Beacon Institute for Rivers and Estuaries & Walkway Over Hudson River

Looking over the Hudson River

We traveled to the Beacon Institute and walked over the Hudson River Walkway today.
Th Beacons Institute was designed for the study of the Hudson River. Governor George Pataki in 2000 wanted to establish a research and education center on the banks of the Hudson River dedicated to the study of it and its estuaries. Here they monitor New York's rivers, commercialization of environmental technology, and develop long-term policy solutions to protect waterways along the Hudson River.
When we first made it to the site, I noticed this awful smell. It smelled like sewage water, and sure enough,

Composting toilet that uses biodegradable waste as fertilzer

there was a sewage treatment facility in the area. Toby showed us these caps in the ground that are used to relase methane from underground since the treated waste water is injected into the soil. We began hiking into the woods, and we came across a small bridge that had railroad tracks below. Sure enough, a train came by. Being above this was really cool. Toby also talked to us about the importance of saltwater and freshwater marshes in the environment. They are rich in diversity and are great in cleansing run-off water. The plants in marshes absorb heavy metals and other materials from the water, thus cleansing it. He said, and I quote, "they are like the kidneys of the landscape." I'll keep that in my mind forever, thanks, Toby.
We walked further into the woods and saw a sign that read "Denning's Point: Hudson Highlands State Park." I just knew what we would be in for, a long, long tedious, dangerous, sweating hike into the woods. This place did not even seem like a park, first of all. We cam across an old, abandoned building that was used in
brick manufacturing in the 1800's. The brick industry was huge in Troy, especially along the Hudson River since ships had easy & quick access to clay. Transportation routes along the Hudson River made this possible which flourished the bricking industry in upstate New York. Bricks were able to be transported in from the south to up the river. But, eventually, the brick manufacturing industry collapsed due to cheaper transportation, so people were able to get higher quality bricks at lower prices. And what was really awesome was you can see the remnants of this industry on the ground: bricks were scattered everywhere in the soil.

Beacon Institute - This ground filtrates rainwater

Next, we learned about Fiscal Bay Creek. The bay was invaded with water chestnuts, which caused the water in the bay to move very slowly or not at all. These really affected the water, since water currents are essential for cleaning and regulating the water by renewing proper nutrients. These invasive species move up and down the Hudson River and there is nothing to consume them. Humans are so good for thinking short-term and not long-term consequences. If only that man Toby told us about hadn't released all those water chestnuts into bodies of water this bay would not have been like this. I find it unfortunate. I've been wondering if there is anything we can do to fix this. Then we learned about an environmental movement that promoted that the Hudson River should be used for energy production. For example, people thought it would be beneficial to drill holes in Storm King mountain and pump water into these reservoirs. You take the potential energy stored in the water, and when you release it, this stirs the turbines converting energy. The problem with this, however, is when the reservoirs would be filled with water, fish would also get into them and they would also end up going through the turbines killing them. This caused decreases in the fish populations, unfortunately. It was the first time a judge decided that the scenic vista was more important to protect than the production of energy, this was damaging the mountain and certainly harming the fish.
Then we visited Madam Brett Park. This park once belonged to Catharyna Brett. One third of the plants

View over Hudson on Walkway bridge

here are non-native and were introduced to the area about 200 years ago. Most have become prevalent in the Hudson Valley. We walked on this boardwalk and watched the waterfall, and we noticed there was this mystery computer screen floating above the waters. I think the person who owned it was probably angry it was not working and decided to just chuck it in the water. Beautiful. We walked through the woods (again) and we saw a marshland. This place was pretty awesome; seeing how different ecosystems work to balance each other out. Marshes are so important in cleansing water and providing habitats to many species, but at the same time, they are pure breeding grounds for mosquitoes, especially carrying malaria. I think we should not use pesticides to get rid of these mosquitoes that carry malaria, it's just not worth it when you look at the long-term consequences. We also learned about a composting toilet that does not use water to flush down waste, instead it uses a foam that helps bio-degrade waste into a form that can be used for fertilizer. And the ground outside the Beacon Institute caught my eye, it did not completely cover the pavement and there was grass growing, this was to help filtrate rainwater into the soil instead of letting it run-of into sewage systems. Why aren't we funding eco-friendly stuff like this?! After our hike, we went on another long walk (it felt like a hike) to the Hudson walkway. It was a nice walk.. other than the fact that it was really hot out and I ran out of water halfway through the walk so I was really thirsty for the rest of the time. I couldn't wait to go home and sleep from such a long, turesome day.

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