Patrol gets new ballistic protection

MONTICELLO, NY — The Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office will enter into a pilot program with Hudson Valley armor manufacturer Armor Dynamics to provide advanced ballistic protection for the sheriff’s patrol vehicles. The program culminates a three-year search for a cost-effective solution to protect deputies in their cars from gunfire, spurred by an incident in 2006 in which a bullet was fired into a patrol car when Sullivan County sheriff’s deputy Cyrus Barnes responded to a domestic dispute in Narrowsburg.

Under the terms of the 90-day pilot program, Armor Dynamics will up-armor two of the sheriff’s patrol vehicles by placing panels made of advanced ballistic material into the doors. Technicians from Armor Dynamics will inspect the ballistic panels every 30 days for service, wear and protection.

As part of the protection provided by Armor Dynamics, the armored police vehicles will also be outfitted with a proprietary ballistic shield that will attach to the driver and passenger sun visors.

New legislation calls for fracking study

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. House of Representatives today approved a provision authored by Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) that formally urges the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to conduct a new study on the risks that hydraulic fracturing poses to drinking water supplies. The Senate is due to pass the identical bill in the coming days, and President Obama is expected to sign the measure into law soon after that.

The study provision is contained in the Interior and Environment Appropriations bill and report for fiscal year 2010.

“This legislation puts Congress on record in support of a new, comprehensive study that will examine the impact that hydraulic fracking really has on our water supplies. The study results will put us in a position to take any further steps that are necessary to protect our drinking water supplies from the chemical concoctions being pumped into the ground by energy companies,” said Hinchey.

Extended bottle bill takes effect

NEW YORK STATE — New York State’s extended Bottle Bill will take effect on Sunday, November 8. The bill was originally set to begin on October 31, but New York officials gave retailers a grace period to comply with the new requirement, according to New York State Department of Environmental Conservation spokesperson Maureen Wren.

A five-cent refundable deposit will be placed on containers of less than 1 gallon (3.75 liters) of water, flavored water and nutritionally enhanced water that contains zero grams sugar.

According to the New York State Association for Reduction, Reuse and Recycling (NYSAR3), less than 20 percent of such bottles are now being recycled. In contrast, bottles on which there are now deposits are recycled at a 70 percent rate.

Narrowsburg campus dustup

JEFFERSONVILLE, NY — At a meeting of the facilities needs committee of the Sullivan West Central School Board on October 27, board member Noel van Swol mentioned the possibility of leasing the 14-acre Narrowsburg sports field lot to a gas drilling company.

Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Hilton’s office released a statement that said, “It’s clear that some people misunderstood what was said, for during the following several days Hilton’s office received a flurry of emails, phone calls and letters, all condemning such an idea.” According to Hilton, the tone of these messages ranged from “fear” to “outrage.” Some people left that meeting thinking that making this site available for drilling somehow reflected an official school district position.

Hilton said, “It does not. The Narrowsburg School playing field is not being considered as a site for gas drilling.”

Stimulus funds allotted to Sullivan

ALBANY, NY — Governor David A. Paterson today released a report outlining the distribution of more than $18 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) spending throughout New York State, broken down by county and New York City.

The amount allotted to Sullivan County will be $57 million. The largest sums will go to agriculture, about $13 million, divided mostly between rural waste and water grants and loans ($8 million) and nutritional assistance programs ($4 million); unemployment insurance ($13 million); and education ($11 million). There will also be a distribution of about $7 million for Medicaid and $4 million in grants for highways and bridges.

Harrisburg reneges on funds for storm water programs

MILFORD, PA — Because of the shrinking Pennsylvania budget, state officials have announced that the state will not fund any storm water management program anywhere in the state this year, according to the Pike County Commissoners.

“We’ve already committed $245,000 to the project and had expected the state to fund 75 percent of the cost, as they have done in the past,” said Richard Caridi, chairman of the Pike County Commissioners. “What do we do now?”

A few years ago, the state had decided to mandate and fund the program.

“The state has had the position of mandating the program for a number of years but didn’t fund any of it,” said Commissioner Karl Wagner. “Then recently they began partially funding it. Now they’re taking it all back.”

“Storm water isn’t the only program that isn’t going to receive funding,” Caridi said. “We hear rumors that Harrisburg is cutting many programs back but we haven’t heard anything definite. We can’t do very much creating a budget until we get some numbers from the state.”