New York State is thought to have more whole tires in piles - more than fifty million - than any other state.  Two of the most notorious piles are on the banks of important water bodies: the Mohawk Pile in Waterford near the Hudson River and the Pinnacle Pile in West Monroe near Oneida Lake.  Both contain several million tires.  *Environmental Advocates of NY

Niagara Falls is working towards gaining recognition as a National Heritage Area.  National recognition is a legislative process that requires preliminary studies prior to its designation.  One completed study has already determined the role of the Federal Government in this process and as a result, President Bush signed the Niagara Falls National Heritage Area Study Act in October of 2002.  Senator Charles Schumer, Senator Hillary Clinton, and U.S. Rep. John LaFalce were instrumental in securing funds for the initial study as well as securing an additional $300,000 for the Niagara Falls River and Gorge National Heritage Corridor Study.

The report, titled “Cycle of Harm: Mercury’s Pathway from Rain to Fish in the Environment,” found that mercury contamination levels in rain and snow falling over a dozen states consistently exceeded the EPA’s “safe” standards for mercury in surface water.  Mercury is a potent neurotoxin that has made its way into the food supply, contaminating fish and posing a risk to people and wildlife that consume fish.  Most at risk are children and the unborn.  According to the Center of Disease Control (CDC) one in 12 women of childbearing age has blood mercury levels exceeding the EPA safe level for protection of the fetus.  In wildlife, mercury is a reproductive hazard with harmful effects on species such as rainbow trout, zebra fish, mallard and American black ducks, loons and terns, otters and mink. *www.eany.org/index.html