Part 2: Land & Soil

[FREE] Serving Philipstown and Beacon Soccer in the Snow Page 24 NOVEMBER 16, 2018 161 MAIN ST., COLD SPRING, N.Y. | highlandscurrent.org Highlands EPA: Marathon Could Lose Groundwater Renegades Still Polluted Dutchess legislators Owner says redevelopment reject proposal to ‘on the back burner’ repair stadium By Michael Turton By Jeff Simms he U.S. Environmental Protec- tion Agency, in its latest five-year he Dutchess T report on the environmental County Legisla- health of the former Marathon Battery T ture this week re- Co. site in Cold Spring, says the ground- jected a proposal to spend at water beneath the property remains least $2.4 million to refurbish Dutchess polluted and will continue to be moni- Stadium, adding uncertainty to the fu- tored. It also found that nearby Foundry ture of the minor league baseball team Cove Marsh has not yet fully recovered that has played there for 25 seasons. from years of discharge into its waters. To further complicate matters, the Ken Kearney of Kearney Realty, who Farms and Food in the Hudson Valley land under the stadium is owned by purchased the 12-acre Kemble Avenue the Beacon City School District, which parcel in 2003 with a plan to build a mix leases it to the county. That lease ex- of residential and commercial build- pires on Dec. 31, and if the agreement ings, said development remains “on the is not extended, the district could in- back burner” while his company focuses herit a stadium it may not want. on other projects in the Hudson Valley. Part 2: Land & Soil Earlier this month, County Executive The battery factory operated from By Chip Rowe Pamela Doan provides a quick lesson Marc Molinaro asked the 25-member 1952 to 1979, producing nickel-cadmium in its structure — scientists spend their Legislature to approve $2.4 million in batteries for the U.S. Army and commer- ost people who don’t grow food careers trying to understand soil, while bonds to add to a $600,000 state grant cial sales under a succession of owners. rarely think about dirt unless giving it names that sound like they to pay for a first phase of improvements Over much of that time, the factory Mit’s under your nails or cover- came from a wine list — while Cheetah to the stadium, which has been home discharged effluent into the Hudson ing your car. But we can’t talk about the Haysom examines the “black gold” of Or- since it opened in 1994 to the Hudson River at the village dock through the future of Hudson Valley farming, and ange County (she wrote a book about it). Valley Renegades, a Class A Short Sea- Cold Spring sewer system. When the food, without going deep. Although we touched on the topic son team currently affiliated with the system shut down or was overloaded, Fortunately, the Hudson Valley is a great last fall in our series on climate change, Tampa Bay Rays. waste containing cadmium, nickel and place to farm. The soil was prepped over Doan takes a closer look at its specific (Continued on Page 6) (Continued on Page 7) thousands of years by melting ice, and burdens on agriculture and how farm- there is still plenty of nearby water. In ers are pushing back by keeping car- parts of Orange County, the dirt is so rich bon in the soil. Another strategy is to you can be prosecuted for carrying it away. experiment with new crops; Deb Lucke In this, the second of our three-part spent time with farmers who are grow- series, we take a closer look at the foun- ing hops with success because of the de- dation of Hudson Valley farming and mand created by small breweries. two major forces that threaten it: cli- Finally, Jeff Simms looks at the effect mate change and sprawl. of sprawl on our valuable farmland and First, the dirt. “It used to be,” writes Wil- efforts to preserve it for agricultural use liam Bryant Logan in Dirt: The Ecstatic through zoning laws and easements. Be- Skin of the Earth, “that a good farmer tween 1992 and 2012, according to the could tell a lot about his soil by rolling a American Farmland Trust, almost 31 mil- lump of it around in his mouth.” Logan fi- lion acres of farmland — nearly equiva- nally found a farmer who still does that to lent to the size of New York State — was measure acidity, although he had been ad- lost to development at the same time that, vised by his doctor to discontinue because by 2050, demands on agriculture to pro- “soil contains bad bugs as well as good vide food, fiber and energy are already ex- ones, and the physician didn’t want to have pected to be 50 to 70 percent higher than to sort them out in the farmer’s gut.” today. What happens if we lose another NO PLACE FOR HATE — It was standing-room-only for a unity vigil The lesson, regardless, is that dirt is New York’s worth of farmland by then? held at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Cold Spring on Saturday (Nov. more complex than you might suspect. 10) to denounce anti-Semitism. See Page 9. Photo by Ross Corsair (Continued on Page 12) 2 NOVEMBER 16, 2018 The Highlands Current highlandscurrent.org Five Questions: DAVID SCHUYLER By Brian PJ Cronin avid Schuyler, a Newburgh na- the river itself? ground after some troubling [financial] tive and professor at Franklin & You have, in Newburgh and Poughkeep- times. And lots of smaller organizations, D Marshall College in Lancaster, sie and, to a certain extent, in Beacon, a like land trusts. They all work hard to By Michael Turton Pennsylvania, is the author of Embattled lot of land that was cleared during urban protect a place that people cherish. That’s River: The Hudson and Modern Ameri- renewal that’s still vacant decades later. the key. What does can Environmentalism. If we can get the kind of development Thanksgiving What is it about the Hudson Valley that’s taken place in Yonkers since they mean to you? that makes it such an energetic “daylighted” the Sawmill [by bringing the place for environmentalism? river back above ground], you can attract Beginning with the Storm King fight in development that would instead occur in I like it more than 1963 [when Con Ed proposed building a the suburbs and contribute to sprawl. Us- power plant on the river side of the moun- ing that land wisely and developing our Christmas. I’m thankful it’s tain], when Scenic Hudson was organized, cities effectively is essential. not commercialized. It’s the there has been a series of battles that have What’s the biggest issue facing the one time families seem to brought people together from different Hudson River? get together. walks of life, age groups and interests. It Public education. Middle class and up- carries over from one battle to the next. per middle-class families, when looking to People in the Hudson Valley have a sense move to an area, want to know about the they live in a special place, and many peo- quality of the schools. So if we’re going to ple believe they have a responsibility to revitalize cities along the river, we have to protect that special place. make public education work more effec- While writing the book, did tively. That needs to happen everywhere. anything surprise you? Are you hopeful about the river? I was surprised to learn about Cemen- Yes, because there are great organi- ton [a nuclear power plant proposed in zations active in the Hudson Valley, the 1970s to be constructed on the Hud- with a lot of supporters. I’m think- son River near Catskill]. I had no clue that ing of Ned Sullivan and everyone was an issue. at Scenic Hudson, Paul Gal- Jim Lovegrove, Garrison Is there a connection between the lay at Riverkeeper. You have economic revitalization of Hudson Clearwater, which seems to David Schuyler River cities and the revitalization of be getting its feet back on the Photo provided It’s my favorite holiday; it’s everything. To celebrate love and gratitude every day is a beautiful way to live. See Well. Be Well. Enjoy your life with the best vision possible. Southern Dutchess Eye Care. Natalie Geld, New York City 969 MAIN ST. FISHKILL (845) 896-6700 sdec2020.com (formerly Cold Spring) Dr. Brian D. Peralta, OD Dr. Gary M. Weiner, OD Dr. Brian Powell, OD I rank it behind Halloween, but I like the family aspect. My grandma Connie is 93 and we do an Italian dinner at her place at noon. Aaron Verdile, Beacon highlandscurrent.org The Highlands Current NOVEMBER 16, 2018 3 Where is Philipstown Headed? Without You, Stories Go Untold Committee proposes 7 Attachment 175 update to comprehensive plan From now through December, By Liz Schevtchuk Armstrong : arlier this year, a group1 of Philipstown residents E took on a challenging task: Revising the town’s Com- prehensive Plan, created 12 years earlier, to address such issues as will be seeking your help so we can continue global warming, cell towers, tax bringing you the compelling news of our community inequities and public health. and the important news of national issues as After ninth months of discus- they play out in our area – from the opioid crisis sion, the Comprehensive Plan Up- Town of Philipstown Town date Committee has completed a 7 Attachment 175 and climate change to the challenges today Zoning Map 22-page draft and will host fo- ZONING facing the farms of the Hudson Valley.

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