Former DEC commissioner honored by Adirondack Council
The Daily Gazette
March 28, 2016
NORTHVILLE — Former state Environmental Conservation Commissioner Joseph Martens will be honored as the Adirondack Council's Conservationist of the Year on Saturday, July 9, at the Inn at the Bridge in Northville.
Martens was Gov. Andrew Cuomo's commissioner of environmental conservation from 2011 until last July 2015. He is currently a senior fellow at the Open Space Institute.
Among his Adirondack-related accomplishments at DEC, according to the council, were new additions to the “forever wild” Adirondack Forest Preserve, grants to help communities capitalize on the recreational potential of new lands, and acquisition of new conservation easements to protect private forests from fragmentation and development.
“Joe expanded state land acquisitions and increased financial support for park communities under two governors,” said Adirondack Council Executive Director William C. Janeway. “He has been an exemplary advocate as a private citizen and his return to the private sector will allow him to direct his attention to multiple issues including national climate policy. “
From 1998 through 2010, Martens served as president of the Open Space Institute, which is a private land conservation organization.
Earlier in his career, Martens was an assistant secretary and deputy secretary for energy and the environment under Gov. Mario Cuomo. He later served as chair of the board of the Olympic Regional Development Authority.
