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#Post#: 1710--------------------------------------------------
ECNA Co-Founder Asks Local Government the HARD questions about
Erie Canal Safety
DIR By: Michael Caswell
Date: August 15, 2021, 10:48 am
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This is my letter to local government officials and a few news
outlets, with a .cc to several Canal Corporation leaders
Half of the original instigators of the Embankment Project
lawsuit filed against the Canal Corporation have left, one Town
Supervisor went hurriedly under suspicious circumstances, and
another voted out of office recently.
The lawsuit would likely never have been filed if one Stop the
Clear-cut Facebook member who worked for the Government
Accountability Office, who knew of SEQRA laws, had not chipped
in.
If the NYPA lawyer had answered the judge differently when
asked, “What is the probability of the dam failing”, he said,
“Unlikely!” (That’s what was likely said when Pompeii residents
were asked if Vesuvius would blow.)
The judge failed us all, because he should have asked a dam
engineer not a damn lawyer. Why didn’t the lawyer present the
judge with the Rizzo Engineering Report which clearly stated
‘Class C High Hazard Dam, needs immediate clearing of brush and
trees, unable to inspect because of dense undergrowth’.
HTML https://eriecanalfacts.wordpress.com/2018/04/15/rizzo-report-on-state-of-dam/
Why are some government politicians siding with the STCC, when
all these government bodies are saying in unison, NO TREES ON A
DAM! ie: USACE - Army Corps Of Engineers, ASDSO - Association of
State Dam Safety Officials, FEMA, NYDEC, NYPA etc.
Why are some press and news reporters giving time to a radical
group like the Stop The Clear Cut group? The STCC leaders are a
bee keeper and a biology teacher, neither have any understanding
or education in Dam Engineering, Dam Maintenance, Forestry
Management, Canal Maintenance, etc.
Why are none of these people standing up for the staff of the
NYPA or the Canal Corporation? They have been made out to be
villains, but in fact, they are trying to tell everyone they are
in danger from THEIR property, and they want to fix it. It’s
called CONSTRUCTIVE NOTICE - look it up. It passes the liability
to those who obstruct their work.
Why is the media not mentioning the SAFETY of the one thousand
or more people living under the immediate threat of DROWNING,
and a huge loss of property, valued a hundreds of millions of
dollars? Are they just sensationalist reporters?
Why is no one mentioning that the NYPA are continually
monitoring hundreds of leaks along the canal as a normal days
work, work that is hindered by undergrowth and trees.
Why is no one mentioning the reason why the Rizzo Engineering
Report has about 80% of it redacted? The reason, as per the NYPA
lawyers comments when we asked, is that there is a terrorist
threat capability and the report mentions many situations where
the earthen embankments could be compromised. Why did some
government officials think this was funny and scoffed when I
told them this?
When I asked an Army Vet who served in Afghanistan as an
explosives expert if he considered the dam as a target, he told
me these were the favorite targets, tunnels and culverts etc,
and much of his time was spent defusing these situations. Anyone
like to talk to him?
Now the SEQR report has been finished and submitted for public
viewing,, the STCC don’t like what they asked for, because it
doesn’t jibe with their theme of keeping trees on dangerous
dams, so they are protesting with mailings, poster signs and
public meetings.
I suggest that politicians consider what happened to two of the
town officials who started this nonsense and backed this radical
group. They got booted out!
The STCC also got what they asked for, a SEQR report, and they
don’t like it, because it says quite plainly, no trees on a
dam! (Be careful what you ask for eh!)
The NYPA should be allowed to get on with their daunting task of
rectifying the dilapidated state of this canal.
The media reporters should also consider the danger they put our
residents in by promoting this group. The less publicity the
STCC gets now, the better.
Thank You,
Mike Caswell
Erie Canal Neighbors Association
#Post#: 1711--------------------------------------------------
Re: ECNA Co-Founder Asks Local Government the HARD questions
about Erie Canal Safety
DIR By: Doug K
Date: August 15, 2021, 11:10 am
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It was in early 2018, when three local Towns brought the NY
State Canal Corporation (NYSCC) to a Wayne County Courtroom, to
explain exactly why Erie Canal Earthen Embankments had to be
cleared of all woody & invasive vegetation. The NYSCC had just
started a public safety project, under direction from their new
parent the New York Power Authority (NYPA), to fully "restore"
Erie Canal embankments to their "as new" condition, after almost
100 years of neglect and missed maintenance opportunities.
The earthen embankment safety work had already cleared away all
vegetation for 25 miles of the 125 miles of what NYPA had
defined as "unsafe earthen dams" running through western NY.
This canal project brought the ire of some local Perinton &
Fairport residents to bear on the Canal Corporation, as they
wanted to turn this Erie Canal "public safety" effort into a
"cause for the environment".
These people were intent on two things:
1) Ignore the public safety aspect of the embankment project,
and
2) Find a way to halt the work.
A group called the Stop the Canal Clear-cut (STCC) formed on
Facebook quickly, with the goal of stopping the canal embankment
clearing. And they pleaded with their local government officials
to file a lawsuit using the State Environmental Review process
called SEQRA. Three Towns complied, and filed what is termed an
Article 78, which under NYS Law states that citizens can ask for
a "full" environmental review of a project of this magnitude.
The towns were able to "postpone" the Embankment Restoration
Project until a more extensive review was completed.
HTML https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2018/02/06/pittsford-brighton-perinton-file-lawsuit-over-tree-clearing-plan/311846002/
HTML https://www.waynepost.com/news/20180309/local-towns-win-suit-on-clear-cutting-of-trees-on-erie-canal
That extra SEQRA work took over two years to complete, on the
part of NYPA and the NYSCC. And the new SEQRA Environmental
Impact Statement has been released just this past Summer. And
after a more extensive study, costing NY Taxpayers millions of
dollars, the result is EXACTLY the same, all invasive vegetation
on Erie Canal Embankments must be removed, for the benefit of
public safety, and to insure the Erie Canal has a sustainable
life into the 21st century.
And once again that Facebook group in Perinton & Fairport is not
pleased with the outcome of the SEQRA work, and is planning to
protest, trying desperately to get local governments and
citizens to fight against the inevitable embankment clearing
that had been postponed. The local newspaper has covered the
story once again, and appears to still be confused as whether to
side with the NYSCC on it's public safety aspects of the new
Embankment Program, or side with those saying this isn't about
public safety, but about trees, shade, and the environment.
[attachimg=1]
HTML https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2021/08/11/erie-canal-tree-cutting-pittsford-fairport-rochester-ny-protest/5541112001/
All of this new activity has prompted ECNA Co-Founder, Mike
Caswell, to write a letter to local governments and news
outlets, asking the "tough questions" about why they continue to
"look the other way" on public safety along the canal. You saw
the email and read the questions
These are all GOOD QUESTIONS that Mr. Caswell has raised,
questions that seem to STILL be confounding both the local
eastside politicians as well as biased Rochester news sources.
Those entities, still to this day, seem unable to comprehend the
differences between public safety programs aimed at fixing a 200
year old canal system and what some Facebook group want to
believe is about "saving the trees & helping the environment".
The latest State ENVIROMENTAL Quality Review Impact Statement,
part of that required SEQRA work, has not changed the outcome
one bit. It clearly states the following:
TREES are still the BIGGEST problem along Canal Embankments and
are STILL the cause of the "public safety nightmare" that NYPA
and the NYS Canal Corporation have to address along the Canal
System, hopefully BEFORE an embankment breaches, causing loss of
life, and property.
Or you can believe a Facebook group who still will not accept
the State Environmental Impact Study that they requested so many
years ago.
#Post#: 1713--------------------------------------------------
Re: ECNA Co-Founder Asks Local Government the HARD questions
about Erie Canal Safety
DIR By: Michael Caswell
Date: August 15, 2021, 11:27 am
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The Director of the New York State Canal Corporation thanked me
for my questions.
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