Holly Cargill-Cramer, Executive Director, LifePath

Hands-on courses taught in small groups are now being offered to hunters and trappers by the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation.

ALBANY COUNTY — While over 100 wildfires are still burning in Quebec, shifting winds have freed Albany County residents of the three days of “unhealthy” air that plagued the Upper Hudson Valley and most of the state on June 6, 7, and 8.

Using data reported for “respiratory symptoms” on June 8 from Emergency Medical Services response data, which is a timely early-warning source, the health department observed a statewide increase of 17.8 percent in the rates per 100,000 on Wednesday, June 7, as compared to the average of the five-day period of June 1 through 5. At the same time, for the metropolitan New York City region, the increase was 28.4 percent and for the Capital Region, it was 12.4 percent.

ALBANY COUNTY — Speaking from the University at Albany on Wednesday evening, Governor Kathy Hochul said the poor air quality throughout most of the state caused by wildfires in Quebec was “unprecedented.”

Legislator Jeff Perlee, of Altamont, says that Albany County should have an especially active role in celebrating the American Revolution, since it was home to many prominent figures of the time, and was also the scene of a battle that could very well have allowed for the colonies’ eventual victory. 

The Sierra Club released a report this month detailing the widespread use of fertilizer that contain highly toxic PFAS chemicals on farmland in New York State, and the state’s apparent failure to properly control this use. 

Nearly $50 million is now available through the Farmland Protection Implementation Grants Program. Applications are being accepted on a rolling basis until funds are exhausted.

More than 100 wildfires burning in Quebec are causing hazy conditions across much of the state.

ALBANY COUNTY — Among the 24 New York land banks receiving a total of nearly $26 million from the state, Albany County Land Bank got a $1.8 million grant.

Separately, the Capital Region Land Bank received $1,757,475, according to a Friday release from the governor’s office.