Hudson Valley One: Saugerties town government has come out in opposition to the Pilgrim Pipelines. Saying it fears the possibility of “the threat of leakages, spills, fires and other types of catastrophes that can seriously harm communities like Saugerties through which the products are transported,” the Saugerties town board voted at its February 1 meeting to urge the state Department of Environmental Conservation and the state Thruway Authority, the agencies scrutinizing the project, to deny it the use of the Thruway corridor.

The town board also urged the United States Coast Guard to deny permits for anchorages along the Hudson River of any shipping carrying Bakken crude oil. The only way Bakken shale oil should be permitted to be transported along railway lines through Saugerties would be if “rail, car and other railroad safety issues are resolved and the at-grade private crossings in the Town of Saugerties are eliminated.”  Read more.