Adirondack Council Applauds New Adirondack & Catskill Coordinators
Monday, November 29, 2021
RAY BROOK, N.Y. – The Adirondack Council today cheered an announcement by the NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) that it had created and filled two new coordinator positions to oversee public Forest Preserve in the state’s massive wilderness parks in the Adirondack and Catskill mountains.
“We applaud DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos and Deputy Commissioner Katie Petronis for elevating Josh Clague and McCrea Burnham to DEC’s positions of Adirondack and Catskill Park Coordinators,” said William C. Janeway, Executive Director of the Adirondack Council. “We look forward to helping them help the Department fulfill its responsibility to protect and preserve New York's priceless legacy of wilderness lands and waters.”
The six-million-acre (9,300 sq. mi.) Adirondack Park is the largest park in the contiguous United States. Almost half of the Park consists of Forest Preserve -- lands and water protected as “forever wild” under the state’s Constitution. The Catskill Park is 700,000 acres, about 40% of which is Forest Preserve.
The Adirondack Council has been leading a nationwide call from conservationists for better management of the Adirondack Forest Preserve, especially the Park’s overused and overcrowded wilderness trails and summits. The organization has worked with the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics to develop a new strategy for the Park. It is also working with NYS DEC, the Adirondack Mountain Club, the Regional Office for Sustainable Tourism, and Stewart’s Shops on the Love Your Adirondacks Campaign (#LoveYourADK) to promote Leave No Trace principles.
The Adirondack Council’s recent State of the Park report for 2021 contains several examples of the need for further action to address Forest Preserve management. The Council even more recently released Adirondack Vision 2050 addresses the Park’s long-term needs for better management and oversight, including additional state personnel to carry out those objectives.
Established in 1975, the Adirondack Council is a privately funded not-for-profit organization whose mission is to ensure the ecological integrity and wild character of the Adirondack Park. It is the largest environmental organization whose sole focus is the Adirondacks.
The Council carries out its mission through research, education, advocacy, and legal action. It envisions a Park with clean water and clean air, core wilderness areas, farms and working forests, and vibrant, diverse, welcoming communities. Adirondack Council advocates live in all 50 United States.
For more information: John Sheehan, Director of Communications, 518-441-1340
