Tag Archives: New York

Be Green Organic Yards NY

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The New York Sate Department of Environmental Conservation announced a new initiative to encourage the use of sustainable gardening and yard care practices.

Be Green(sm) Organic Yards NY will provide training and licensing. Businesses complying with their practices will be able to display the Be Green logo. DEC is also enlisting course providers to deliver the training.

I hope their program includes eliminating leaf-blowers.

From the July 2010 issue of NYS DEC’s online magazine, Environment DEC:

DEC’S “Be Green” Initiative Taps into Organic Yard Care

Having a truly “green” lawn will get easier with the help of “Be Green Organic Yards NY,” a new initiative recently announced by Commissioner Pete Grannis of the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).

Homeowners and business owners in many areas of the country are choosing organic yard-care management, which can range from a simple regimen of planting and pruning to the “big picture,” including plant selection and soil structure. The organic approach focuses on preventing problems before they occur and building a sustainable, healthy landscape. The goal of “Be Green” is to help create an organically managed environment for people, pets, wildlife and plants.

With Be Green Organic Yards NY, DEC offers a way for consumers and organic-yard businesses and course providers to participate in a “green” yard management initiative. When businesses provide Be Green services to manage lawns, plants and trees organically, they agree to meet DEC’s Be Green conditions. The conditions include prohibitions against certain pest management practices, such as the use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers.
How “Be Green Organic Yards NY” Works

In the first phase of the Be Green initiative, DEC encourages organizations that provide organic-yard management training to offer courses needed by companies interested in becoming Be Green businesses. The next steps in the initiative will unfold this year for businesses and consumers. Here’s how the Be Green Program will work:

  • Qualified course providers will sign up to participate in the new program and begin offering training needed by future Be Green businesses. Course providers will enter a license agreement to use the special state Be Green service mark (logo) in advertising this training.
  • Successfully trained businesses will be eligible to sign an agreement with DEC for the right to use the special logo. In return, they will agree to avoid using synthetic pesticides and other prohibited materials when providing Be Green services.
  • When the program is fully operating, consumers will be able to search DEC’s website for Be Green businesses in their area. DEC expects to have listings available in the fall. Consumers will be able to recognize Be Green businesses by the special state logo which may be included in their advertising. Representatives of businesses that provide Be Green services will carry Be Green identification cards.

Links

DEC’S “Be Green” Initiative Taps into Organic Yard Care
Be Green(sm) Organic Yards NY, NY State Department of Environmental Conservation:

NY’s Invasive Species Plan Announced

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Chelidonium majus, Lesser Celandine, growing in my garden, June 2006.
Chelidonium majus, Lesser Celandine, Detail of flower

The plan will create the first-ever official lists of invasive species, both plant and animal, and create the legal authority to enforce controls as state regulations.

h/t @BuggedDoc

Press Release

Monday, June 28, 2010
Contact: Jessica Ziehm
518-457-3136
jessica.ziehm@agmkt.state.ny.us

COUNCIL RELEASES PLAN TO COMBAT INVASIVE SPECIES IN NYS
Report Identifies New Process to Categorize Non-Native Invasive Species

The New York State Invasive Species Council today submitted its final report to Governor David A. Paterson and the State Legislature. The report, titled “A Regulatory System for Non-Native Species,” recommends giving the Council authority to develop regulations for a new process that will prevent the importation and/or release of non-native invasive species in New York’s waterways, forests and farmlands.

The report, prepared by the nine-agency Council and co-led by the Department of Agriculture and Markets and the Department of Environmental Conservation, introduces a new process for assessing each invasive species for its level of threat, its socioeconomic value, and for categorizing them into distinct lists for appropriate action.


State Agriculture Commissioner Patrick Hooker said, “In recent years, we have struggled with the economic and environmental impacts of non-native species such as Plum Pox Virus, Emerald Ash Borer and the Asian Longhorned Beetle, but we have also acknowledged the positive aspects associated with some, such as timothy, Norway maple and lady bugs. With the adoption of this report, New York will now have a process by which the merits of various invasive species will be evaluated and their level of harm and/or benefit will be reviewed to ensure unacceptable ecological or health risks are not purposefully introduced as pets, nursery stock, food or other uses.”

State Environmental Conservation Commissioner Pete Grannis said, “New York needs to take action now to curb the many pathways that invasive species use to make their way here. With this new regulatory approach, we can do just that. The system the Council is proposing strikes the right balance of minimizing the major threats to our ecology and economy while allowing for the careful use of those plants and animals that pose lower risks.”

The new assessment process would allow the state to categorize invasive species – such as zebra mussels, Sirex wood wasps and Eurasian milfoil – as “prohibited,” “regulated” or “unregulated.” As a result of this classification system, regulatory control where necessary, would help restrict movement of potentially harmful plants and animals.

Species in the “prohibited” category would be the most restricted as they pose clear risks to New York’s economic, ecological and public health interests, and, therefore, would be banned from commerce entirely. “Regulated” species would be restricted, but not prohibited from commerce, and require practical and meaningful regulatory programs. “Unregulated” species would be identified as those non-native species that do not pose a threat and therefore could be used freely in commerce.

Two “tools” would be used in assessing risks from non-native plants and animals. One evaluates the inherent, biological “invasiveness” of each species, i.e., some species are better “weeds” than others. The other tool looks at socio-economic values to help the Council decide whether the social benefits of a plant or animal outweigh the potential harm. For example, earthworms have often been shown to have positive effects on soil structure and fertility in agricultural and garden ecosystems; however, glacial ice sheets that covered most of New York some 11,000 to 14,000 years ago left New York worm free. Thus, today’s worms are actually European invaders and considered a non-native invasive species, but are clearly valuable.

The process of categorizing invasive species and other report recommendations were developed with the assistance of a 17-member steering committee comprised of representatives from state and federal agencies, conservation, academic and industry groups including agriculture, pets, nursery and landscape. In addition to Department of Environmental Conservation and Department of Agriculture and Markets, the Council is made up of the Commissioners of Transportation, Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, and Education; the Secretary of State; the Chairperson of the New York State Thruway Authority; the Director of the New York State Canal Corporation; and the Chairperson of the Adirondack Park Agency.

The New York State Invasive Species Council’s final report is available online at http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/63402.html.

New York State is engaged in efforts to reduce the impacts of existing invasive species, such as the Asian Longhorned Beetle and most recently, the Emerald Ash Borer. Department of Agriculture and Markets’ horticultural inspectors have successfully treated 549,856 trees in Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island as part of efforts to eradicate the Asian Longhorned Beetle and protect our forests and urban trees. The Emerald Ash Borer was found in Randolph, Cattaraugus County, in June 2009. The Departments of Environmental Conservation and Agriculture and Markets responded quickly and removed affected trees. Since that time over 387 compliance agreements have been written to prevent the human spread of the Emerald Ash Borer.

[goo.gl]

Related Content

My blog posts on invasive species

Links

New York State Invasive Species Council Releases Plan to Combat Invasive Species in New York State, Press Release, NYS Department Of Agriculture And Markets, 2010-06-28

Invasive Species List Report, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation

Brine Garden, Pawling, NY

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A path in the Brine Garden in Pawling in Dutchess County, NY, north of New York City.
Path, Brine Garden

Last Sunday, Blog Widow and I drove up to Pawling, NY and spent the day with a friend of ours. I also got to meet Julia and Duncan Brine. In their landscape design firm, they specialize in native plants, so I was excited to meet them and visit their gardens.

The gardens ramble over six acres. In contrast to the familiar limitations of urban gardening, it may as well have been 600 acres. The property slopes, steeply at times, from the unpaved entrance drive down to Route 22. Water flows through the property. The day of my visit, precipitation seamlessly cycled through mist, drizzle, sprinkles. There was nearly a film of water over the gardens. I’m not exaggerating. My friend’s sneakers became soaked just from walking through the long, wet grass. And it was wet enough for this fellow to crawl over the ground to his burrow of mud at the base of a log.

Crayfish, Brine Garden

With the almost constant rains we’ve had this summer, everything was lush, full, and green. The rampant growth encroached from all sides, overtaking and disguising any intended boundaries of the cleared areas. This contributed to the fluid expression of “path” at play in the Brine Garden. Narrows suggest passage; wider bays encourage a slower pace.

Sunny Border, Brine Garden

Border, Brine Garden

Solidago, Goldenrod, Brine Garden

Grassy Path, Brine Garden

Related Content

Brine Garden, Pawling, NY, Flickr photo set

Links

Brine Garden

Bees, a Mockingbird, and Marriage Equality

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2022-05-29: This is now the FOURTH time WNYC has broken the link. Fixed again. (What the *^!% is wrong with them?!)
2022-04-13: Updated – yet again – the link to the recording which WNYC broke for the third time.
2012-05-21: Updated – again – the links which WNYC broke – again.
2011-08-23: Updated to current links from the old ones which WNYC voided.

Domestic Bliss: Blog Widow (left) and me in the gardener’s nook on the occasion of the interview. I had just transplanted the female Ilex verticillata in the background that morning.
Flatbush Gardener (right) and Blog Widow
Two weekends ago, Blog Widow and I were interviewed by WNYC’s Kathleen Horan on the topic of marriage equality – marriage for all – in New York state. The piece aired this morning, and is available on the WNYC News Blog. We make our appearance about 4:55 into the segment.

Marriage Equality, Kathleen Horan, 2009-05-22

I didn’t get to listen to it when it aired at 7:50am this morning. I thought it might be off-topic for the blog. But since most of my part of the aired conversation is about the garden, I figure it it’s not much of a stretch. Please give it a listen, and let me know what you think in the comments below.

Related Content

Wildflowers in a Flatbush Backyard, 2009-05-11
Cellophane Bees Return, 2009-05-09

Links

Debating “Marriage Equality” , Kathleen Horan, WNYC

Endangered Plants in New York State

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In observance of Endangered Species Day, here is a list of just some of the plants listed as endangered in New York state. Note that plants endangered in one state may not be listed in another.

  • Aconitum noveboracense, Northern wild Monkshood
  • Agalinis acuta, sandplain Gerardia
  • Amaranthus pumilus, seabeach Amaranth
  • Asplenium scolopendrium var. americanum, Hart’s-tongue fern
  • Helonias bullata swamp Pink
  • Isotria medeoloides,small whorled Pogonia
  • Platanthera leucophaea, eastern prairie fringed Orchid
  • Schwalbea americana, American Chaffseed
  • Scirpus ancistrochaetus, Northeastern Bulrush
  • Sedum integrifolium ssp. leedyi, Leedy’s roseroot
  • Solidago houghtonii, Houghton’s goldenrod

Links

Department of Environmental Conservation, New York State:

Bats, Bat Houses, and White-Nose Syndrome 2009

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Mosquito control is a perennial topic on the Flatbush Family Network, one of the numerous email discussion groups which cover the different neighborhoods of Brooklyn. Bat houses invariably come up as a way of attracting a natural predator to keep mosquito populations in check. Here I’m reprising and updating my posts on these and related topics from last year.

White-Nose Syndrome (WNS)

Last Spring I wrote about White-Nose Syndrome (WNS). A breakthrough that occurred just in the past few months is that the “White-Nose” has been identified as a group of previously unknown species of Geomyces fungus. It’s still unknown whether it’s a symptom – such as an opportunistic infection – or a cause or contributor.

Bats exhibiting white-nose syndrome in Hailes Cave, Albany County, NY, one of the first caves in which WNS was observed. Photo: Nancy Heaslip, NYS DEC.

Bob Hoke of the District of Columbia Grotto (DCG) of the National Speleological Society (NSS) maintains an excellent chronology of WNS news and understanding. WNS has already killed hundreds of thousands of bats across the northeast over the past four winters. Mortality has been as high as 90% in some caves. It’s estimated that 75% of northeastern bats have died in just four years. Unfortunately, it continues to spread; for the first time, it’s also been found or suspected in New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylania, Virginia and West Virginia.

Map of occurrence of White Nose Syndrome by county as of March 4, 2009. WNS was later confirmed in Virginia. Credit: courtesy of Cal Butchkoski, Pennsylvania Game Commission
Counties with White Nose Syndrome

Because of the high mortality, rapid spread, and still-unknown causes of the disease, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (US FWS) has issued a cave advisory to suspend all caving activities in affected states, and take precautions in states where WNS has not yet been detected:

The evidence collected to date indicates that human activity in caves and mines may be assisting the spread of WNS. Therefore, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is recommending actions to reduce the risks of further spread of WNS:

  1. A voluntary moratorium on caving in states with confirmed WNS and all adjoining states;
  2. Nationally, in states not WNS-affected or adjoining states, use clothing and gear that has never been in caves in WNS-affected or adjoining states;
  3. State and federal conservation agencies should evaluate scientific activities for their potential to spread WNS; and
  4. Nationally, researchers should use clothing and gear that has never been in caves in a WNS-affected or adjoining state.

This also applies to mines used by cavers.

These recommendations will remain in effect until the mechanisms behind transmission of WNS are understood, and/or the means to mitigate the risk of human-assisted transport are developed.

There was a big thing that came out in the environmental reports last year that chemical mosquito killers are quite bad for the environment and killed more than just mosquitoes. They might even be part of the reason why there is a bacteria/virus killing off northeastern bats. Although, scientists haven’t found anything conclusive it seems.
– via Flatbush Family Network

WNS research is ongoing, but it’s still not known what the cause is. A plausible explanation is immunodeficiency caused by environmental contamination, such as insecticides sprayed for West Nile Virus, but again, that’s just one of several hypotheses being explored by researchers. A pathogen such as a virus, bacteria or fungus is likely due to the patterns by which it’s spreading.

Bat Houses

Bat houses seem like a great idea. At night, bats eat about 1,000 pesky insects an hour. I don’t know how one attracts bats to your bat house but I’ve seen them in the evening in Prospect Park, amazing little creatures that they are.
– via Flatbush Family Network

I wrote about bat houses last year. Bats have specific requirements for roosting sites. Most of the houses I’ve seen commercially available are too small or lacking in other requirements. The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) article, “Why I Built a Bat House,” contains detailed instructions for building a house that meets current knowledge about bats roosting needs.

The bat house I purchased last year from Bat Conservation International before I installed it on the side of the second floor porch – my “tree fort” – at the back of my house.
Bat House

Note that this is the time of year when bats are looking for their “summer homes.” I put mine up mid-April last year, which was a little late. I’m hoping they find it and set up house this year!

General information about bats

Is there ANY danger to my 4 year old son? Do bats poop/pee/spit anything bad for him? Do they really only come out at night?
– via Flatbush Family Network

Bats really do only come out at night. You’re most likely to see them at dusk, when they leave their roosts, and dawn, when they return. At the end of last summer, I saw a few on my block flying amidst the gaps between the canopies of the street trees. They seemed to be feasting on the insects attracted to the street lights.

Many people are concerned about rabies. While sensible caution is warranted, the risk is extremely low. In New York City, you’re more likely to contract West Nile Virus (WNV), which bats help combat by eating mosquitoes which carry the virus. If you see any normally nocturnal animal – such as a bat, raccoon or opossum – out in the open during the day, keep children and pets away from it and notify animal control by calling 311.

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Related Content

Rabies in NYC: Facts and Figures, 2008-07-08
Bat Houses, 2008-04-13
Northeastern Bats in Peril, 2008-03-18
Other posts about bats

Links

Bats

Bats of New York, Eileen Stegemann and Al Hicks, Conservationist, February 2008, NYSDEC
Bat Conservation International (BCI)

Bat Houses

Why I Built a Bat House, Carla Brown, National Wildlife Federation (NWF) (H/T Sara S. via Flatbush Family Network)
Bats Wanted, Al Hicks and Eileen Stegemann, Conservationist, February 2008, NYSDEC
The importance of bat houses, Organization for Bat Conservation
The Bat House Forum

White-Nose Syndrome

An excellent chronology of WNS is maintained by Bob Hoke of the District of Columbia Grotto (DCG) of the National Speleological Society (NSS).

White-Nose Syndrome Confirmed in VA Bats, WHSV, Richmond, VA, 2009-04-02
Cave activity discouraged to help protect bats from deadly white-nose syndrome, Press Release, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, 2009-03-26
Fungus Kills About 90 Percent Of Connecticut’s Bats, Rinker Buck, Hartford Courant, 2009-03-18 (H/T NewYorkology via Twitter)
Newly Identified Fungus Implicated in White-Nose Syndrome in Bats, Press Release, U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), 2008-10-31
Bats dying off across western Maine, Maine Sun Journal, 2008-07-19 (H/T Center for Biological Diversity)
Dying Bats in the Northeast Remain a Mystery, USGS Newsroom, 2008-05-09
First It Was Bees, Now It’s Bats That Are Dying, Natural News, 2008-04-11
Bats in the Region Are Dying From a Mysterious Ailment, Litchfield County Times, 2008-04-03
Bats Perish, and No One Knows Why, New York Times Science Section, 2008-03-25
Bat Die-Off Prompts Investigation, Environment DEC, March 2008, NYSDEC

White-nose Syndrome Threatens New York’s Bats, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC)
White-Nose Syndrome, Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC)
White-Nose Syndrome in bats: Something is killing our bats, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Northeast Region

Mystery Disease Kills U.S. Bats, Bat Conservation International
Bat Crisis: The White-Nose Syndrome, Center for Biological Diversity
White Nose Syndrome Page, Liaison on White Nose Syndrome, National Speleological Society (NSS)
Something is killing our bats: The white-nose syndrome mystery, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Wikipedia: White-nose syndrome

Steven Earl Clemants, 1954-2008

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Steven Earl Clemants. Credit: Brooklyn Botanic Garden

The botanical world – especially New York State, New York City, and Brooklyn – suffered a great loss recently. Steven Earl Clemants, Ph.D., Vice President of the Science Department of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, died suddenly and unexpectedly on Sunday, November 2, 2008. Funeral services were held last Friday, November 7. He was 54 years old.

I never met Steven, but I’ve known of his work. I’ve written about some of it on my blog. His contributions in several fields, including native plant conservation, invasive plants, and urban botany, are substantial. I can only summarize.

Dr. Clemants was Chair of the Board of the Invasive Plant Council of New York State. He was the Historian and past President for the Torrey Botanical Society, and Chair of the Local Flora Committee of the Long Island Botanical Society. He was a founder, coordinator and contributor for the New York Metropolitan Flora Project (NYMF), which is documenting all the flora within a 50-mile radius of New York City. He was Codirector of the Center for Urban Restoration Ecology (CURE), a collaboration between BBG and Rutgers University. He served on the Advisory Board and Atlas Committee of the New York Flora Association. He was a graduate faculty member of both Rutgers University and the City University of New York. He was also involved with the New York State Invasive Species Task Force, the Prospect Park Woodlands Advisory Board, and the American Institute of Biological Sciences, among many other efforts.

He was Editor-in-Chief of Urban Habitats, an open-science online journal dedicated to worldwide urban ecological studies. In addition to authoring and co-authoring numerous technical journals and articles, he was co-author, with Carol Gracie, of “Wildflowers in the Field and Forest: A Field Guide to the Northeastern United States.”

The Dr. Steven Clemants Wildflower Fund

The Dr. Steven Clemants Wildflower Fund has been established to honor him. Steve’s widow, Grace Markman, is working with the Greenbelt Native Plant Center to plan a living memorial that will foster the planting of native wildflower species in New York City parks.

If you would like to donate to the Fund, there’s a PDF form to fill out and mail with your check. Email me at xrisfg at gmail dot com and I’ll send you the form. Make out your check to “City Parks Foundation” and mail it with the form to:

City Parks Foundation
c/o Greenbelt Native Plant Center
3808 Victory Blvd.
Staten Island, NY 10314

As an alternative, here’s an Amazon Associates link for the paperback edition of the Field Guide which Dr. Clemants co-authored. I will donate any proceeds I receive through this link to the Dr. Steven Clemants Wildflower Fund. The Field Guide is also available in both hardcover and paperback editions from BBG’s online store.

Related Posts

Web Resource: New York Metropolitan Flora Project (NYMF), 2006-06-02

Links

Steven Earl Clemants:

Center for Urban Restoration Ecology (CURE)
Invasive Plant Council of New York State
Long Island Botanical Society
New York Flora Association
New York Metropolitan Flora Project (NYMF)
Science Department, Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Torrey Botanical Society
Urban Habitats

Rabies in NYC: Facts and Figures

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With all of the recent interest in raccoons and other wildlife, rabies is frequently raised as a concern. The New York City Department of Health has information on rabies on its Web site. Anyone concerned about the risk of exposure to rabies from interactions with wildlife in NYC should review the DOH information, which I’ll summarize here:

  • There have been no human cases of rabies in New York City for more than 50 years. In all of New York State, there have only been 14 cases since 1925.
  • Staten Island, with 29 rabid animals reported last year, and 35 in 2006, has a greater incidence of rabid animals than the rest of the city combined. The risk there is serious enough that DOH has issued a Rabies Alert [PDF, English/Español] for Staten Island.
  • The Bronx, with 14 reports last year and only 6 the year before, has less than half the incidence of Staten Island.
  • Brooklyn has had only 5 rabid animal reports in the past 15 years, and only 1 in the past 5.
  • Although city-wide, raccoons are the most frequently reported rabid animal, in Brooklyn no raccoons have been reported in the past 15 years.

So, although caution is always wise, there’s no need to fear these animals. Except for Staten Island, the risk of exposure is extremely low. Spending time outside in New York City, you’re more at risk from West Nile Virus than rabies.

What is rabies?

(NYC DOH)

Rabies is a preventable viral disease of mammals (including humans) most often transmitted through the bite of a rabid animal. The rabies virus infects the central nervous system. Rabies is almost always fatal once symptoms appear. The vast majority of rabies cases in the United States each year occur in wild animals like raccoons, skunks, bats, and foxes. Animal rabies is reported annually in New York City and State, primarily in bats, skunks and raccoons. New York City first saw rabies in animals starting in 1992, and continues to every year, especially among animals in the Bronx.

In the United States, rabies rarely infects humans because of companion animal vaccination programs and the availability of human rabies vaccine. There have been no human cases of rabies in New York City for more than 50 years. New York State has reported 14 human cases since 1925.

Human rabies vaccine, if administered promptly and as recommended, can prevent infection after a person has been bitten or otherwise exposed to an animal with rabies. The human rabies vaccine is given in a series of five vaccinations along with one initial dose of rabies immune globulin (RIG). The one time dose of RIG and five vaccines administered over the course of one month is referred to as post exposure prophylaxis (PEP).

What Can People Do To Protect Themselves Against Rabies?

(New York State Department of Health)

Don’t feed, touch or adopt wild animals, stray dogs or cats.

Be sure your dogs, cats and ferrets are up-to-date on their rabies vaccinations. [Note: This is the law in New York City.] Vaccinated pets serve as a buffer between rabid wildlife and man. Protect them, and you may reduce your risk of exposure to rabies. Vaccines for dogs, cats and ferrets after three months of age are effective for a one-year period. Revaccinations are effective for up to three years. Pets too young to be vaccinated should be kept indoors. Some new vaccines have now been licensed, and therefore, can be used for younger animals.

Don’t try to separate two fighting animals. Wear gloves if you handle your pet after a fight.

Keep family pets indoors at night. Don’t leave them outside unattended or let them roam free.

Don’t attract wild animals to your home or yard. Keep your property free of stored bird seed or other foods that may attract wild animals. Feed pets indoors. Tightly cap or put away garbage cans. [And your compost bins containing food waste or scraps.] Board up any openings to your attic, basement, porch or garage. Cap your chimney with screens.

Bats can be particularly difficult to keep out of buildings because they can get through cracks as small as a pencil. Methods to keep bats out (batproofing) of homes and summer camps should be done during the fall and winter. If bats are already inside (e.g., in an attic or other areas), consult with your local health department about humane ways to remove them.

Encourage children to immediately tell an adult if they are bitten by any animal. Tell children not to touch any animal they do not know.

If a wild animal is on your property, let it wander away. Bring children and pets indoors and alert neighbors who are outside. You may contact a nuisance wildlife control officer who will remove the animal for a fee.

Report all animal bites or contact with wild animals to your local health department. Don’t let any animal escape that has possibly exposed someone to rabies. Depending on the species, it can be observed or tested for rabies in order to avoid the need for rabies treatment. This includes bats with skin contact or found in a room with a sleeping person, unattended child, or someone with mental impairment. Bats have small, sharp teeth and in certain circumstances people can be bitten and not know it.

Links

NYC Department of Health: Rabies (Hydrophobia)
New York State Department of Health: Rabies

NYC Sewer-Stormwater Settlement

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New York City will pay $5,000,000 to settle violations from delays in upgrades to sewer and stormwater systems. Three of the four sites to benefit directly from the settlement are in or adjacent to Brooklyn: Gowanus Canal, Coney Island Creek, and Jamaica Bay.

New York City has agreed to pay a $1 million fine and fund $4 million worth of environmental-benefit projects to settle violations related to delays in making sewer-system and stormwater-system upgrades to prevent overflows into waterways. The violations stem from the city’s failure to make improvements in accordance with a schedule outlined in a 2005 consent order. Under this settlement, the city has agreed to a new timeline for completing those construction projects and will make further upgrades to both its sewer and stormwater systems.
– Settlement Paves Way for Sewer/Stormwater Upgrades and Green Infrastructure in NYC, July 2008, Environment DEC

The issue centered around New York City’s obligation to improve mechanical structures, foundations, substructures, pumping stations and other infrastructure-related systems. The projects are designed to improve the capacity of the city’s wastewater and stormwater systems. During heavy rainfall in New York City and other municipalities, runoff can exceed the capacity of the sewer system, triggering what’s known as “combined sewer overflows.” [Just as attractive as it sounds.] Infrastructure upgrades can diminish the chances of overflows.

The environmental benefit projects will be concentrated in the Bronx River, Flushing Bay, Coney Island Creek and Gowanus Canal watersheds and will assess the use of various green infrastructure to be installed for sewer-overflow and stormwater abatement. Some of the types of projects that will be considered include enhanced tree pits with underground water storage, rain gardens, green roofs, bio-retention basins and swales, porous pavement and blue roofs. Collectively, these projects are intended to reduce the volume of stormwater that enters the sewer system, thereby limiting overflows. These projects, administered through the state Environmental Facilities Corp., will include extensive community input and involvement.

Northeastern Bats in Peril

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Bat House at the East 4th Street Community Garden in Kensington/Windsor Terrace
Bat House

A discussion thread about mosquito control on the Flatbush Family Network led to this question:

I heard that bat houses are a possible long-term solution for mosquitos. I guess you put a bat house up and hope that they come and live there. It can take a few seasons to get them to do it but an average bat eats lots of mosquitos a day. Seems strange to try and seduce bats to your house but those mosquitos are terrible. Anyone else heard about these bat houses?

The photo above is of a bat house in the East 4th Street Community Garden, which I visited for the first time last November. One of the questions they get when they explain what it’s for is, “Where do you get the bats?” If you build it, they will come. We have bats here in Brooklyn. Whether we will continue to have them is in question.

A newly emerging epidemic is wiping out bat colonies. First discovered last winter in a single cave near Albany, New York, this winter it’s been found to have spread to more locations, including sites in Vermont and Massachusetts. Mortality has been as high as 90% in some caves:

Thousands of hibernating bats are dying in caves in New York State and Vermont from unknown causes … The most obvious symptom involved in the die-off is a white fungus encircling the noses of some, but not all, of the bats. Called “white-nose syndrome,” the fungus is believed to be associated with the problem, but it may not necessarily contribute to the actual cause of death. It appears that the affected bats deplete their fat reserves months before they would normally emerge from hibernation and die as a result …

“What we’ve seen so far is unprecedented,” said Alan Hicks, DEC’s bat specialist. “Most bat researchers would agree that this is the gravest threat to bats they have ever seen. We have bat researchers, laboratories and caving groups across the country working to understand the cause of the problem and ways to contain it.”
– Bat Die-Off Prompts Investigation, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

Bat populations are particularly vulnerable during hibernation as they congregate in large numbers in caves-clusters of 300 per square foot in some locations-making them susceptible to disturbance or disease. The vast majority of the hundreds of thousands of bats known to hibernate in New York do so in just five caves and mines. Because bats often migrate hundreds of miles to their summer range, effects on hibernating bats can have significant implications for bats throughout the Northeast.

Indiana bats [Myotis sodalis], a state and federally endangered species, are perhaps the most vulnerable. Half the estimated 52,000 Indiana bats that hibernate in the state are located in just one former mine-a mine that is now infected with white-nose syndrome. Eastern pipistrelle [Perimyotis subflavus], northern long-eared [Myotis septentrionalis] and little brown [Myotis lucifugus] bats also are dying. Little brown bats, the most common hibernating species in the state, have sustained the largest number of deaths.

Related Posts

Bat Houses, April 13, 2008
Other posts about bats

Links

Chronology
Bat Die-Off Prompts Investigation, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Mystery Disease Kills U.S. Bats, Bat Conservation International
Something is killing our bats: The white-nose syndrome mystery, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Wikipedia: White-nose syndrome

Flatbush Family Network (requires membership)

News

Dying Bats in the Northeast Remain a Mystery, USGS Newsroom, May 9, 2008
First It Was Bees, Now It’s Bats That Are Dying, Natural News, April 11, 2008
Bats in the Region Are Dying From a Mysterious Ailment, Litchfield County Times, April 3, 2008
Bats Perish, and No One Knows Why, New York Times Science Section, March 25, 2008