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Summary
- Abstract:
- The Tom Blandy Papers document the group Concerned Citizens for the Environment's legal and political opposition to the proposed Green Island Solid Waste Incinerator
- Extent:
- 1.16 cubic ft.
- Language:
- English .
- Preferred citation:
Preferred citation for this material is as follows:
Identification of specific item, series, box, folder, Tom Blandy Papers, 1980-1999. M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University at Albany, State University of New York (hereafter referred to as the Blandy Papers).
Background
- Scope and Content:
These papers document the political and legal opposition of the group Concerned Citizens for the Environment against the proposed Green Island Solid Waste Incinerator. They consist of court records, correspondence, documentary evidence, publications, news clippings, and other materials directly or indirectly relating to this opposition. The most well documented aspect is the case Concerned Citizens for the Environment vs. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation & American Ref-Fuel Company, which contains official court documents, legal briefs, and correspondence with CCE's law firm, Gordon, Siegel, Mastro, Mullaney, Gordon & Galvin, P.C.
This collection does not contain a great deal of administrative information about CCE itself. What there is consists of correspondence, meeting minutes, and newsletters, primarily focused on the trial and related fundraising attempts. These materials, along with collections of materials indirectly related to the incinerator, make up the Subject File series. There is no biographical information about Tom Blandy himself, though there is an autographed copy of his book on home weatherproofing, All Through the House.
Related collections in the M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives can be found in the subject guide for Conservation and the Environment. Of particular interest are the records of Bethlehem Work on Waste (APAP-148), another group that opposed the incinerator.
- Biographical / Historical:
Tom Blandy, a resident of Troy, New York, is an architect whose specialty is adaptive reuse of older buildings. He has been involved with a number of local and regional environmental groups, including the Rensselaer County Greens, Save the Pine Bush, and Concerned Citizens for the Environment (CCE). CCE was formed in 1987 by Ken Dufty as a means of opposing the Inter-Power coal burning power generation plant proposed for Halfmoon, New York. Dufty left in the early 1990s to form the Rensselaer County Environmental Management Council and Tom Blandy became president of the CCE at that time.
During the late 1990s, CCE was primarily concerned with the Green Island Solid Waste Incinerator proposed by the American Ref-Fuel Company. Ref-Fuel was a joint operation of Brown Ferris Industries & Air Products & Chemical Inc. The opposition campaign culminated in the court case Concerned Citizens for the Environment vs. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation & American Ref-Fuel Company. CCE charged that the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation had incorrectly issued a permit for the building of a solid waste transfer station, which included the proposed incinerator. CCE won the initial trial in 1996, but lost the appeal in 1997.
- Acquisition information:
- All items in this manuscript group were donated to the University Libraries, M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives, by Tom Blandy in May 2002.
- Processing information:
Processed in 2006 by Joshua Hauck-Whealton.
- Arrangement:
The collection is organized into the following series:
- Series 1: Green Island Solid Waste Incinerator, 1991-1998, Undated
- Series 2: Subject Files, 1990-1999, Undated
Both series are arranged alphabetically.
- Physical location:
- The materials are located onsite in the department.
Subjects
- Subjects:
- Rensselaer County, New York
Conservation and the Environment
Ecology- New York
Environmental Law
Incinerators
Refuse and Refuse Disposal- Law and Legislation
Agendas (administrative records)
Articles
Diagrams
Fliers (printed matter)
Legal documents
Maps
Minutes
Newsletters
Notes
Photographs
Posters - Names:
- Concerned Citizens for the Environment
American Ref-Fuel Company
New York (State) Department of Environmental Conservation
Blandy, Tom - Places:
- Green Island (N.Y.)
Contents
Access
Using These Materials
- ACCESS:
- The archives are open to the public and anyone is welcome to visit and view the collections.
- RESTRICTIONS:
-
Access to this record group is unrestricted.
- TERMS OF ACCESS:
-
The researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming with the laws of copyright. Whenever possible, the M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives will provide information about copyright owners and other restrictions, but the legal determination ultimately rests with the researcher. Requests for permission to publish material from this collection should be discussed with the Head of Special Collections and Archives.
- PREFERRED CITATION:
-
Preferred citation for this material is as follows:
Identification of specific item, series, box, folder, Tom Blandy Papers, 1980-1999. M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University at Albany, State University of New York (hereafter referred to as the Blandy Papers).