Town expects to join Hudson River Estuary Program
The town expects to participate in New York state’s Hudson River Estuary Program to assess threats along the waterfront.
Hudson River Watershed Alliance Executive Director Emily Vail on Monday asked the Town Board to send a representative to a workshop that will assess threats based on environmental changes due to climate change.
“We’re working with some of the communities that are working toward their Climate Smart Communities certification, [and] these workshops will give them points toward that,” Vail said. “That will help get them grants funds.”
Vail noted the village and town of Rhinebeck, the town and city of Poughkeepsie, and the the towns of Lloyd, Esopus and Hyde Park already are working jointly, as the Hudson 7, to seek grants for municipal drinking water systems that draw from the Hudson River.
The Hudson 7 municipalities share concerns about the impacts of stormwater runoff that increases tur
bidity and other contamination. However, there are differences that can be subtle, such as the distance of the river from wastewater treatment facilities. Other differences can be unique, such as a salt table that comes up from the Atlantic Ocean as far as Poughkeepsie under certain conditions but doesn’t threaten Esopus or Rhinebeck.
Other communities that are considering participating in Hudson River Estuary Program workshops include the town and village of Saugerties.
The goals of the program include helping communities identify infrastructure, social and environmental assets, and reviewing existing plans and how to navigate codes to avoid delaying needed changes.
Town of Rhinebeck Supervisor Elizabeth Spinzia expressed enthusiasm about having priorities developed for future programs.
“It’s a free workshop on our potential weaknesses and strengths in our area for protecting our water,” she said.
Spinzia said one of the shared concerns with the village of Rhinebeck is how to storm-harden critical infrastructure.
“The village water plant in located within the flood zone of Hudson,” she said. “So we do need this.”
The Hudson River Estuary Program works with groups such as The Nature Conservancy, Scenic Hudson and Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County to identify where the most significant impacts will be and how much of an economic impact can be anticipated, and develop mitigation strategies for municipalities.