Volunteers Needed for West Point Foundry Project

COLD SPRING (PUTNAM COUNTY)—Scenic Hudson is looking for volunteers to help build a temporary sandbag wall along Foundry Brook, which runs through the group's West Point Foundry Preserve. Rushing water from Hurricane Irene jumped the brook's banks, opening up a new channel that endangers areas of the sensitive archeological site—listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The work will be strenuous, involving transporting and stacking heavy sandbags, but it will be highly rewarding. Volunteers will not be required to go into the brook, but those who wish to volunteer are asked to dress appropriately by wearing long pants, warm clothes, work gloves and sturdy closed-toed shoes or boots. Scenic Hudson will provide hot and cold beverages, but participants are asked to bring plenty of water and a lunch. Minors must be accompanied by an adult.

To RSVP and ask questions, contact Scenic Hudson Parks Event and Volunteer Coordinator Anthony Coneski at aconeski@scenichudson.org or 845 473 4440, ext. 273.

Date and time: Saturday, Dec. 10, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The event will be cancelled if the weather is inclement. If the event is cancelled, a notice will be posted at www.scenichudson.org/events.

Event location: West Point Foundry Preserve, 68 Kemble Ave., Cold Spring.

Directions: Going west on Main Street in Cold Spring, turn left on Rock Street and then right on Kemble Avenue and continue to end. Parking is limited, so please consider carpooling or using public transportation (preserve is a 10-minute walk from the Cold Spring train platform).

Scenic Hudson works to protect and restore the Hudson River and its majestic landscape as an irreplaceable national treasure and a vital resource for residents and visitors. A crusader for the valley since 1963, we are credited with saving fabled Storm King Mountain from a destructive industrial project and launching the modern grass-roots environmental movement. Today with more than 25,000 ardent supporters, we are the largest environmental group focused on the Hudson River Valley. Our team of experts combines land acquisition, support for agriculture, citizen-based advocacy and sophisticated planning tools to create environmentally healthy communities, champion smart economic growth, open up riverfronts to the public and preserve the valley's inspiring beauty and natural resources. To date Scenic Hudson has created or enhanced more than 50 parks, preserves and historic sites up and down the Hudson River and conserved more than 30,000 acres.

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