« on: March 23, 2023, 09:51:22 am »
Just when it looked like the NYS Canal Embankment Maintenance work would be halted for yet another Winter season, an announcement has come out on the NYS Canal Corporation website that shows NYS will NOT be intimidated by "Facebook Pressure" against performing their embankment dam safety work.
And that new Canal Corporation Announcement was found on a NEW section of the NYS Canal's website, dedicated to Canal Trail Advisories.
https://www.canals.ny.gov/trails/projects.html
Normally the ECNA has relied on the Empire State Trail website for Trail Closures, since they seem to be the better organization to link canal work and trail use. The website still shows the Palmyra/Macedon Canal breach section as closed, from the 2021, as well as a few newer closures for work on a Trail washout, and another improvement near the NYS Fairgrounds. The Empire State Trail website does not show these two new trail closures.
https://empiretrail.ny.gov/trail-closures
What makes this new announcement so noteworthy?
It states that the closure for the trail is due to repairs to the canal bank & trail.
And the Canal Corporation has also has included a Topo Map inset, so people can see where the work is being done. Look at the image below, see the large area of TREES right along this section of NYS Barge Canal? That is an Earthen Embankment folks, and one that has reached the point where it needs repairs to be safe again
And now it's time to fix it... hopefully without protest or community "interference".
After all, who would want to stand in the way of Public Safety improvement?
This NYS Canal Corporation Trail webpage has gone unused for quite a few years, which is why the ECNA is surprised to find this information here.
And now it appears to be under a new heading called PROJECTS, which is exactly what many have asked for, a place for the PUBLIC to find information on trail closures, that are directly related to NYS Canal Maintenance Work & Projects. This is a welcome change and proof positive that the NYS Canal Corporation is also working to improve "transparency & communication".
https://www.canals.ny.gov/trails/projects.htmlOf equal importance, while not mentioned in this notice, this new canal PROJECT notice, along with subsequent trail work, only fits into ONE PROGRAM currently being run by the NYS Canal Corporation, their Earthen Embankment Integrity Program.
That program is known as EEIP, and has been contested by a small group of social media users in the Towns of Perinton, Pittsford and Brighton.
https://ecna.us/eeip/
In fact these three town successfully halted the state canal repair program, albeit temporarily, while the NYS Canal Corporation conducted a more thorough State Environmental Study in 2020 - 2022. That study concluded late last year, and the work has now been APPROVED to move forward, with a new SEQR Environmental Study and Embankment Maintenance Handbook to guide all embankment restoration activities.https://www.canals.ny.gov/Earthen_Embankment/FGEIS/Final_Guide_Book_and_Attachments.pdfMeanwhile back in MONROE COUNTY... The NYS Canal Corporation (NYSCC) has the task of repairing the Erie Canal, fixing canal safety issues that are a hundred years old, and all while insuring they don't ruffle the feathers of the Town Leaders, and those social media denialist who are still stating that "NOTHING is wrong with the Erie Canal".
So they have to publish "local notices" like this one on the Perinton Town Website...stating that their work is NOT part of the Earthen Embankment Integrity Program.
Think about that statement for a moment, this State Agency has to explain to ONE Township, located in Monroe County, that the work being done to fix canal deficiencies is NOT part of a NYS program dedicated to the safety and integrity of the Erie Canal.
This NYSCC "denial" seems to be an effort just to avoid another frivolous lawsuit that would stop their canal safety work again...
Or maybe it's just to avoid the severe backlash the Canal Corporation has seen on Facebook by a local Perinton group?
https://perinton.org/news/notice-nys-canal-construction-in-the-town-of-perinton/And while Perinton Town Leaders claim they are "very concerned" about Public Safety along the Erie Canal, they haven't even taken the time to publish the new FINAL version of the NYS Canal Corporation Embankment Integrity Guidebook or FINAL state required Environmental Review on their "Community Projects" website.
The Leaders of these three Monroe County communities still are in "denial", like the Facebook group within their community still fighting against Canal Repairs & Maintenance. They seem oblivious about how badly the NYS Barge Canal system has deteriorated over the past 100 years, and are unwilling to listen to those who are charged with keeping the Canal System in "good working order".
https://perinton.org/departments/public-works/building-and-codes-department/pr/Hopefully 2023 brings an end to the public denial & protest of what most other States in the Country would call "routine dam maintenance".
Hopefully smarter people will speak up and tell these Facebook frauds, and "closed minded" community leaders, that they want the Erie canal repaired...
Hopefully this will be done to insure that someday the NYS Canal Corporation will be able to fill the Erie Canal fully with water, and the neighbors along the Erie Waterway will be able to know that the 300+ seeps & leaks currently plaguing the Barge Canal System are actively being repaired.
https://www.wxxinews.org/local-news/2022-12-01/state-releases-new-guidelines-for-clearing-trees-shrubs-from-erie-canal-embankments
Because right now the issues with Canal Embankment Integrity are hitting MONROE COUNTY, NY the hardest...
https://www.canals.ny.gov/wwwapps/tas/notices/ntm.aspx?id=2030
« Last Edit: March 23, 2023, 11:59:20 am by Doug K »
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