Journal News 70th RCCA anniversary

Environmentalism and conservation issues may be the watchwords for today's generation, but for seven decades the Rockland County Conservation Association has been a standard-bearer of those ideals.

On April 15, the oldest conservation association in the county -- which today claims a membership of 300 -- will celebrate 70 years of environmental activism with an anniversary celebration at Rockland Community College.

The association's influence over the past three decades has been especially critical, said President Betty Hedges. The group has focused on issues including solid-waste disposal, toxic cleanups, recycling, open space, preservation of tidal and freshwater wetlands, and public education.

"In a quiet, persistent way, this organization has been on the cutting edge of issues we now for granted," said Legislator Harriet Cornell, D-West Nyack.

"They have shown outstanding leadership in recycling," Cornell said. '"They are the ones who brought to light the avoidance of pesticides. And from Clausland Mountain to Sterling Forest, they were leaders in creating an understanding of open-space conservation."

County Executive C. Scott Venderhoef said the association has been a valued partner in many ways.

When inadequate planning resulted in suburban sprawl, well damage and quality-of-life issues, the association championed open space and protection of environmentally sensitive areas, Vanderhoef said.

Thomas id. Micelli, the county's director of environmental public health, said the association always went to bat for the environment.

"Although we don't always agree," Micelli said, "we have nothing but the highest respect for the association's opinions because they are there for the common good of all the residents of Rockland."

The Rockland County Conservation Association was founded in 1930 by Mrs. Henry von L. Meyer of the Suffern Women's Club.

As chairwoman of the club's Conservation Committee, Meyer soon saw the need to expand the committee's focus from village to county concerns.

Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, the association focused on programs such as sponsoring picnic sites and model gas station and mailbox-improvement contests, and planting roadside bulbs and trees.

The association's first major project that had far-reaching consequences was saving High Tor Mountain. The highest mountain on the Palisades escarpment was threatened by quarrying.

In response, New City playwright, Maxwell Anderson, wrote "High Tor," a 1937 play that addressed the issue of destroying natural resources. The play won a New York Drama Critics Award and galvanized the conservation association into its first high-profile environmental crusade.

Under Eleanor Burlingham, who led the group from 1953 to 1976, the association sponsored legislative action that established the Rockland County Park Commission in 1960, the Soil and Water Conservation District in 1965 and the Rockland County Environmental Management Council in 1974.

Each year, the association presents the Eleanor Burlingham Award to a graduating Rockland County high school senior who demonstrates outstanding achievement in environmental conservation.

Today, the association is hoping to promote the acquisition of open space through its Committee to Save the Torne Valley in Ramapo, an area of strategic importance during the American Revolution.

The association recently joined with local officials to form the Bi-Partisan Coalition on the Future of the Tappan Zee Bridge.

Conservation group's anniversary celebration

The Rockland County Conservation Association's 70th anniversary celebration will take place at 3 p.m. April 15 at Rockland Community College's Cultural Arts Center theater, 145 College Road, Ramapo.

The association will give a special salute to Rockland environmentalist Ziporah Fleisher. Guest speaker will be Robert H. Boyle, president of the Hudson River Fishermen's Association Inc. and author of "The Hudson River: A Natural and Unnatural History."

The event will include a program of stories, songs, dance and poetry by Chuck Stead, Chuck Stever, Steeltoes Dance Studio and Howard Horowitz.

Tickets are $10 For adults and $5 for students, in advance or at the door. Checks should be made payable to the Rockland County Conservation Association and mailed to P.O. 8ax 213, Pomona, NY 10970. For further information, call 354-1071, 357-1166 or 358-1934.

Environmentalists Celebrate 70th Year

Wide-ranging efforts have preserved many Rockland County Sites