Invasive Species Targeted
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- December
- 26
The state Department of Environmental Conservation said today that it has formed a new office within the department to focus on invasive species, such as zebra mussels, that are threatening the state’s ecosystem. Zebra mussels, for instance, have been a major problem in the Finger Lakes, the likely impact of global shipping. The new Office of Invasive Species will bring together biologists and other experts to develop ways to combat the problem. Eurasian water milfoil and Sirex wood wasps are other critters that will be studied, the DEC said. “Invasive species compete with, prey upon and can substantially alter the environmental of our native species of plants, fish and wildlife,” said DEC Commissioner Peter Grannis. Earlier this year, Gov. Spitzer signed a law that creates a state Invasive Species Council, made up of nine state agencies and an advisory committee. The state budget also included $5 million for invasive species programs around the state.
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, December 26th, 2007 at 12:48 pm by Joseph Spector.
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Jay Gallagher has covered Albany for Gannett News Service since 1984 and has been Albany Bureau chief since 1989. He`s a native of the Boston area and likes to point out that in this millennium, the score is Red Sox 1 championship, the Yankees 0. 
Cara Matthews has been a statehouse correspondent in the Albany Bureau since August 2005. Prior to that, she covered Putnam County government and politics at The Journal News for nearly five years. Before that, she worked at newspapers in Connecticut and covered the state Legislature for one of them. 
