Fernando Figueroa

Ithaca

Environment and Health Reporter at The Ithaca Voice

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Articles

Canadian wildfires impact local air quality

3 weeks ago | ithacavoice.org | Fernando Figueroa

ITHACA, N.Y. — Dozens of Canadian fires left Ithaca under a smoky haze Tuesday, leading to poor visibility and air quality around the county. The fires in Quebec have burned thousands of hectares, and as of Wednesday the smoke is lingering over a third of the United States. Central New York has avoided the worst air quality impacts thus far, though western New York, the Hudson Valley and parts of New York City are all experiencing air quality problems.
Students release hundreds of trout into the Cayuga Lake watershed

3 weeks ago | ithacavoice.org | Fernando Figueroa

ITHACA, N.Y. — Salmon Creek is usually a prime fishing location for local anglers. But last week it received an influx of trout fingerlings thanks to a pair of fourth-grade classes from Cayuga Heights Elementary School. For months, the fish lived in tanks in the classrooms of teachers Kimberly WIlliamson and Olyvia Brazier, carefully cared for by their students.
City mulls insurance relief options with new flood risk maps on the horizon

1 month ago | ithacavoice.org | Fernando Figueroa

ITHACA, N.Y. — The long-awaited FEMA flood maps are set to be implemented in Tompkins County in the coming weeks. Once the maps are in effect, the number of homes in the city of Ithaca requiring flood insurance will increase significantly, though city officials are now examining different avenues to reduce the impact of these new flood maps on homeowners. This will be the first time the local flood risk maps have been updated since 1981.
Youth-led People's Earth Day rally draws hundreds of students to Commons

2 months ago | ithacavoice.org | Fernando Figueroa

ITHACA, N.Y— Imagine stretching your arms toward the sky like branches, and planting your feet into the ground like sturdy roots. “Feel like you’re making a real hug with the earth, and the earth is hugging you back, and you’re letting your mind begin to trickle down into your body,” Elan Shapiro told a crowd of secondary school students Tuesday afternoon. The students had walked out of their classes in a rally to observe People’s Earth Day 2025.
Treading lightly in deep waters

2 months ago | ithacavoice.org | Fernando Figueroa

ITHACA, N.Y. — Jill Tripp lives on First Street. So does her mother, who lives just up the street. Their homes, like most on the 100 block of First Street, are safe from a 100-year-flood, at least according to the flood maps handed down by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) that the city is scheduled to adopt in May.
Lake defender dives into county legislature race

2 months ago | ithacavoice.org | Fernando Figueroa

ITHACA, N.Y. — After years of environmental advocacy, John V. Dennis, a retired sociologist, has announced his bid for the Tompkins County Legislature’s newly redrawn District 7, which includes the Village of Lansing and parts of Cayuga Heights and Varna. He first moved to Ithaca from Virginia in 1968 to study at Cornell University, left the city, and moved back permanently in 1993 because he thought it would be a good place to raise a family.
Spring Cleaning - The Ithaca Voice

2 months ago | ithacavoice.org | Fernando Figueroa

ITHACA, N.Y. — An office among the gorges — a reality for most Ithacans, but it doesn’t get more literal than for New York State’s Rope Access Team. Every year as the trees begin to bud, the crew takes to these ancient geologic wonders, dangling from 200 feet of rope as they remove loose shale and other debris that could hurt visitors in preparation for tourist season.
Ithaca once again weighing proposal for homeless encampment service hub

2 months ago | ithacavoice.org | Fernando Figueroa

ITHACA, N.Y. — Nearly three years after it took on the task to address homelessness, the City of Ithaca has a new proposed plan to manage the informal and evolving homeless encampment on the city’s West End. An initial 2023 pilot policy created a temporary 28-acre “non-enforcement zone” where people are allowed to sleep outside. The zone is located on a plot of city-owned land behind the Walmart store on Ithaca’s West End, also known as Southwest Park.
Cornell Graduate Student Union finalizes its first-ever tentative contract - The Ithaca Voice

Mar 27, 2025 | ithacavoice.org | Fernando Figueroa

ITHACA, N.Y. — After exactly one year of bargaining, the Cornell Graduate Student Union and Cornell University leaders reached their first collective bargaining agreement Tuesday. It’s the union’s first tentative contract since graduate student workers voted to unionize in 2023. The union was able to secure some “just cause” employment protections, an increase in wages and a union security article that ensures enforcement of the contract.
High school teacher joins county legislature race

Mar 20, 2025 | ithacavoice.org | Fernando Figueroa

ITHACA, N.Y. — After a decade teaching at Ithaca High School, Kyle Emily Erickson has set her sights on representing District 13, including Danby and Caroline, on the Tompkins County Legislature. Erickson said she thinks her experience as a working parent will be advantageous for her in the Democratic primaries in June. She said she thinks residents should have the opportunity to elect a legislator who is in that phase of their life.