Past Initiatives

Since 2015 the Environmental Cooperative has hosted and supported various student and community initiatives. This allows for many learning opportunities and continual program growth. Some of these initiatives are outlined here.

Natural Resources Inventory

The City of Poughkeepsie Natural Resources Inventory (NRI) provides baseline information on natural resources including parks, tributaries to the Hudson, the Poughkeepsie waterfront and city trees.

Natural Resources Inventory (NRI) for Poughkeepsie

PDFs of individual sections:

• NRI 0 Executive Summary
• NRI 1 Introduction
• NRI 2 Geology and Soils
• NRI 3 Water Resources
• NRI 4 Botanical Communities and Habitats
• NRI 5 Land Use
• NRI 6 Recreational Resources
• NRI 7 Historical Resources
• NRI 8 Climate Change
• NRI Apdx A Significant Habitats
• NRI Apdx B Ash Tree Assessment
• NRI Apdx C College Hill Park Invasive Species Survey
• NRI Apdx D Poughkeepsie Scenic Resource Inventory [5 MB]
• NRI Apdx E Map Metadata
• NRI Apdx F Species of Conservation Concern
• NRI Apdx G Poughkeepsie Zoning Map
• NRI Apdx H Climate Smart Resilience Planning
• NRI Apdx I Fall Kill Intermunicipal Agreement

This project was funded in part by a grant from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund through the Hudson River Estuary Program of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

Mapping Emerald Ash Borer in the City of Poughkeepsie

Emerald Ash Borer Information

Green Stormwater Infrastructure

Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) mimics natural processes to reduce runoff from impervious surfaces that don’t absorb water, such as parking lots and roads. Examples of GSI include rain gardens, bioswales, porous pavement, riparian buffers, and tree canopies. The Environmental Cooperative works closely with Vassar’s Sustainability office to better include GSI into Vassar’s renovations and new construction projects.

Inventory and guidelines for stormwater management at Vassar College can be found here.

GSI pilot project plans for the Vassar Barns can be found here.

This project has been funded in part by a grant from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund through the Hudson River Estuary Program of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

Connecting the Hudson Valley Community Through Art and Nature

We asked the Hudson Valley Community to send pictures of their art and nature in order to send out post cards and this video to senior residents and centers throughout the valley. It was our hope that this would bring some creativity and peace during an isolating time. We sent out over 700 postcards and this video was shared with 15 senior residencies.