Water News

Lead in school drinking water has been a concern in New York because children often spend all day in school facilities and receive much of their drinking water from them. NYLCV is working to prevent lead poisoning in schoolchildren by analyzing the lab reports from all 4,700 public schools in New York to model the impact of a lower lead action level on protecting school communities.

The New York City Council held a hearing on lead poisoning prevention and to discuss a package of 25 new bills aimed at combating lead hazards. In our testimony we emphasized the need to optimize and streamline efforts to prevent childhood lead poisoning.

In New York, Harmful Algal Blooms are rising at an alarming rate. One cause of HABs is agricultural runoff, which occurs when chemicals from fertilizer end up in our waterways. Some houses in rural New York neighborhood leach nitrogen into waterways because they are not connected to a public sewer system. Another cause of HABs is climate change.

New Yorkers are probably familiar with our natural lands and waters including parks, rivers, and bays. But we also have the responsibility to conserve natural resources across the nation and globe. To learn about tropical natural resources, NYLCV intern Riley Lenane attended a hands-on intensive ecological learning program.

The Community Risk and Resiliency Act was signed into law in 2014 after NYLCV and other environmental advocates pushed for its passage. The Department of Environmental Conservation recently released two new flood management documents developed under the CRRA that address flood risk and sea-level rise, as well as approve state funding for mitigation and resiliency programs.

Improper drug disposal is an issue that affects us here in New York and across the nation. While researchers in Washington State recently found water contamination from improperly disposed drugs, New York State recently approved a policy to combat this issue.

NYLCV and other state chapters took to Capitol Hill recently to lobby Congress for the Land and Water Conservation Fund's unabridged funding and indefinite reauthorization. At each meeting, legislators were presented with a complete list of projects the LCWF has sponsored in their districts with the intention of collaborating on an event at a cherished LWCF funded project and to serve as a reminder of the essential role the conservation program plays.