WAMC: The debate over whether the U.S. Coast Guard should be allowed to establish anchorage sites on the Hudson River is continuing. Calls to halt a rulemaking process to the anchorages are being directed to the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security. New York’s attorney general and a Poughkeepsie-based environmental group have now sent letters. Meanwhile, Coast Guard personnel are poring over thousands of comments it received on the proposal.

The environmental protection bureau chief from New York Attorney General Eric Schniederman’s office wrote to Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson December 23, asking him to instruct the Coast Guard to withdraw the proposal to create up to 10 anchorage sites in the Hudson River to park as many as 43 commercial vessels between Yonkers and Kingston. The letter cites a lack of manifest need for long-term parking for barges containing oil or other materials. The letter also says that it does not appear the Army Corps Chief of Engineers has recommended such a proposal.

In an emailed statement, Schneiderman says, “The Hudson River is one of our state’s greatest natural resources, and we must remain vigilant in protecting it. The proposal to add 43 new anchorage sites along the river doesn’t pass the test. I join the thousands of New Yorkers who have raised serious concerns about the proposal in urging its withdrawal by the Coast Guard.”  Read more.