Program eyes dangers of climate change

EASTGREENBUSH, N.Y. >> Mark Lowery of the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s Office of Climate Change will give a scientific presentation about the potential present and future local dangers of climate change at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 5, at First United Methodist Church, 1 Gilligan Road. The meeting is free and open to the public and light refreshments will be available.

Lowery will describe the level of greenhouse gas reductions needed to avoid catastrophic effects in New York state and discuss state programs to reduce emissions and programs to adapt to the unavoidable effects of climate change and how to protect natural resources and infrastructure.

Lowery is a climate policy analyst whose principal areas of responsibility have included leading public outreach efforts for the Regional Greenhouse Initiative, Sea Level Rise Task Force and climate action planning. He oversees the Climate Smart Communities program and coordinates implementation of the Community Risk and Resiliency Act.

The program is sponsored by the Rensselaer Plateau Alliance, which works with the community to promote and facilitate the conservation of undeveloped and unfragmented forests and other ecologically important areas of the Rensselaer Plateau. To learn more about the group, visit www.rensselaerplateau.org.