Dec 14, 2025 — by

Amy Feiereisel (Community Engagement Reporter)

Dec 14, 2025 —

Back in November of 2022, New York voters approved a $4.2 billion-dollar Environmental Bond Act.

That money was to be used for projects that protect water quality, help communities adapt to climate change, improve resiliency and create green jobs.

Three years later, the state has doled out about a quarter of the bond pot, just over $1 billion dollars, to about 350 projects statewide.

33 of those projects are in Northern New York, totaling about $47,822,567, or 5% of the total spending so far.

The Adirondack Explorer has a breakdown of projects within the Adirondack Park here. 

You can explore all those projects in more detail on the NYS project map here. 

Some of the bigger ticket items are $13.1 million for the Adirondack Rail Trail’s Saranac Lake Depot Project.

The Village of Potsdam received just under $8.9 million dollars for stormwater detention and green infrastructure improvements.

And 14 school districts and 1 BOCES collectively got about seven-and-a-half million dollars to buy electric school buses and chargers, everywhere from Watertown to Lake George to Chateaugay.

Here’s a complete list of projects, organized by award amount. 

Water Quality, Land Conservation, Flood Management Projects 

$13.1 million for Adirondack Rail Trail and Saranac Lake Depot Project (Saranac Lake, Franklin County) 

$8,975,000 for Village of Potsdam Stormwater Detention and Green Infrastructure improvements (Potsdam, St. Lawrence County). 

$5 million for City of Plattsburgh Drinking Water System Upgrades (Plattsburgh, Clinton County) 

$4 million for Chateaugay Fish Hatchery Improvements (Chateaugay, Franklin County) 

$2.1 million for Adirondack Fish Hatchery Improvements (Saranac Lake, Franklin County) 

$1,181,812 for City of Plattsburgh MacDonough Park Flood Improvements (Plattsburgh, Clinton County)

$1 million for Bartlett Carry Dam Repair (Harrietstown, Franklin County) 

$896,000 for Loon Lake Dam Repair (Chestertown, Warren County)

$651,000 for City of Ogdensburg East David Street Sewer Rehabilitation (Ogdensburg, St. Lawrence County)

$573,602 for Village of Canton Playground and Park improvements (Canton, St. Lawrence County)

$566,310 for South Branch Moose River Reconnection (Arietta, Hamilton County)

$535,401 for Schroon River Access Site Resiliency Improvements (Lake George, Warren County)

$421.347 for Adirondack Small Dairy Improvements to the Essex County Soil and Water Conservation District (Lewis, Essex County)

$344,250 for Summit Street Culvert Replacement (Boonville, Oneida County)

304,126 for Mill Creek Streambank Stabilization (Lowville, Lewis County)

$255,400 for Town of Martinsburg Sewer District and Wastewater Treatment Plant Improvements( Martinsburg, Lewis County)

$148,970 for Hamilton County Roadside Stabilization Program (Lake Pleasant, Hamilton County)

131,599 for Silvery Falls Farm Silage Leachate Project (Lowville, Lewis County)

Climate Mitigation Projects (all are for electric school buses or infrastructure)

$2,572,500 for Watertown School District

$1,323,000 for South Glens Falls School District

$784,000 for Alexandria School Central District

$514,500 for Moriah School District

$392,000 for Chateaugay School District

$257,250 for Chazy Union Free School District

$257,250 for Edwards-Knox Central School District

$257,250 for Clifton Fine School District

$257,250 for Copenhagen School District

$257,250 for Beaver River School District

$220,500 for Jefferson-Lewis BOCES

$220,500 for Lake George School District

$130,000 for Gouverneur Central School District

$130,000 for Saranac School District 

$65,000 for Brushton-Moira Central School District