The CAC is an advisory body, established by Town Law in 2008, that serves to gather and disseminate information, conduct research, and advise town agencies and the Hillsdale community on matters related to the conservation of natural resources. The CAC considers issues of air Quality, surface water quality, groundwater quality and Quantity as well as soils, plants, animals, and habitats of conservation concern.   It also considers other issues bearing on the integrity of ecosystems and sustainable uses of the natural resources that support the health and well-being of the human community. As part of the CAC’s advisory functions, it has from time to time produced, or helped to produce, informational documents about the town’s natural resources that may be of interest to all town citizens. Those documents, and where they may be viewed or obtained, are described below.

The basic tasks of the Hillsdale CAC are: 1) assisting the Planning Board in reviews of land use proposals; 2) gathering and providing natural resource information to town agencies, land use applicants, and the general public; 3) conducting a town-wide natural resource inventory and open space inventory; and 4) providing recommendations for local policies, procedures, and legislation related to natural resource uses and conservation.

Conservation Advisory Council (CAC)

CAC Members (2025)

Amy Davidsen Mary King David Lewis, Chair Gretchen Stevens

(Open Seat)

Jamie Carano Nordenstrom, Town Board Liaison

This webpage of the Conservation Advisory Council (CAC) hopes to achieve several aims. First, we seek to acquaint Hillsdale residents with the CAC’s role and function. Second, we describe a number of projects in which the CAC has recently been engaged. Finally, we provide sources of information about Hillsdale’s environment and natural resources relevant to conserving the quality of those resources. We hope this information may enhance Hilldale residents’ appreciation of the value of their Town’s environment, the challenges that that environment faces, and how they may participate in conservation of the environment today.

I. The CAC’s Role and Functions

The CAC is an advisory body, established by Town Law in 2008 that serves to gather and disseminate information, conduct research, and advise town agencies and the Hillsdale community in matters related to the conservation of the natural resources of the Town. These matters include the quality of the Town’s air, waters, and soils, as well as the habitats of plants and animals, and other issues bearing on the integrity of ecosystems and sustainable uses of our natural resources supporting the health and well-being of the human community.

The basic tasks of the Hillsdale CAC are: 1) assisting the Planning Board in reviews of land use proposals; 2) gathering and providing natural resource information to town agencies, land use applicants, and the general public; 3) conducting inventories of the Town’s natural resources and open spaces; and 4) providing recommendations for local policies, procedures, and legislation related to natural resource uses and conservation.

The Hilldale CAC meets at 7 pm on the 3rd Thursday of each month at the Hillsdale Town Hall, and the meeting is announced each month in the Town Newsletter. Meetings are open to the public.

CAC members are appointed by the Hillsdale Town Board. If there has been notice of a vacancy in the Town newsletter or an “Open Seat” is noted above, and you would like to become a member of the CAC, we encourage you to attend the next CAC meeting to learn more about our

work. Then, apply by submitting a resume and a letter of interest to the Town Board ([email protected]) and to the CAC at [email protected] describing your background relevant to the work of the CAC, your interest, and your availability.

Any questions about the CAC’s work or about obtaining copies of any of the informational documents listed below may be directed to the CAC at [email protected].

II. Current CAC Projects and Activities

A. Hillsdale Open Space Plan

Both the Hillsdale Comprehensive Plan and state legislation emphasize the importance of preserving existing “open space” - essentially undeveloped lands such as forests, shrublands, meadows, wetlands, stream corridors, and the scenic views they provide. Accordingly, the CAC, with support from other institutions, initiated a project, approved by the Town Board and still ongoing, to identify and describe the “open spaces” in Hillsdale that are most important for conservation and to set forth plans for protecting those areas. The Open Space Plan will make recommendations of ways that individual landowners, conservation organizations, and town government can work to achieve the goal of protecting valuable open spaces.

B. Agawamuck Creek Watershed Management Plan

In 2019, the Village of Philmont obtained a grant from the NYS Department of State to produce a Watershed Management Plan, covering the entire watershed of the Agawamuck Creek above Summit Lake in Philmont, which includes the northwest corner of Hillsdale. This Plan will develop management recommendations for improving water quality, addressing invasive species, and restoring critical natural resources throughout the watershed. In 2021, the Town Board approved Hillsdale’s participation in the formulation of the Plan and authorized David Lewis and Gretchen Stevens of the CAC to sit on the Plan’s Watershed Advisory Committee (WAC). which oversees the work of the consultant chosen to draft the Plan.

C. Taghkanic Headwaters Plan Working Group

CAC members David Lewis and Gretchen Stevens are part of a Working Group of residents of the four headwater towns, chaired by Peter Paden of Taghkanic, Executive Director Emeritus of the Columbia Land Conservancy, seeking ways to implement the Taghkanic Creek Headwaters Management Plan (see below).

D. CAC Work on Other Town and County Committees

CAC members assist the Hillsdale Planning Board with reviews of proposed land development and subdivision projects and regularly respond to inquiries from townspeople about natural resources and conservation concerns. CAC member Mary King is Hillsdale’s representative on the Columbia County Environmental Management Council. Mary also volunteers in the Roe Jan Watershed Community water quality sampling program which analyzes the quality of the water in the Roeliff Jansen Kill in Hillsdale and throughout its course. And CAC members Amy Davidsen and Gretchen Stevens sit on the Hillsdale Climate Smart Communities Task Force, through which the Town has achieved Bronze-level certification as a Climate Smart Community and is working toward a Silver certification.

III. Documents Relevant to Conservation of Hillsdale Natural Resources

Over the years the CAC has initiated studies and created or acquired informational materials that describe the town’s natural resources, their importance to ecosystems and people, threats to their persistence and quality, and ways to protect them.

A. Descriptions of the Hillsdale Environment and Natural Resources Hillsdale Natural Resources Inventory (NRI), 2020

The Hillsdale NRI is a thorough compilation of information about the important, naturally occurring resources of the area. The NRI describes the town’s natural resources (e.g., soils, farmland, streams, ponds, groundwater, habitats, plants, animals, and scenic areas), their significance to the Hillsdale community, and potential threats to their conservation. It illustrates these resources in 201 pages of text, 22 maps, over 100 photographs, and nine tables listing the area’s plants, animals, and scenic views.i Habitat Fact Sheets

Habitat Fact Sheets (prepared by Hudsonia Ltd.) offer brief descriptions of some of the habitats of Hillsdale, how to identify them, some of their ecological values and associated plants and animals of conservation concern, and some recommendations for conservation. We encourage landowners, developers, town agencies, and others to view, print, and distribute these to anyone who may want to learn more about the natural areas all around us. Hillsdale Habitat Summary, 2010

Staff of the Hudson River Estuary Program (of NYSDEC) prepared this document which identifies major natural features and important biological resources in Hillsdale, including species of conservation concern, based on information available to the NYSDEC.

B. In-depth Studies of a Hillsdale Watershed, the Town’s Groundwater Resources, and the Adequacy of its Stream Road Crossings (Culverts and Bridges).

The Taghkanic Headwaters Conservation Plan, 2022

The Taghkanic Creek rises in Hillsdale and the watershed of its headwaters occupies much of the western half of the town, bordered on the north and east by the Agawamuck and Roeliff Jansen Kill watersheds, respectively. In 2021-22, the Columbia Land Conservancy worked with consultants and a team of representatives from the towns of Claverack, Copake, Hillsdale, and Taghkanic to develop a plan for protecting the land and waters of the upper Taghkanic watershed. Hillsdale CAC chair David Lewis represented Hillsdale in this effort. The Plan identifies areas that are especially important for protecting water quality and wildlife within the headwaters region and sets out some measures to achieve protection of the watershed. Hillsdale Groundwater Study; Appendices, 2009

Groundwater, the water lying beneath the soil surface, supplies drinking water to the entire Hillsdale community. At the request of the CAC, the New York Rural Water Association conducted a townwide groundwater study and prepared a conservation plan in 2009. The Plan maps and describes the groundwater resources of Hillsdale., evaluates the adequacy of those resources and their susceptibility to contamination, identifies potential sources of contamination, and outlines potential strategies for protection. The study was the basis for enactment in 2016 of the Aquifer Overlay District, protecting the most vulnerable unconsolidated aquifers of the town from uses that might pollute or otherwise compromise the availability of clean water to Hillsdale residents. Town of Hillsdale Road Stream Crossing Management Plan, 2019

A web of streams, large and mostly small, covers Hillsdale, and our roads repeatedly cross those streams, over culverts and bridges. Inadequately sized or incorrectly installed road crossing infrastructure can cause flooding and erosion, causing damage to roads or neighboring property. In addition, the loss of stream connectivity caused by culverts that are suspended above the streambed, obstructs the up- and downstream movement of fish, salamanders, crayfish, mollusks, and other aquatic organisms, disrupting the stream ecology and endangering the local populations of these aquatic species. The Road Crossing Management Plan evaluated 143 road crossings in the Town and identified many that pose significant or severe barriers to aquatic organisms or that pose a high risk of flooding, or both. The Plan can help the town prioritize culverts for replacement and can help residents determine whether nearby culverts endanger their property.

C. Information for Landowners Managing, or Contemplating Building on, Their Land. Thinking of Building a New House? 2021

In 2021, the CACs of Hillsdale, Ancram, New Lebanon and Taghkanic produced a brochure informing prospective buyers of land about some of the environmental factors to consider when siting and building a new house. You can view the brochure at this link or find the printed brochure on the literature rack at Town Hall. Guidelines for Conservation Analysis, 2010

The CAC prepared these guidelines to help a land use applicant and the Planning Board assess and mitigate potential impacts of proposed land development projects on important biological and water resources. Best Management Practices for Priority Invasive Plants in the Lower Hudson Valley, 2016

Information on the ecology of fifteen common invasive plant species in the region and techniques for non-toxic management (prepared by Hudsonia Ltd.).

D. Brief CAC Articles on Natural History, Ecology, and Conservation

Trout Fishing in Hillsdale, 2012

A guide to environmentally responsible trout fishing.

Emerald Ash Borer, 2023

The Emerald Ash Borer is killing our forests’ ash trees. Here are some suggestions for minimizing the damage.

Emerald Ash Borer

Taking Care of Springtime Wildlife, 2024

Taking Care of Spring Time Wildlife

Save our amphibians – spring peepers, Wood frogs, American toads, and salamanders – as they cross roads on rainy spring nights to get from their upland winter homes to the wetlands where they mate in the summer.

Spongy Moths, 2024

Spongy Moth

A brief piece about the spongy moth (formerly called the gypsy moth) in Hillsdale and what you can do to protect trees in your yard.

Cover Crops, 2024

Cover Crops

Plant cover crops to reduce erosion and protect the quality of our rivers and streams.

Lights Out for Wildlife Protection, 2024

Lights Out

Reduce non-essential outdoor lighting to protect birds on their springtime migration and generally to avoid the disturbance that lighting causes to many other species.

i A grant from the Hudson River Estuary Program of the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (funded by the New York State Environmental Protection Fund) enabled the CAC to obtain the services of consultants Nan Stolzenburg (Community Planning and Environmental Consultants) and Rick Lederer-