Clearwater sets sail for nation’s capital
CROTON-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. » The Hudson River Sloop Clearwater quietly slipped out of its berth at Croton Point Park early Monday, punctuating the darkness and fog with shouts of nautical jargon from its skeleton crew.
The Clearwater is on a 10day journey from Westchester County to Washington, D.C., where its crew will call on federal lawmakers to protect the Hudson and other American waterways.
“Water protection is absolutely critical to our health and our economy,” said Manna Jo Greene, environmental action coordinator for the Clearwater organization and an Ulster County legislator.
“In Newburgh, people have their water supply poisoned with PFOS, and that is just as true in Hoosick Falls, and we know about Flint, Michigan,” Greene said. “... People in the Hudson Valley understand how important environmental protection and clean water are.”
The Clearwater is carrying a “Cargo of Concerns,” including thousands of signatures and 25 municipal resolutions, to the nation’s capital.
Greene will join the Clearwater crew in Washington, though she’ll be getting there over land rather than aboard the sloop.
The Clearwater’s journey follows this past weekend’s Great Hudson River Revival, a music and environmental festival, at Croton Point Park in Croton-on-Hudson.
The Sloop Clearwater and its namesake organization were founded in 1966 by folk musician and longtime Dutchess County resident Pete Seeger as a way to draw attention to the preservation needs of the Hudson River.
The Clearwater’s winter homeport is along the Rondout Creek in Downtown Kingston.