passage

Tearing down small dams to restore rivers

March 11, 2025 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

There are more than 31,000 dams in the northeastern United States. More than 4,000 of them are in the Hudson River watershed. Most of these dams are quite small and were built in the 19^th century to form ponds and to power grist, textile, paper, saw, and other kinds of mills as the region developed its industrial infrastructure. The nonprofit organization American Rivers estimates that 85% of U.S. dams are unnecessary at best and pose risks to public safety at worst.

Dam removals have been occurring for over 100 years, but the vast majority have taken place since the mid-2010s and have increased dramatically since the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which provided funding for such projects.

So far, 806 Northeastern dams have come down and hundreds more are in the pipeline.

Dam removals improve aquatic fish passage, water quality, watershed resilience, and habitat for all the organisms in river ecosystem food chains, ranging from insects to fish to otters to eagles. Small dams have degraded habitat and altered downstream hydrology and sediment flows. They have created warm, stagnant, low-oxygen pools that trigger algal blooms and favor invasive species.

But removing even small dams is not an easy matter. Projects range in cost from $100,000 to $3 million and qualifying for funding – whether federal or state – requires projects to meet a variety of requirements including community support. Not all dams can be removed, but many more should.

**********

Web Links

How Tearing Down Small Dams Is Helping Restore Northeast Rivers

Photo, posted September 20, 2010, courtesy of Doug Kerr via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Enforcing the Green Amendment

August 13, 2024 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

In November 2021, 70% of New Yorkers voted to include environmental rights in the Bill of Rights of the New York State Constitution. The amendment recognizes and protects the rights of all New Yorkers to clean water and air and a healthful environment. It places these rights on the same constitutional level as other enshrined freedoms, such as the right to freely speak and the right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures.

Since its passage, the Green Amendment has been at the center of controversy over how or even whether it is enforced. The state has taken the position that the amendment does not empower citizens to dictate the actions of agencies like the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

A lawsuit filed in 2022 by residents who live near the High Acres Landfill in Monroe County demanding environmental cleanup resulted in a ruling that complying with the Constitution is not optional for a state agency. That ruling was appealed, and the case is currently before an appeals court.

A similar lawsuit is now going on against the state’s largest landfill in Seneca Falls. Once again, the position taken by the state Attorney General is that the Green Amendment does not alter the DEC’s enforcement discretion as to whether to force the landfill operators to take action.

Environmental activists have been staging protests at the state Capital, urging the governor, the state attorney general, and the DEC to shift their approach to applying the Green Amendment. Until this issue is resolved in the courts, it is unclear whether this amendment, put in place by 70% of voters, will actually protect the citizens of New York and its environment.

**********

Web Links

New York’s Green Amendment Guarantees the Right to a ‘Healthful Environment.’ Activists Want the State to Enforce It

Photo, posted April 22, 2023, courtesy of Pedrik via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

The Arctic Northeast Passage May Open | Earth Wise

November 12, 2020 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

The Northwest Passage is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean. It goes along the northern coast of North America, traveling though the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. In the past, it was the domain of intrepid explorers like Roald Amundsen. Because of the receding ice in the Arctic, in recent years it has become possible to travel the Northwest Passage by cruise ship.

The Northeast Passage connects the same two oceans along the Arctic coasts of Norway and Siberia. The sustained loss of sea ice is now leading to accessibility of Arctic sea passages through this route.

Compared with the customary route through the Strait of Malacca in Malaysia and the Suez Canal, using the Northeast Passage could reduce the travel distance between Europe and northwest Asia by one-third. This would reduce the expense of transportation and lower environmental pollution. Many Asian countries have a strong strategic and economic interest in Arctic shipping. Russia would gain strong competitive advantages for its liquified natural gas industry.

According to a recent study at the Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the continuing warming of the Arctic seas is likely to result in the Northeast Passage being navigable for open water ships by next year and will continue to be increasingly hospitable to marine traffic.

The economic and strategic benefits to the opening of the Northeast Passage are quite clear. What is also clear is that the underlying cause of the opening of the passage – the dramatic loss of Arctic sea ice – is not beneficial to the world at all and is a harbinger of troubling things in our future.

**********

Web Links

Arctic Northeast Passage may be Navigable in Near Future

Photo, posted September 24, 2005, courtesy of Paul Downey via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Making Room For Wildlife

February 28, 2018 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Protecting biodiversity is a critical challenge facing humanity. Global vertebrate populations – from elephants to amphibians – declined by 58% from 1970 to 2012 and losses are expected to reach 67% in the next two years. Think about it: at least two-thirds of all vertebrate animals on earth have vanished over the lifetime of anyone fifty years old or over.