The resignation of DEC Commissioner Denise Sheehan, effective January 17, came as no surprise since she was a Republican appointed by the Pataki-led GOP administration that is now being replaced by the Eliot Spitzer-elect Democratic stable. However, many conservation-minded people are not unhappy about the change. Under Sheehan’s reign (as well as Erin Crotty and John Cahill, her predecessors), many of the DEC’s programs suffered from chronic and ongoing cuts and shortages, of both manpower and funding.
We’re not na’ve enough to believe that the sad state of the current DEC is totally the fault of the past appointed commissioners, for the Governor-elect givith and can takith away. The governor’s way or the highway, so to speak. This was quite evident, as Sheehan largely parroted the Pataki DEC philosophy in her parting letter. ìWith the protection of more than one million acres of open space, the enactment of historic Superfund/brownfield legislation, air quality improvement initiatives such as our acid rain regulations, the Low Emission Vehicle Program and our mercury regulations, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, and our efforts to restore the Hudson River, Onondaga Lake and Long Island Sound, among others, New York's unique ecosystems are better protected than they have been in decades.''
Pataki made it very clear in his initial months in office that acquiring and protecting more land for public use was his primary conservation platform and for the DEC’s overseeing of those lands. But as the new acreage kept growing and growing, some of us were reminded of the billionaire who becomes consumed with acquiring even more money, despite not really needing it. Meanwhile, staff and budget priorities drifted toward that end. Coupled with attrition, created by the large percentage of DEC employees who’d come aboard in the early 1970s after DEC’s birth, the manpower numbers shrunk. This was especially evident in the fish, wildlife and forestry divisions, which were the primary agencies of the old Conservation Department that predated the DEC.
I’m reminded that what has and is happening with the DEC is like a homeowner who wants to keep expanding the lawn. That half acre could initially be mowed with a push mower, but when it was expanded to an acre or more, it required a much larger mower or more time spent mowing. As the state has kept adding to its “lawn” (public land acquirements) it has tried to keep pace with that push mower and the same mowing time allotments (existing budgets and manpower). What has happened is that many of the DEC’s lands and programs have fallen into disrepair or downright neglect.
Certainly we need to protect our ecosystems, but the past administration and legislature placed too few of the environmental eggs in too big a priority basket. Too many environmental management issues and programs, all of which play an important role in the total ecosystem balance, were left out and depended on the budgetary crumbs that were left over each year. As a result, many of our fish hatcheries, wildlife habitat, public launches, parks, forestry programs, and many other state-owned facilities and functions have deteriorated to embarrassing levels. Despite claims that funding wasn’t available to keep the various shrinking divisions from further decline, the DEC has historically been top-heavy with too many administrative chiefs and not enough working staffers and grunts. And the chiefs always manage to find funds when they deem it necessary. The outbreak of Chronic Wasting Disease in deer in Oneida and Herkimer counties saw a quick million-plus dollars and almost unlimited manpower ìsuddenly appear.î And what happens to fines received from polluters? In 2002 Philip Metals, Inc. and Telesector Resource Group paid a combined $3.75 million in fines and the state announced the funds were then used to acquire 634 acres of land that expanded Sterling Forest State Park in Orange County. That acquisition cost $3 million, but there was never a mention of what the balance was used for. I tried to ascertain the total fines received by DEC since 1971 and what the money was used for, but couldn’t wade through all the data files. The state also has had the opportunity to acquire prime habitat, but declined. For example, the thousands of wildlife-rich acres in the old Seneca Army Depot. Now most of the depot’s prime wildlife habitat will be developed for industrial and residential use.
Both prior to and immediately following his election, Elliott Spitzer voiced his intentions to “help” upstate grow economically. Just exactly how he plans to entice more businesses and industries back to New York (up) State without basically “giving away the farm” remains to be seen. Decades of poor judgment, mismanagement, mandating and overtaxing by our legislature has created a legacy of “not in New York”mindsets on the part of businesses seeking to relocate here. Spitzer has also voiced his disappointment in the floundering state of affairs that DEC is now in. Unfortunately, these two challenges basically go hand in hand. He’ll need to fix both before either will see any marked improvement.
If – and it’s a big if – the new administration can reprioritize the DEC’s role, repair its primary faults and build on its potential strengths, all the public land the state now owns may play at least some role in making upstate New York more attractive for relocation, of both residential and business interests. However, if the status quo remains in place with the Spitzer administration, the quality of habitat, fish and wildlife programs, and outdoor recreational opportunities will continue to decline.
As we were going to press, Carl Johnson, recently named the DEC's acting executive deputy commissioner, is responsible for overseeing the department's day-to-day operations until an acting commissioner is named. Several names have been tossed around as replacements for Sheehan, including Judith Enck (Spitzer's key environmental adviser when he was attorney general) and Joe Martens, head of the Open Space Institute.