Here’s good news for our work to protect the Catskills extraordinary natural heritage and local communities -- an anonymous donor has issued a challenge grant to match every donation, dollar-for-dollar, activists like you make to Mountainkeeper before the end of the year.

Please help us take full advantage of this generous challenge by making a gift to support Mountainkeeper’s work to fight the invasion of New York State by fossil fuel pipelines, barges, and bomb trains. And, your gift will help us protect our precious natural heritage -- especially our beloved Catskill Park.

Catskill Mountainkeeper is pleased to announce the publication of the 4^thEdition of the "Updated Compendium of the Health Impacts of Fracking”, an exhaustive compilation of scientific, medical, and media findings documenting the many serious risks posed by fracking to our health, air and water, and our climate.

Given the new political landscape, it’s clear that we can expect rough waters. But Catskill Mountainkeeper has never shied away from big challenges, and we are not daunted by what lies ahead.  Our mission is now even more important, and so we are redoubling our efforts to advocate for our region and its communities, to combat our dependence on dirty and dangerous fossil fuels, and to chart the course to a clean and renewable energy future. 

Mountainkeeper is calling attention to an unfolding crisis as the fossil fuel industry tries to turn New York into an oil and gas state. Our work on these issues has taken on even greater urgency now that our country has a President-elect who has consistently touted the production of more coal, oil, and natural gas, and has selected a leading “climate denier” as the head of his Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) transition team.  In the face of this new political landscape, Mountainkeeper is ready and determined to fight back hard and work strategically wherever we can. The shipping industry is trying to increase the amount of oil that is being transported on the Hudson River -- we must stop this from happening.

We did it!  Thanks to the calls and emails of Mountainkeeper activists and others, Governor Cuomo signed the bill expanding the Empire State Film Production Tax Credit to the Catskills and Hudson Valley into law. Our heartfelt thanks go out to Governor Cuomo, and the bill sponsors Senator Amedore and Assemblywoman Gunther. Additional thanks to Ulster County Executive, Mike Hein; Laurent Rejto, Commissioner of the Hudson Valley Film Commission; Sullivan County Legislative Chairman, Luis Alvarez; City of Middletown Mayor, Joe DeStefano; and Assembly Speaker, Carl Heastie.

Catskill Mountainkeeper condemns state-​sponsored violence in the name of a fossil fuel company’s profits and stands in solidarity with the all of the tribal nations and water protectors against the Dakota Access pipeline. We join the ​outcry urging President Obama to call off the National Guard, send in the Department of Justice, and halt pipeline construction immediately.                                    

The wait is over! The bill expanding the Empire State Film Production Tax Credit to the Catskills and Hudson Valley has been delivered to Governor Cuomo for his signature. Now is the time to call Governor Cuomo at 518-474-8390 and ask him to approve the expansion of the bill (if you choose option 2 and you can just leave a message.)

We may be only days away from Spectra Energy’s high pressure, fracked-gas Algonquin Incremental Market (AIM) Pipeline going into operation. Mountainkeeper is working to stop the build out of all gas infrastructure projects because they will tie us to dirty fossil fuels at a time when we need to build a clean, renewable energy future. AIM is particularly egregious because as the pipeline spans three New York counties, it crosses two fault lines, passes only 105 feet from critical Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant Safety infrastructure, and travels just 400 feet from an elementary school. 

Bomb trains carrying massive amounts of fracked oil from the Bakken oil fields in North Dakota and tar sands from Canada, are cutting across New York State on the way to the Port of Albany and nearby transfer yards, and then down the Hudson River corridor to East Coast refineries.This boom in crude oil transportation is raising serious public safety and environmental concerns due to the extreme volatility of Bakken crude, the sheer volume of oil being transported, and the poor safety record of the type of tank cars used to carry most of this oil. 

The Oil and Gas Industry is Invading New York – #1 in a series

Catskill Mountainkeeper is calling New York’s attention to an unfolding crisis as the fossil fuel industry tries to turn New York into an oil and gas state.  We must stop the numerous oil and gas infrastructure projects that are in various stages of proposal and construction that represent a grave danger to our environment and our health.