Archive » January 2022 » News

Clarksville nitrate levels drop dramatically

by Sean Mulkerrin

Recent testing showed the nitrate level in the Clarksville Water District supply had dropped from 11.3 milligrams per liter in late November to about 5.4 milligrams per liter on Dec. 30.

New Scotland shuffles board chairs

by Sean Mulkerrin

“We’re certainly not going to miss a beat here, by doing what we did,” Supervisor Douglas LaGrange said of naming new planning and zoning board chairs. “And that was another important thing: To keep the consistency through projects and through different things that were before each of the boards.”

For Kathy Bentley, curling is about making friends as much as winning

by Melissa Hale-Spencer

Curling, says Kathy Bentley, is like playing chess on ice. The ancient Scottish game is not just about technique and precision, but also about strategy. Listen to this week's podcast.

State emissions report shows a long, tough road ahead

by Noah Zweifel

New York State has released its first annual greenhouse gas emissions report, and it paints a dire image. While emissions are down somewhat from 1990, the report shows the state has a long way to go to achieve the goals it laid out in its Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act by the self-set deadline of 2050.

Former Knox transfer station workers accused of theft, bullying

by Noah Zweifel

At Knox’s inaugural 2022 meeting, more information came spontaneously to light about why the town fired three transfer station workers in 2019 — two of whom sued the town and later settled.

Dennis Palow

Berne reorg: Thiem appointed to town board, Spargo as chairman of ZBA

by Noah Zweifel

In an otherwise perfunctory meeting, the Berne Town Board made two key appointments on New Year’s Day: Albert Thiem to the town board, replacing former councilwoman Bonnie Conklin, who resigned; and former State Supreme Court Justice and convicted felon Thomas Spargo as chairman of the zoning board of appeals.

Week XCV: As Omicron spikes, state sets up two new testing sites in county

by Melissa Hale-Spencer

The county has set up an online system, asking residents to fill out a form if they have tested positive for COVID-19: Go to www.AlbanyCounty.com and follow the red COVID-19 information bar at the top of the page to report positive results. So far, county spokeswoman Mary Rozak said on Monday morning, 800 positive tests had been reported through the portal, which was set up last Thursday. “It continues to grow,” she said.

Gov launches 5-part winter surge plan

by Melissa Hale-Spencer

Mary Bassett, the state’s acting health commissioner, said that herd immunity — that is, enough people being vaccinated or having antibodies from having contracted the virus that normal life could resume — “is no longer a useful construct with a virus that mutates as quickly as this one.”

‘Sheer volume’ has slowed health-department calls to those with COVID

by Melissa Hale-Spencer

The wave of new COVID-19 cases — presumably heightened by the highly contagious Omicron variant — has not crested for Albany County or the nation.

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