The Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy, Northeastern Cave Conservancy, and Huyck Preserve will receive a combined $95,000 for various projects that help them further their separate missions. 

The state’s Department of Environmental Conservation is seeking data on species status assessments to update New York’s State Wildlife Action Plan for 2025 to 2035.

A line in the proposed bill would exempt the Albany County Department of Mental Health from notifying local officials when a mental health facility proposes to relocate within the same municipality, causing angst among legislators who worried one might wind up in their district without input.

Mark Grimm, Guilderland

ALBANY COUNTY — A quick-thinking environmental conservation officer, Michael Hamline, prevented a Voorheesville brushfire from spreading by using a folding  shovel.

The fire was reported on Tuesday, April 9, on State Farm Road, according to a release from the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation.

NEW SCOTLAND — The Albany County Rail Trail near the Bender Melon Farm Preserve Bridge in New Scotland is closed through Tuesday, April 30, because the bridge is being upgraded.

This is the area between Hilton Road and Upper Font Grove Road.

According to a 2022 study conducted by researchers at Albany Medical Center, crisis pregnancy centers in New York State — which attempt to steer people away from abortion, and often have religious affiliations — rely heavily on misinformation and obfuscation to further their mission.

Birds are on the move — largely migrating in the dark.

Lights can confuse them and even kill them.

The state announced this week that it is once again participating in the “Lights Out” initiative, joining national and international efforts to turn off nonessential outdoor lights on state buildings.

GUILDERLAND — New York Army National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Robert Lamorte II, a Guilderland resident, will head a four-man team set to compete in the Army National Guard’s annual marksmanship competition in Arkansas, from April 29 to May 3.

Former Berne Town Board member Joel Willsey, who has long scrutinized that town’s highway practices, has discovered that the state’s official document-retention schedule is at odds with state law, allowing towns to discard notices after just one year instead of the five required by law.