James Hufnagel
Hochul’s DEC set to Clear-Cut Zoar Old-Growth Forest
Several years ago, I attended a hike through the wild and majestic Zoar Valley, located a half hour’s drive south of Buffalo, led by forestry expert Bruce Kershner. A living legend among the local environmental community, Kershner was an acknowledged expert and the “go to” guy when it came to identifying old growth tree stands. Old growth refers to forests that are estimated to be aged 150 to 300 years and older. Kershner sadly passed away a few years later, but not before authoring several books about the local nature scene, including “Secret Places: A Guide to 25 Little
Free Irish Folk Concert by ‘Four Shillings Short’ at Downtown Church this Weekend
Four Shillings Short (Christy Martin and Aodh Og O’Tuama) will be performing a “Celtic, Folk and World Music” Concert at the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Niagara, 639 Main St, Niagara Falls, NY, on Saturday 4/13 from 2-4 pm. Four Shillings Short: Rooted in Celtic and American folk, inspired by Indian Raga and Ethnic idioms; a diverse and inventive Traditional Music Experience. The husband/wife duo of Aodh Og O’Tuama from Cork, Ireland and Christy Martin from California, have been performing together since 1995. They tour in the US and Ireland, are independent folk-artists with 13 recordings, perform 100 concerts a
New Grads Celebrate with Friends, Families at downtown FUUN Church
On Thursday, Sept. 31, at 5:30 PM, The First Unitarian Universalist Church of Niagara on Main Street hosted the Orleans/Niagara BOCES High School Equivalency graduation ceremony for Niagara Falls residents. Students earned their High School Equivalency by either passing the GED exam or completing the NEDP program. This was the first graduation of its kind in Niagara Falls. GED/NEDP graduations are significant milestones for individuals who have worked hard to earn their diplomas, and they often represent a fresh start or new opportunities for the graduates. We want to recognize their dedication and perseverance. Grads and their guests enjoyed refreshments
Gov. Hochul Feted by Delaware North at Bills vs. Jets Game
“MetLife Stadium suites offer the ultimate entertainment experience! With the exceptional sightlines, impeccable surroundings and first class amenities, no other environment provides a more impressive venue for entertaining. Now is the time to host your guests in the privacy of your own suite!” trumpets the MetLife Stadium website. The question some are asking is, who paid the bill for Governor Kathy Hochul’s Monday Night Football party at MetLife Stadium, where she and her entourage took in the Bills vs. Jets showdown? The other night on “The Capitol Pressroom,” as aired on local NPR-affiliate WBFO-FM, lobbying expert David Grandeau
Toxic PFASs Dumped into the Niagara River for 15 more Years? Tell Polluters, No Way!
Three months ago the Reporter broke the story that millions of gallons of run-off containing a family of toxic compounds collectively called PFASs are being shipped into Western New York from a garbage dump in the Finger Lakes, for “treatment” and discharge into the Niagara River. PFASs have been shown to cause a host of human ailments and diseases, including ulcerative colitis, thyroid dysfunction, testicular and kidney cancers, pregnancy-induced hypertension and lowered human fertility rates. The Buffalo Sewer Authority, which receives and processes the waste from, and we kid you not, the inaptly-named Seneca Meadows landfill located in the
Lovely Pollinator Meadows Proliferate along Niagara Gorge, thanks to No-Mow Policy
One of the best things to ever happen to the city of Niagara Falls was the removal of a section of the Robert Moses Parkway. Replaced by trails, natural pollinator-friendly meadows and native trees, it’s one of the best things the Office of State Parks has ever done here for the city and the region. It’s important to understand that there is a clear purpose in allowing these areas to proliferate as meadow, as opposed to routine mowing as if they were some kind of lawn in suburbia. Mowing is extremely injurious to the bird and pollinator populations that are
Buffalo Sewer Authority dumping Toxic PFAS Waste into the Niagara River
Just over a decade ago, this newspaper published a blockbuster series of articles revealing that the Niagara Falls Water Board was planning to import from Pennsylvania millions of gallons of toxic frackwater for treatment and dumping into the Niagara River. Our analysis revealed that, despite the advanced technology employed by the wastewater plant, many of the deadly constituents of the frackwater, including radioactive compounds and various carcinogens, would survive the process and end up in the drinking water of millions of people downstream. As a result of our reporting, the Niagara Falls City Council passed a ban on the importation,
Climate Change no longer Debatable. So let’s Debate.
In his “Letter from a Birminghan Jail,” the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King wrote, “Seldom, if ever, do I pause to answer criticism of my work and ideas. If I sought to answer all of the criticisms that cross my desk, my secretaries would be engaged in little else in the course of the day, and I would have no time for constructive work.” In a similar vein, you’d think wasting time writing a newspaper article refuting the ridiculous claims of a climate change denier is something we’d be well past by the year 2023, with its unprecedented high average
Regal Niagara Falls cinema closes tomorrow, Jan. 5
The Regal Theatre corporation today sent out an email to Regal Crown Club subscribers announcing that the Regal Theatre on Niagara Falls Boulevard next to the Home Depot is closing as of Thursday, Jan. 6. An unconfirmed source told the Reporter that the facility has been taken over by Dipson, which will remodel and reopen the cinema at some point in the future.
Free Rabies shots for County Residents at NT clinic
The Niagara County Department of Health (NCDOH) is holding a FREE rabies clinic at the City of North Tonawanda Public Works Department, 758 Erie Avenue, on: Saturday December 10, 2022 from 9:00 AM to 12:00 Noon All appointments are by reservation only. Please go to www.niagaracounty.com/health and click on the “Rabies Information” icon and follow the link under rabies clinic to register. Those unable to register online may call (716) 439-7444 for registration assistance. Please note that once appointment slots have filled, registration for this event will close. Rabies Vaccination Clinics have returned to “walk through” to accommodate as many
Will Gov. Hochul, lawmakers prioritize Bigger, Better Bottle Bill next year?
It was 1982. Ronald Reagan was president, Michael Jackson released his smash hit album “Thriller,” and “E.T the Extra-Terrestrial” was setting box office records. It was also the year that New York State instituted a 5 cent deposit on returnable cans and bottles. And four decades later, it’s still just that – a nickel. One of the first orders of business for newly re-elected Gov. Kathy Hochul and the state legislature should be to “Raise the Return,” especially when you consider that a 1982 nickel has lost two-thirds of its value over those 40 years. Adjusted for inflation, the returnable
OPINION: Study Claims $35 Million Impact from ‘Discover Niagara’ Shuttle While Tourists Exit Downtown Niagara Falls on “Free” Buses
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 Recent glowing reports in the local media about the economic impact of the Discover Niagara shuttle, which conveys tourists out of downtown Niagara Falls to Lewiston and Youngstown, would be more plausible if, instead of discharging passengers at various attractions, the shuttle was dropping off sacks of money. “Discover Niagara Shuttle drove $35M into local economy,” declared the Gazette on Dec. 4. “Discover Niagara Shuttle driving economic opportunity in Niagara Region” heralded the Lewiston Sentinel a few days