Conserving the land's great biological diversity also ensures the property will continue providing habitat for myriad wildlife, including several rare plant species. And by preserving land along South Bay Creek and its adjacent wetlands, the transaction will help protect the South Bay watershed and serve as a buffer for sea-level rise triggered by climate change. In addition, the property will allow for the inland migration of species whose habitats face inundation by rising waters.
Since the 1980s Scenic Hudson has been a vigorous advocate for South Bay's ecological restoration. In the future the newly protected land could provide an exciting way to connect people to the bay.Click here to read the press release in its entirety.
The painting of South Bay is by Sanford Gifford.
Wow! What great news on Gossips today.
ReplyDeleteThis is amazing for the South Bay. The new application for a grant for Tree Program,Baroque music played on period instruments at the Presbyterian Church ,a Circus Summer Solstice Night Carnival in the 7th St.Park tommorow ,where
at a dollar for 3 tries,you get a chance to dunk the Mayor and the President of Common Council!Most excellent.
Congratulations Scenic Hudson and Gossips for All the News that Best to Print!
ReplyDeleteHooray for the South Bay!
Thanks to Scenic Hudson for this good work. ! Hopefully a map of the acquisition will be forthcoming soon, I'm pretty sure that the parcel is adjacent to Holcim's land.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't find any maps in the press release. Does anyone have any ideas or links to see what the actual borders of the land that will be preserved?
ReplyDeleteExcellent!
ReplyDeleteWhat wonderful news!
ReplyDeleteCashaway's Creek runs south and east of route 9G, and perhaps doesn't quite reaching Route 23 as a wet creek (that would be just east of the Community College).
A straight line from the bottom of the Mount Merino Road to the ravine east of the college is about 1.75 miles.
Nearly the whole upper (i.e., southern) half of that small Cashaway's Creek watershed is already a state-designated "Critical Environmental Area" (CEA), which aims to protect Greenport's drinking water.
You can read about CEAs here (for using their map links, it's the only CEA designated in Columbia County):
http://www.dec.ny.gov/permits/6184.html
The southeasternmost boundary of the proposed South Bay Creek and Marsh Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife Habitat reaches only 1800 feet or so southeast of Route 9G, which isn't much of the entire 1.75 miles to Route 23.
So while it's possible that Scenic Hudson bought up to and including the proposed SCFWH's 1800 feet, it's more probable that they bought the really gorgeous creek and uplands down towards the middle of the small watershed and into the CEA. That would be part of the "South Bay" in a much looser sense than one might imagine, but no less welcome.
When you're driving south from Hudson on Route 9, and you look west onto the rolling meadows and tree-filled valleys below yourself and Mt. Merino, that's the area Scenic Hudson purchased.
Wow!
Thank you Scenic Hudson.