 |
|
|
|
|
| 6/27/2009 11:02:00 PM | Email this article • Print this article | Oversight of Sacandaga Lake a gray area
Heather Nellis
Recorder News Staff
The government of the Great Sacandaga Lake is not black and white.
The separation of power for all respective governing agencies is a gray area, overcast by the fact that the lake, and more recently reinforced, its shoreline, is state-owned land - coupled with its arrangement inside the Adirondack Park.
The park's land-use and development is strictly regulated because of state "forever wild" policies, making the legislation a game of hot potato played by a variety of different state and federal agencies.
Hudson River-Black River Regulating District Executive Director Glenn LaFave said while the district is the lake's primary legislative authority, it works with the state Department of Environmental Conservation and other state and federal agencies that also have jurisdiction.
"It's New York state land, so any agency with jurisdiction has responsibilities," he said, citing DEC, Adirondack Park Agency, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, State Historic Preservation Offices, Army Corps of Engineers for Navigation, state Department of Health, state Department of Transportation, local municipality governments, and law enforcement, just to name a few.
LaFave said he could not specifically outline the regulating district's role in the lake's administration.
"That's a really hard question; I can't really answer clearly because I would leave something out," LaFave said. "It's complicated - there are multiple overlapping jurisdictions by state and federal agencies."
Instead, LaFave said this task may be better undertaken by calling the other federal/state agencies and departments involved and prompting them to define their roles.
On its Web site, DEC has posted legislation Part 6, Title 606 of Environmental Conservation Law that authorizes the regulating district to preside over the GSL. DEC spokeswoman Lori Severino said that aside from this law - and other provisions that require DEC to approve the HRBRRD's regulations before they become effective - there are no other documents outlining the lake's legislation.
Further, "DEC has no legal authority to itself change [HRBRRD's] rules," she said. "DEC has no jurisdiction on rights to the lake."
Counter to this, even though there are "no other documents," Severino then said that DEC manages maintenance and enforces regulations on the lake's public boat launch sites at Broadalbin, Northampton, Northville, and Edinburg, and also manages environmental quality and fish and game regulations.
The process of defining each department and agency's responsibilities has been described as "convoluted" by Adirondack Park Agency spokesman Keith McKeever.
"When it comes to the regulating district, it's a different animal," he said.
On page one of its Citizens Guide, APA offers four paragraphs to explain the agency's history, followed by another four paragraphs to describe what the agency is not, including the following:
APA, in cooperation with DEC, is responsible for developing and maintaining a master plan for the use of all state lands in the park. The APA does not manage these state lands; the care, custody, and control of the state lands is the responsibility of the DEC.
This is not the case when it comes to the GSL, McKeever said, because of HRBRRD's jurisdiction.
Perhaps the best example of the gray area this web of power creates is APA's pending reclassification of the lake's shoreline. Fittingly, the shoreline is currently colored gray on APA's State Land Master Plan Map.
Last October, the APA undertook a technical map amendment to reclassify the GSL shoreline from private land to state-owned land, correcting what they deemed a long-standing error. The shoreline's use has been permitted by private landowners since the reservoir was created in 1930.
The reclassification is incomplete, however, because of the "unique circumstances" surrounding the administration of the lake, according to McKeever. There are seven possible classifications: wilderness, primitive, canoe, wild forest, intensive use, historic and state administrative.
"The land needs to be classified, but the agency is trying to decide what category it falls under, or if we need to make a new classification," McKeever said. "The GSL is more unique to situations described."
Typically, McKeever said, the reclassification of state land is decided by APA and DEC.
According to Severino, this process was not a reclassification at all:
"The map correction that APA published last year was carried out to correct inaccurate information about the Sacandaga shoreline - not to change any classification. You should call APA to discuss further. That said, DEC has no role in correcting the map."
McKeever said that inside the park boundaries, DEC has custody of the land, but because of the regulating district, DEC's involvement in the reclassification process might be different.
Currently, APA has no plans on the table to finish the reclassification, McKeever said.
Also in limbo is a Memorandum of Understanding between APA and HRBRRD that would clearly define the separation of power between the two agencies.
An MOU already exists between DEC and APA, and Severino said there is no agreement or understanding between DEC and HRBRRD.
"It's becoming less important because the regulating district is implementing a lot already that exists in the MOU [draft]," McKeever said. "Everyone seems to be on the same page."
In the past, McKeever continued, this necessarily wasn't the case, but HRBRRD "has had some good outreach and communication."
"We've only had about three projects coming from the regulating district area over the past two or three years," McKeever said. "I think we've worked out a good process."
Confusion has been expressed in the past because each agency administers work permits for construction, building, or other projects.
APA has jurisdiction on any projects that impacts wetlands only, and DEC has the same jurisdiction outside of the Adirondack Park, McKeever said. For example, DOT has to apply for APA permits for the Batchellerville Bridge Replacement Project.
"We issue permits, but standard language often stipulates that someone may have to obtain permits from any other state or local agencies and entities," McKeever said.
LaFave said DEC is responsible for providing approval on an work activity below the high water line, but Severino chose not to confirm this responsibility.
"It's very specific for each type of permit, so you have to understand their jurisdiction to decide which place to go," LaFave said. "You have to look at it very specifically, per activity, and who's involved. But, there are a lot of issues where some of the agencies mentioned are not involved."
"It's like when you go to the mall - you can shop at just one store, depending on what you're shopping for. You don't need to go to all 50 stores," he said.
|
Article Comment Submission Form
|
|
|
|
|
