New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) today announced the award of an education and outreach contract to promote responsible recreation and sustainable use of the formerly trailless peaks over 3,500 feet in the Catskills. The Trail Conference will be conducting a visitor use survey starting this weekend and through the fall to help guide management actions on state lands in the region.

“DEC is committed to enhancing responsible recreation through education and environmental stewardship,” said Regional Director, Kelly Turturro. “The New York - New Jersey Trail Conference’s expertise in visitor outreach, volunteer engagement, and trail building uniquely positions them to address the contract goals and continuing DEC’s work to educate the public about practices that protect our resources throughout the Catskills region.”

The New York-New Jersey Trail Conference was awarded the contract of nearly $50,000 to enhance data collection and develop educational outreach opportunities that seek to better understand visitor use through projects including:

1. Administration and analysis of a visitor experience survey;
2. Developing training materials for volunteers and stewards that incorporate Leave No Trace^TM messaging;
3. Educating visitors on recreational impacts to vulnerable species and habitats on Catskill Mountain summits; and
4. Recommendations for improving messaging throughout the formerly trailless peak study area.

"As a local trail organization in our region, the Trail Conference is honored to have been awarded this contract from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation,” said Josh Howard, Executive Director of the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference. “Since 1920, our organization has been committed to preserving and enhancing outdoor recreation opportunities for our local communities. We look forward to working collaboratively with the DEC to promote the sustainable use of the formerly trailless peaks in the Catskills, and helping to protect the unique resources and sensitive habitats in this beautiful region."

In 2019, DEC initiated a baseline data collection effort to understand the spatial extent, lineal distribution and condition of visitor created informal trails that had developed on the Catskill trailless peaks over 3,500 feet in elevation. In 2020, DEC created the Catskill Strategic Planning Advisory Group (CAG) consisting of individuals, organizations, and local governments familiar with the Catskills region and tasked the group with providing recommendations for sustainable management. In their final report, the group recommended that the federal Interagency Visitor Use Management Framework be used to identify solutions to the compounding effects of degraded informal trails and formerly trailless peak summit conditions due to high use. As part of the Visitor Use Management (VUM) process, education, outreach, and visitor use surveys play an important role in determining visitor use preferences regarding current and desired conditions of recreational lands. This project will provide opportunities that will guide the adaptive management process, which is a key component of VUM and will help DEC develop solutions for protecting the Catskill Mountains. 

The visitor experience survey will be conducted at trailheads during Columbus/Indigenous Peoples’ weekend and online through Nov. 11, 2023. To participate in the online visitor experience survey, visit the NYNJ Trail Conference’s website.

The contract is funded by New York State’s Environmental Protection Fund (EPF).  Among the many environmental victories in the 2023-24 State Budget, Governor Hochul maintained EPF funding at $400 million, the highest level of funding in the program's history. The EPF provides funding for critical environmental programs such as land acquisition, farmland protection, enhanced recreational access, water quality improvement, and an aggressive environmental justice agenda.