November 2012
DEP announces fuel waivers in response to Hurricane Sandy
HARRISBURG, PA — The Department of Environmental Protection announced that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has given authorization to grant two kinds of temporary fuel waivers due to fuel shortages from Hurricane Sandy. Read more
Email this pageNew York counties may see lower indigent defense costs
ALBANY, NY — A new ruling from the New York State Court of Appeals provides an alternative and potentially lower cost route for counties to provide legal services to those who can’t afford their own attorneys. With an annual cost of more than $300 million, the state’s Indigent Defense program is one of nine state mandates that consume 90% of the property tax levy statewide. Read more
Fireworks in Texas Township; sign law remains a hot issue
TEXAS TOWNSHIP, PA - The former vice-chair of the Texas Township Planning Commission unloaded a barrage of criticism at the supervisors on November 5. John Bartron accused the supervisors of “stabbing the planning commission in the back” and “hanging it out to dry like a piñata.” Read more
Sullivan officials call for utility roundtable; information dissemination about Sandy ‘was flawed’
The utility companies that provide electricity to Sullivan County have been busy repairing downed power lines and issuing press releases chronicling their progress. By the morning of November 5, NYSEG reported that there were about 4,800 costumers without power in Sullivan County, down from a high of 24,000. Orange and Rockland reported 1,900 customers in the county were still without power, down from a high of more than 6,500. Read more
Lawmaker accuses DEP of ‘deceptive’ practices; Marcellus Shale water testing at issue
HARRISBURG, NY — A member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, Jesse White, is accusing a government agency of deceptive practices in relation to testing for contamination, specifically the testing for possible well water contamination related to drilling in the Marcellus Shale. Read more
Unofficial Election Results for the Upper Delaware Valley
New York
19th Congressional District
Chris Gibson, REP 134,996
Julian Schriebman, DEM 117,488 Read more
UDC debates hurricanes, floodplains and wetlands
Many homes and businesses were still without power in some Upper Delaware River towns following Hurricane Sandy’s visit to the region last week when the Upper Delaware Council (UDC) met on November 1 after power was restored in Narrowsburg. Read more
Riverkeeper hosts a pipeline tour; protester threatens to block gas company earthmovers
Forces are gathering to stop the controversial 7.1-mile loop that the Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company is planning for the area north of Milford Borough. Read more
An army of utility workers hustled to bring back power
Only a handful of Pennsylvania Power and Light (PP&L) customers remained without power in Wayne and Pike counties by Tuesday morning, a week after Hurricane Sandy blew through the region leaving 23,923 customers in Wayne and 19,665 in Pike in the dark. With power restored, repair crews from faraway states started home or headed off to other areas stricken by the storm where people were still waiting for power. Read more
Promised Land loses 300 trees
This picnic table wasn’t the only thing to sustain damage when Hurricane Sandy visited Promised Land State Park in Greentown last week. The storm delivered dangerous 60 mph wind gusts and constant 25-mph wind, which proved too much for many of the trees that beautify the popular state park. Park staff estimate that there are at least 300 trees down. Power lines are littered with trees and snapped in some places. Read more
