Kill.• May 20 - Nora Brusinski, Michael and Paula facilitatedLeadership Sullivan’s Class of 2015 “Basha Kill Days” withonsite presentations and spotting scope viewing.• July 27 - Paula toured the wetlands with an EPOCHTIMES reporter.• October 17 - BKAA was a sponsor of the MamakatingLions Fundraiser at the Basha Kill and offered a guidedwetlands amble and spotting scope viewing with GaryKeeton and Linda Lou.NATURE WATCHNature Watch: In its 13th year of operation, a dedicatedcadre of BKAA Nature Watch volunteers worked aseducational ambassadors for the Basha Kill. They alsomade observations on the behavior of the nesting baldeagles and ospreys. Each year when these observationsare compiled at the end of the season, they are sent on tothe DEC for their use. The season kicked off on March 14thwith John Haas and Lance Verderame offering an excellent,very informative presentation on Birds of the Basha Kill atour annual training program.Our volunteers are situated at the South Road boat launchsite, one of the key access points for recreational users ofthe Basha Kill. It is also a perfect location for the programsince it offers excellent views of the nesting raptors,especially when our powerful spotting scopes are focusedon these raptor nests. Unfortunately during this season, ourresident bald eagle pair did not have a successful hatch.




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This tiny shorebird is a “Dunlin.” It breeds in theCanadian Arctic and winters in South America. Thishatch year bird stopped by the Basha Kill to refuel on itslong journey south. It spent ten days in October feedingon Haven Road before continuing south. It was enjoyedby many of our local birders. Photo by John Haas

Nate Ermer. — See story page 9 Photo by SusanO’Neill

Right: Members of the Sullivan County Audubon Society enjoy the viewas the first flock of Wood Ducks arrive.Below: A waxing Gibbous Moon lighting the way for night-flying aviantravelers. — See story page 12 Both photos by Bob Muller

Early Fall Boating on Basha Kill— See story page 13

Photo by Bill Lucas


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We think, as happened with at least two other establishedbald eagle nests in Sullivan County this year, the eggs weredamaged by extremely cold temperatures. In this area, baldeagles in an established pair can lay their eggs as early aslate February. The unusually cold temperatures (some sub-zero nights) in late February with ongoing lows into earlyMarch could have proved harmful. Regarding the nestingospreys, we were not able to determine whether chick(s)successfully fledged this year.Even in a season without growing eaglets to watch, thevisitor numbers for the 2015 Nature Watch Programdocument the continued strong interest in the Basha Kill bya variety of recreational users. Volunteers interacted with1,720 visitors at the boat launch during our 10 week seasonfrom April 18th through June 28th. Because there has beena marked increase in the numbers of kayaks and canoes inrecent years, volunteers keep tabs on the numbers of boatscoming through the boat launch site – this year’s total was374 boats.Our Nature Watch season wrapped up on Sunday,September 27th with another successful fundraiser for theBKAA at Paul Deninno’s beautiful BashaKill Vineyards. Theincomparable live raptor program presented by Bill Streeterof the Delaware Valley Raptor Center was the centerpieceof our well-attended event. Drawing between 150 and 200attendees, we grossed almost $3,900! Special thanks tolocal artisan Elwood Ennis who donated one of his hand-crafted plaques for our raffle. The raffle of Elwood’s plaquegarnered $850 of our total. Eileen Lake, with assistancefrom her daughter Kelly, supplied delicious appetizers andPaula Medley, Nora Brusinski and Kevin Keller made upour wonderful meet and greet crew.Throughout the season, Nature Watch relies on a team ofsome 45 outstanding volunteers headed up by Co-LeadersMaryallison Farley, Cathy Liljequist and Kevin Keller. Cathyis our admin. expert, handling much of the emailcommunication with volunteers, as well as the data inputand compilation. Kevin works hands-on with our volunteers,spending most of his time with volunteers at the boatlaunch. Basha Kill birder extraordinaire, John Haas,completes our team as our key birding resource person.Meantime, sadly Patricia Diness stepped down from NatureWatch this year. We acknowledged her great work asVolunteer Coordinator and recognized her years of servicesince 2006 by presenting her with a beautiful, framed photoof one of our bald eagles, taken by volunteer Linda Kantjasin 2014.• Other Outreach Events: November 8, 19, 2014 - Paulamanaged a BKAA table at SUNY Orange’s “Waterways andWildlife” Art Show.• January 10, 2015 - Michael presented a cross country

skiing and snowshoeing workshop at Chester PublicLibrary.

• March 21 - Paula “manned” a BKAA booth at SullivanCounty’s Outdoor Sportsmen and Recreation Expo.

• April 22 - Paula oversaw a BKAA informational display atEarth Day festivities at SUNY Sullivan in Loch Sheldrake.

• May 10 - Paula represented the BKAA at the 5th AnnualTulip Festival at Honor’s Haven in Ellenville.

• June 6 - On behalf of the BKAA, Paula attended the 8thAnnual Children’s Earth and Water Festival at ThomasBull Park in Campbell Hall.

• June 7 - Michael and Fred Harding led a HUB and BKAAsponsored hike on Huckleberry Ridge.

• August 8 - Linda Lou, Michael and Paula orchestrated theBKAA’s venue at the Ellenville - Wawarsing BlueberryFestival.

• August 23 - Michael and Paula represented the BKAA atColumbia Hill’s Friend-Raiser in Hurleyville.

• September 9 - Michael discussed the Basha Kill andBKAA at Bethel Woods’ “Earth Day in Autumn.”

Workshops:• November 17, 2014 - Linda Lou and Paula attended a

workshop on “Developing Sustainability Strategies forCommercial Development Along Main Streets.”

• January 14, 2015 - Cecilia Walsh and Linda Lou attendeda SEQR workshop in Rock Hill.

• October 5/6 - Linda Lou represented the BKAA at the 3rdAnnual Coalition for the Delaware Watershed Forum.

A Birding Guide to Sullivan County, New York including theBashakill Wildlife Management Area:John Haas’s book, which continues to educate and piqueinterest, is available at Canal Towne Emporium andBashakill Vineyards in Wurtsboro, Morgan Outdoors inLivingston Manor, and online.Field Guide to the Basha Kill: “The Basha Kill Wetlands: aField Guide” is a pivotal publication educating readersabout the wetlands and generating excitement about thisunique ecosystem. Guides may be purchased at theBashakill Vineyards and Canal Towne Emporium, MorganOutdoors, and online. Books are also available at allSullivan County libraries, Cragsmoor Free Library, PortJervis Free Library, and SUNY Orange.BKAA Brochures: Thanks to Susan O’Neill’s creativity andLinda Lou’s capable assistance, the BKAA’s brochuresports an engaging, updated look this year. Contributing tothis successful facelift is the artistry of new photographers,Linda Lou Bartle, Michael Dunckley, and Kevin Kreischer,whose works join those of Gary Keeton and Alan A. Minkusin yielding a visually appealing vital public relations tool.




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Membership Chair/Corresponding Secretary, RecordingSecretary, and Treasurer:These key board functions were competently executed byMarcia Briggs Wallace, Christine Saward, and MoniqueLipton. Thanks for an amazing commitment of time andenergy.Publicity / Emails / thebashakill.org / Alerts / Facebook /Guardian:• The BKAA gratefully recognizes Susan O’Neill’s ongoing

dedication as our public relations guru, writing anddistributing all press releases. Susan also is our emailcoordinator, “triaging” incoming BKAA emails, therebykeeping Paula “in touch” with he outside world (whethershe likes it or not)!

• Our website, www.thebashakill.org, now produced bySuperior Host, and BKAA Alerts update BKAA programs,supply general news, and rapidly galvanize members foradvocacy. Thanks to Maryallison Farley for being BKAA’scontact with Superior Host, and kudos to Hattie Grifo forexcellently administering Action/Information Alerts.

• The BKAA is part of social media, having a Facebookpage ably administered by Linda Lou Bartle.

• Thank you to Liberty Press and Jon Heaphy fororchestrating the Guardian’s online operation and forpatiently managing Paula’s Type A personality, as domany others. Also, kudos to Jon for designing theGuardian’s layout, a role once implemented by theindomitable Buff McAllister.

BKAA Consultants: Consulting engineer Andy Willinghamworked on 7 Peaks, TEC and Dragon Springs’ issues.Hydrogeologist Dr. Katherine Beinkafner commented on 7Peaks. Consulting attorney John Lyons dealt with 7 Peaks,TEC, and 239 Reviews, while wetland specialist NorbertQuenzer contributed to the BKAA’s 7 Peaks petition. TheBKAA is extremely fortunate to collaborate with such acompetent team. Thank you everyone!Respectfully Submitted,Paula Medley, President


That adds up to almost a million square feet, not includingparking! This monster on the sensitive Shawangunk Ridge– one of Nature Conservancy’s “Last Great Places,” withno water and thin soil? There’s so much wrong with it, it’shard to know where to start. In addition, this developmentwould be a serious blow to New York State’s vision of apublic-access continuous ridge-top corridor from Route 17to Cragsmoor – a vision for which New York State hasspent millions to acquire land. YUKIGUNI MAITAKE (YM) MUSHRooM PLANT(2003 - )The Spring/Summer 2003 Guardian reported the firstinformation about this proposed project. It would be afacility of approximately 825,000 square feet on a 47-acrelot at the intersection of Route 209 and McDonald Road.The parcel adjoined the upper part of the Basha Kill andthe D&H Canal Linear Park. The developer wanted a building 83 feet high to produce30 tons of Maitake mushrooms per day. It would produce3.3 tons of solid waste plus 67 tons of sawdust and wastemushrooms per day. It would require 621,000 gallons ofwater per day from the aquifer under the wetlands andwould return only 50,000 gallons a day of wastewater toon-site infiltration basins. The U.S. Geological Survey saidthat amount of water removed from the aquifer wouldinevitably lower water levels in the wetlands, to say nothingof private wells and the Wurtsboro water supply. There was a scoping session on September 18. Therewere many speakers with concerns. The ZBA hadscheduled a public hearing on three variances desired bythe developer – height, lot coverage percentage, andnumber of loading docks. It was the position of BKAA thata ZBA hearing was premature, as variances could not beissued until the lead agency under SEQRA had issued itsdetermination of environmental significance.Paula Medley attended the ZBA hearing on November 13and reported that it was a chaotic spectacle that curtailedthe public’s freedom of speech. The public commentperiod was extended, possibly to include another hearing. On February 26, 2004, the ZBA postponed acting on thevariances, partly due to our pressure; a non-binding vote,however, showed that the board was in favor of grantingthem.On May 18, YM presented its DEIS to the planning board,and there was a public hearing on August 31. There weremore than 100 attendees, most of whom objected orvoiced serious concerns, including BKAA, D&HTransportation Heritage Council, Friends of the

40 YEARS: HISTORY OF THE BKAA By Buff McAllisterContinued from the Summer 2015 GuardianSHAWANGA LODGE - DEvELOPER WANTED!

Shawangunks, National Park Service, and the NY/NJ TrailConference. Our experts said the impacts of the projectwould be tremendous.The FEIS was presented to the board on November 23;written comments had to be submitted by April 8, 2005.

History of BKAA continued on page 30


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An Action Alert was sent to members, some of whom hadalready put up “No Mushroom Plant” signs on theirproperties. The planning board, rejecting the “no-build alternative,” andignoring the comments of our experts, accepted YM’sfindings on May 25, 2005. In July, BKAA filed an Article 78lawsuit against the planning board.In the meantime, YM had four variances pending before theZBA. The Sullivan County Planning Commissioner saidthat the height and lot coverage variances should be deniedbecause of negative intercounty effects; this meant that theZBA had to approve these variances by a super-majority (4out of 5) to legally grant them. The ZBA met on November 3. When their attorney, IraCohen, recommended that the height variance be denied,they summarily fired him and hired different counsel. Thefees for that attorney were to be paid by YM, whose ownattorney once worked for the newly hired firm. (Could therebe a conflict of interest here?) Not surprisingly, the variances were approved – theyallowed decreasing the loading berths from 21 to 7;increased the coverage of the lot from 35% to 45%; allowedthe height of a building for agribusiness use to be increasedfrom 45 feet to 65 feet; and permitted the height of anaccessory utility to go from 10% of the total building height(which would have been 6.5 feet) to 23% (15 feet), resultingin an 80-foot tall building, almost double the currentstandard. In January of 2006, Tish and Kevin Moore sued the ZBAand YM. In March, their suit was dismissed as having nomerit; and while we obtained standing, our Article 78proceeding was dismissed. We appealed to the AppellateDivision, but it denied a stay pending appeal. Our attorneysuggested that since it would be the same judges ruling onour appeal, we should drop it and use our money for otherthings, which we did.On April 17, the planning board held a public hearing on thesite plan and special use permit applications. Rep. MauriceHinchey sent an aide, who said that Hinchey opposed theproject outright. Our engineers exposed all theweaknesses in the application, and some 20 speakersmade negative comments. In general, the favorableremarks were made by out-of-town union members. Inspite of public protest, the planning board closed thehearing and allowed a 10-day written comment period. The planning board approved the plans, with conditions(such as getting DEC and DRBC permits), at its August 22,2006 meeting. Oddly enough, the board gave this approvaleven though YM owed the town $82,500 in fees. InSeptember, we once again filed an Article 78 proceeding.Our major points were: the planning board did not take the

“hard look” at environmental concerns as required bySEQRA; the board did not have a super-majority to rejectthe Sullivan County Planner’s modifications; the planningboard improperly delegated to the chair of the board thedecision on what conditions would be required; the planningboard deferred crucial studies and plans, violated DECrules and Mamakating’s zoning code and local law, andfailed to make a detailed and precise review of the matter. Once again, the Supreme Court ruled against us, and thistime, did not even grant us standing. Jodi Rubenstein, also a named plaintiff, appealed in June2007, but the Appellate Division ruled against her. Arequest for leave to appeal to the Court of Appeals wasdenied in 2008.In the meantime, YM had not yet fulfilled any of theconditions imposed on them by the planning board (whichthey said was our fault, because we sued them!) and gotextensions of time to do so. In April and May of 2008, YM went back to the planningboard with a “revised site plan” which is not a definitionfound in the law. They were trying (and did manage) toslide it through without paying further fees. (They finally didpay the town the original $82,500, but should have paidagain for a different plan.) On August 27, 2008, the planning board had a publichearing on the revised plan, which it called merely an“adjustment” so as not to require more fees from thedeveloper. This time we had four different consultants:attorney Alex Smith; engineer Andy Willingham from DavidClouser & Associates; hydrogeologist Dr. KatherineBeinkafner, and ecologist Spider Barbour. There were alsosome 100 people who expressed their concerns. AlexSmith said the alterations might require a supplementalEIS. There was a second hearing on September 23, ourexperts testified again, and once again their questions wentunanswered. On December 30, the planning board voted6-0, with one absence, to grant the conditional site planapproval. Back in court we went, in January 2009, for the planningboard’s failure to require a supplemental EIS; but withdrewthe suite in March on our attorney’s advice. The issue ofstanding was becoming more difficult to sell to the judges. Planning board attorney Langdon Chapman receivedunanimous support from the planning board for hissuggestion that it countersue BKAA to reimburse the town’slegal fees. This was an instance of the infamous “SLAP”suits, typically used by large developers to discourageopposition. The town board wasn’t interested, however,and the idea died. On April 21, 2009, the DEC declared YM’s four permitapplications to be complete. Our team disagreed strongly,and we countered with detailed written comments, letters


History of BKAA continued from page 29


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and phone calls. The DEC finally agreed to hold a hearing.It was a packed house on July 15. Our experts addressedthe issues and about 25 others expressed seriousconcerns. About 13 people supported YM, mostlyemployees, construction union people, and board membersfrom the Partnership for Economic Development. Only oneMamakating resident spoke in favor of the project. The DEC approved YM’s permits, but with criticalconditions. They had to build a pilot plant and after a yearof operation, report to the DEC on all aspects of itsperformance. Then the DEC would determine if YM couldproceed with the full buildout. (The DEC had originally saidthat no additional review was needed between the pilot andthe full buildout, but changed that after we vigorouslycomplained.) The DRBC permits were also only for the pilotplant. The pilot plant would be about 37 feet high with a footprintof 44,100 square feet. The water withdrawal would be71,300 gallons a day and wastewater discharge 15,500gallons per day. Also, the final size of the full buildout wasmuch smaller than the original plan – 63 feet tall rather than80 feet, and using 95,000 gallons of water a day rather than200,000. In keeping with its continued secrecy, and the planningboard’s continuing inexplicable reluctance to make YMconform to town law, YM never submitted its detailedconstruction drawings. In the summer of 2010, YM startedgrading and clearing the site – without the constructiondrawings, a building permit, or a driveway permit! It turnedout that the planning board accepted a “surety” rather thana building permit, which is not a feature of the town code. The DRBC never received its required EmergencyManagement Plan either; but it gave YM a pass so that ithad to do the EMP only when they begin to build the factory.The planning board also released the surety so that YMmanaged to do substantial work without paying any fee. In January 2012, YM again asked to be put on the planningboard agenda for more changes to the plan, but wasdropped for not having paid the review fee. According toour engineer, most of the changes were minor cost-savingmeasures; but YM did want to defer paving andlandscaping until the full buildout. It was our expert’srecommendation that the board require the work to be doneas scheduled, or put measures in place to guarantee thatthe work in done in the future. In his letter, Willinghammentioned that he understood that YM itself has questionedthe “economic viability of constructing the main plant.” oRDINARY BUSINESS 2004The mission statement was changed to: “Since ourfounding in 1972, our mission has been to protect theBasha Kill Wetlands and surrounding area from ecological

degradation, to promote education and respect for theenvironment in general, and to preserve the beauty of thearea.” WURTSBoRo AIRPoRT/CoMMERCE PARK (2004 - )In late 2004, the owners of the Wurtsboro Airport wantedto sell the 400-acre property and there were two possiblescenarios: 1. The Town of Mamakating would buy it with funds fromFAA, DOT and the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Associationand lease it back to the Association to continue its currentoperations, while adding low-impact improvements thatwould be compatible with its 100 acres of wetlands,Revolutionary War cemetery, a mile of the D&H Canal, andother historical sites. The town’s vision was of a world-classglider operation and a “Turn of the Century” village andcanal park. OR2. The owners would sell to a large developer who wouldconstruct inappropriate and intrusive building complexesnext to the Basha Kill. The owners were presented with identical bids by the townand by the developer (Shalom Lamm). They chose thedeveloper. At a public hearing in August 2005, the BKAA supportedthe town’s vision and urged the use of eminent domain.(Other plans ranged from 400 houses to gravel-mining anda drag-racing operation.) At the end of the year, the townvoted against condemnation and announced that it and theprospective buyer, Shalom Lamm, had agreed upon avision that was submitted to the FAA. The idea was that Lamm would retain about 80 acres forthe construction of 48 upscale fly-in houses and possibly ahotel. He would then sell the rest to the town (the salewould enable him to use that money for building thehouses), and the town would lease the airport back toLamm. One tiny problem – the FAA does not permitresidential development in airports that are financiallyobligated to the federal government. The obligationstemmed from 1996, when the previous owners acceptedfederal funds to widen a runway with the provision that theairport operations continue until 2016. Lamm went back to the FAA with another idea; he wouldkeep the airport in use forever if several parcels could besplit off for future development. The FAA accepted thisplan; now 177 acres are set aside for airport use and theother 223 acres could be developed. On August 25, 2009, the Wurtsboro Airport PreservationLeague (aka Black Creek, aka Shalom Lamm, aka thedeveloper of Seven Peaks) submitted a huge proposal tothe planning board.Commerce Park would use 140 acres of the site for fourcommercial buildings: 1.2 million square feet, 275,000




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Mike pointing out a hole in the side of the wood box. -see page 13 Photos by Mary Lou Deitrich

MARTA members having a wonderful day at the Basha Kill.— see story page 13

Hike with Mike— see story page 12

Gary Keeton leads a group of about 12 atthe “Walk and Wine” Lions Club fundraiser.— see story page 14

Photo by Linda Lou Bartle

Attendees of the Delaware River Watershed Forum learnabout efforts to expand habitat at the Thousand AcresMarsh in Port Penn Delaware. — see story page 14

Photo by Linda Lou Bartle


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square feet, 33,500 square feet, and 20,000 square feet.Each building would be for warehouse/distribution use, withsome as office space. The entry to the site would bethrough McDonald Road, the same road leading to the YMmushroom plant. The size of the project automaticallyrequired a DEIS, and the planning board declared itself leadagency. There was a public hearing on the draft scope onNovember 10. The speakers were evenly divided betweenthose expressing concerns and those looking for more taxbase and jobs. BKAA testified, incorporating statementsfrom our experts. Issues included: the creation of 72.56acres of impervious surface instead of the current surfaceof less than half an acre; the runoff of pollutants fromparking lots and resulting contamination of the GumaerBrook (which drains into the Basha Kill); water supply;consideration of what materials would be stored, some ofwhich might be hazardous; cumulative truck traffic impactincluding Kohl’s and YM; floodplain issues; and destructionof habitat, including that of five kinds of “Special Concern”birds. Barbara Restaino wrote a thoughtful letter to the planningboard on the subject of “vision.” She referenced a notedplanner who said that the most successful communitiesvalue and build upon their unique assets to achieve a statedvision. The Basha Kill is an Audubon “Important BirdingArea,” 60 million Americans are now birders and tourism isour number two industry. Developing the airport asproposed would degrade the town’s most important assetsrather than enhance them. On December 22, 2009, the planning board accepted thescope as being complete, which permitted the preparationof the DEIS. As of August 2012, it has not yet beensubmitted. oRDINARY BUSINESS 2005February 13, 2005 – The BKAA board voted to opposeconstruction of any casinos in the town. Richard Riselingfrom Casino-Free Sullivan County testified before a NewYork State Senate hearing; his excellent speech isreproduced in the Spring 2005 edition of the Guardian. Summer 2005 – A new BKAA color brochure was created..Summer 2005 – There were public hearings on a proposedSteep Slopes Law, which would apply only to slopes over35% BKAA strongly advised the town board to apply theproposed law to slopes of at least 25% instead. Fall 2005 – The first Jack Orth Memorial Scholarship wasawarded.December 2005 – There was a “My View” in the Recordwritten by Town Supervisor Charles Penna which “. . .serve[s] as a catalyst for a long-overdue response to the

innuendoes, accusations and falsehoods about the BashaKill Wildlife Management Area and the Basha Kill AreaAssociation that have been blatantly promoted by thesupervisor throughout his tenure.” according to theresponse by Paula Medley which also ran in the paper. It was the old litany of “outsiders” and “property taken offthe tax roles” (when in fact the Basha Kill is subject toproperty tax and paid about $19,000 in January of 2006).He suggested that BKAA uses its money in “secretiveways,” and that “we may be neglecting the Basha Kill itself.”Paula’s reply is excellent and can be read in the Winter2005-06 issue of the Guardian. BASHER KILL SUBDIVISION (2005 - )This proposal was for the Town of Deerpark, OrangeCounty, for 300 houses, a retail center and recreationalareas, on a 689-acre Shawangunk Ridge parcel borderedby Route 211, County Road 61 and Port Orange Road.Again, it was a development proposed for the Ridge, withall the problems that implied; 33% of the site had slopesover 15%. Local residents, led by two BKAA members, formed a groupcalled Deerpark United Neighbors (DUN) to fight it. Therewas a scoping hearing on June 29, 2005, and BKAA wasthere. We drew in seven networking partners (Friends ofShawangunks, Mohonk Preserve, Nature Conservancy,NY/NJ Trail Conference, Palisades Interstate ParkCommission, Save the Ridge, and Sierra Club) with someinput from Orange County Audubon. More than 75 letterswere sent to the planning board.DUN was in contact with the DEC, urging them to expandthe Catskill Mountain Forest Legacy area to include theShawangunk Ridge and specifically this parcel. There aremany reasons to protect the site – it’s near the Basha Kill(a small portion of it abuts the Kill and a tributary goesthrough the western section) and parcels bought by OpenSpace and Nature Conservancy. The Shawangunk Trail isproposed to run through the site, linking the Kill with theabandoned rail bed in Otisville. There is a chestnut oakforest nearby that has been deemed a SignificantEcological Community by the NY Natural HeritageProgram.It was not until 2008 that the DEIS was finished. There wasa public hearing on September 10, which was continued onOctober 22. BKAA urged the board to required anaddendum to the DEIS, as many critical issues in thescoping were ignored or inadequately addressedOn November 19, the planning board voted to require theaddendum. On December 10, it reversed itself, freeing thedevelopers to go ahead with the FEIS. A revised site plan was presented to the planning board onAugust 26, 2009. While the developer proposed to build




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more townhouses, taking units out of areas with seriousenvironmental issues, it is still a really bad project. Thewhole site is full of steep slopes, wetlands, and floodplains;just upslope a local unauthorized garbage dump was therefor years and was finally just covered over. As of August2012, there is no current activity.oRDINARY BUSINESS 2006Spring 2006 – The BKAA set up its own website, includingphotos, history, calendar of events, how you can help, etc. Spring 2006 – The dues schedule was revised to drop thefamily membership category in line with the bylaws allowingone person, one vote. Individual dues remained at$10/year. August 2006 – The Sullivan Renaissance competition inWurtsboro ended, but Wurtsboro Renaissance continuedits beautification efforts, with help from the Village, theSierra Club and BKAA.BKAA renewed its five-year contract with the DEC to act assteward to the wetlands under the “Adopt-A-Natural-Resource” program. NYRI PoWER LINE (2006 – 2009?)This was one of those projects that everybody hated assoon as they heard about it. New York RegionalInterconnection (NYRI), a private (Canadian) company,wanted to build a direct-current power line from Marcy inOneida County to the Rock Tavern Substation in OrangeCounty. The towers would be 85 to 129 feet tall, and theright of way would be 150 feet. The preferred route (asopposed to the just-as-bad Delaware River corridor) wouldgo through the grounds of the Neversink Valley AreaMuseum and the Bicentennial Elementary School, over theRidge, parallel Route 211 to Otisville and follow theabandoned railroad bed through the village. The application to the Public Service Commission (PSC)was deemed incomplete in August 2006 and NYRI’s lawyersaid they would take their case beyond New York, to theFederal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Underfederal legislation passed in 2005, NYRI could ask that theproject be considered a National Interests EnergyTransmission Corridor (NIETC), and if FERC agreed, theycould override any local or state government and condemnprivate land. According to information from SayNO2NYRI,a group formed to oppose the plan, FERC board memberMarc Spitzer was quoted as saying it was a “no-brainer” togive the go-ahead. It was rather bizarre; as Paula Medley said in the Summer2007 Guardian, “. . . a private, foreign business can legallyseize the homes and businesses of state residences forpersonal financial gain with the acquiescence of the federalgovernment.” Just as bizarre is the idea that a foreign

company could get federal backing under a law thatpurported to protect the national interests of the UnitedStates. NYRI submitted more information to the PSC, but on March24, 2008, the application was again declared incomplete.By this time, eight counties had formed a coalition calledCounties Against Regional Interconnect (CARI) and put up$50,000 each. The NYS Senate promised $1 million, andthe NYS Assembly was encouraged to match that. NYRI applied to FERC for federal price supports that wouldguarantee them 13.5% return on their investment; therequest was denied. In August, PSC declared the application incomplete for thethird time. NYRI complained that opposition groups wereproviding misinformation – but NYRI itself failed to providedetailed information, and asked the PSC to keep itsinformation confidential, citing Homeland Securityconcerns. (This from a Canadian company!)In October 2008, public hearings were attended byhundreds of people, all of whom were opposed. NYRI’spresident composed a web letter saying that theircomments were based on inaccurate data or falseassumptions. He said, “[i]t’s the PSC’s task to balance theneeds of the 40 million people in the entire state with theneeds of local communities.” (Oops, speaking ofinaccurate data, there were only 19,306,000 people in thestate in 2006.)A federal court in Virginia delivered a critical ruling inFebruary 2009. NYRI claimed (and FERC agreed) that theEnergy Policy Act of 2005 granted power to FERC to permitthe building of a line even if a state permitting agency didnot approve the application within one year. The court saidthat FERC did not have that power under the law. As of summer 2009, NYRI suspended its participation inthe PSC hearings. Is it dead? There has been no moreaction up to August 2012; so let’s hope so. KINGWooD MEGA-DEVELoPMENT (2006 – 2009)On October 11, 2006, the BKAA attended a planning boardscoping session for the generic DEIS of Kingwood andKingboro projects proposed for the Wurtsboro hills area.Kingboro would be 49 homes and Kingwood a 223-acrebusiness park on adjoining land. There would have to be anew road connecting the two tracts. We urged the boardto require a more comprehensive habitat assessment aspart of the final scope, as the draft version was vague. Thisassessment would include considering factors such assoils, geology, slope, stormwater, sediment and erosioncontrol, as well as plants and animals. We alsorecommended the town create its own habitat assessmentguidelines which would enable them to better protect thevalue of natural resources.




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Three weeks later, there was a joint public hearing beforethe town board and the Bloomingburg Village board todecide whether to approve the annexation of several townproperties, totaling 200 acres, into the village. Werequested that the hearing remain open until we had acomplete file to study, and recommended they shouldanalyze the mega-development for its cumulative effect. Ofcourse, both requests were ignored and the whole projectwas immediately approved. By the spring of 2007, the project had mushroomed to1848 acres in Mamakating, Thompson and Fallsburg,included 560 dwelling units, 31 potential business centerlots, and no access road into Wurtsboro Hills. By thesummer, they wanted 641 dwelling units. Every day the project got bigger and worse. By fall, theproposal was for approximately 1000 single-family housesand about 1.3 million square feet of commercialdevelopment, plus roads, a central sewage treatmentsystem and central water from wells. All the commercialdevelopment would be in Mamakating and the houseswould be divided between Mamakating and Thompson.The Fallsburg portion would contain only roads. After abrief tussle with the town, the DEC took the role of leadagency, which BKAA applauded. Early in 2008, the DEC wrote a letter to the developerpointing out discrepancies in its documents, and requiringa new EAF Part I with supporting plans and maps, andfurther information on the project’s impacts. We weregranted interested person status by the DEC.Surprisingly, in November, Kingwood (now calledParkwood), wrote to the planning board withdrawing theirpending applications, “. . . due to changing marketconditions and other factors. . . “ It further stated that itwould make a new application, solely in the Town ofThompson, for 175 lots that would tie into an existingsewage system in that town. They still own the Mamakatingproperty, however; so BKAA will continue to keep an eyeon it.oRDINARY BUSINESS 2007Spring 2007 Guardian – Bill Cutler wrote an article on theBasha Kill as being our “Ecological Hope Diamond,” whichhad a wonderful sentence in it: “Ten million people livewithin a two-hour drive of this wild place, and a wicked fewseek to urbanize it before the vast majority ever knows whatcould be lost.”March 8, 2007 – Mamakating Supervisor Charles Pennaput a three-page anti-BKAA statement on the town websiteand left similar handouts at various places. Paula Medleyspoke and answered questions at a town board meting onMarch 30 and handed out a fact sheet on the BKAA. Other

residents also commented. The board passed a resolutionto prevent personal views or political statements on the sitewithout board approval; and the statement was removedfrom the site.October 21,2007 – The new field guide, 7 years in themaking, was finally unveiled at the Annual Meeting. NEW CITY FoR MAMAKATING (HoMoWACK) (2007 - )As reported in the Fall 2007 Guardian, yet another majordevelopment was proposed for Mamakating, at the site ofthe former Homowack hotel, on about 450 acres inPhillipsport and Spring Glen. A brochure described theowners’ vision to build a new city with infrastructure,schools, religious centers, shopping center, health center,etc. — plus thousands of housing units.Not only would this huge project be a problem in itself, butthere were also other giant developments in the pipeline,and the cumulative impact would be disastrous. Opponentsof the plan, including BKAA’s Anita Altman, met andorganized into a group called the “209 Valley Keepers.” In the meantime, the existing buildings were in horribledisrepair, and there were serious arrears in property, hotel,and sales taxes. The owners applied for a renewal of theirSPEDES permit, and BKAA plus others took full advantageof the DEC written comment period on this issue. OnAugust 1, 2008, the DEC renewed the permit, but specifiedit was only for existing water discharge, with no permissionfor future change or expansion. In the summer of 2009, the owners opened a residentialcamp, without a health permit or special building permit.There were some 300 girls and families with small children.After a neighbor spotted an oil leak and called the DEC,various authorities converged on the site and were horrifiedat the dangerous conditions they found – including electricsystem violations, mold, and fire hazards. The camperswere ordered to leave, but they delayed until mid-Augustwhen the state Attorney General’s office finally had to stepin. In the summer of 2010, the owners made some overturesto the ZBA and DOH, hoping to have a girls’ camp that year.There were so many problems with the hotel building thatthe DOH suggested it would be cheaper to tear it down andstart over. They decided not to open that summer. The buildings were not secured, and during the winter, agreat deal of vandalism occurred; Mamakating ignored theproblem in spite of a law that covers unsafe buildings.Finally, after years of complaints, the town board orderedthe owners to tear down and remove the dangerousstructures within 60 days of notification, which occurred onSeptember 21, 2010. It took far longer than 60 days, but asof spring 2012, the outbuildings were demolished and thesites cleared. The old hotel still stands, but it is still in major



IN THIS ISSUE:BASHA KILL AREA ASSOCIATIONPO BOX 1121WURTSBORO, NY 12790

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PERMIT NO. 52LIBERTY, NY 12754

43rd Annual Meeting 32016 BKAA Calendar of Events 4Nature Watch Wraps Up 13th Season 6Macro Invertebrate Testing 7, 8New Stewardship Biologist 9Summitville Hawk Watch 2015 11Ducks on the Horizon 12Hike with Mike on Huckleberry Ridge 12Early Fall Day Afloat 13MARTA Walk the D&H Canal Towpath 13Delaware River Watershed Forum 14BKAA Participates in Mamakating Lions

Journey for Sight 14Hopper Hill LLC 16Updates: 7 Peaks, TLC, Dragon Springs 17BKAA Annual Fiscal Report 22, 2343rd Annual BKAA Report 24-26

PHOTOS ON PAGES 1, 7, 15, 27 & 32

disrepair. There has been no more activity to date. oRDINARY BUSINESS 2008March 2, 2008 – Opening Reception at OCCC for “TheBasha Kill – A Quiet Treasure,” the first large-scale artexhibit featuring only works relating to the Basha Kill. June 7, 2008 – With other groups, BKAA celebratedNational Trails Day at the 150-acre LaFarge parcel inSummitville, which was scheduled to be transferred fromthe NY/NJ Trail Conference to the DEC to incorporate intothe Wurtsboro Ridge State Forest. August 2008 – Toni Garrett received the third Great BlueHeron Award. She died on September 2.August 11, 2008 – At the Sullivan Renaissance awardceremony, Wurtsboro Renaissance received anEnvironmental Stewardship Award of $1000.

History of BKAAcontinued from page 35

History of BKAAcontinued next Guardian

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