Autumn has been more active than ever at Mohonk Preserve. The leaves may be mostly gone, but our members and visitors continue to arrive in record numbers to enjoy the beautiful fall weather.
This issue of Ridgelines includes information on the Kleine Kill stream restoration project, profiles of our newest Board members and acknowledgment of our generous 2024 grantors and the projects they support.
If you haven’t had a chance to visit the Preserve yet this season, we hope to see you on the land soon!
Banner photo by Renée Zernitsky
Restoring the Kleine Kill Stream Corridor
For the past six years, Mohonk Preserve’s Conservation and Stewardship teams have been working on environmental and engineering solutions to address the failing Duck Pond Dam on the Kleine Kill stream.
Duck Pond was created in 1908 as part of the entrance to the Mohonk Mountain House by building a stacked stone, earthen fill dam on the Kleine Kill. Eventually the Mountain House entrance was rerouted for automobiles and Duck Pond was no longer part of the entryway experience.
In 1973, The Mohonk Trust, predecessor to Mohonk Preserve, purchased a parcel including a portion of the Kleine Kill stream, along with the pond and dam, from Lake Mohonk Corporation.
In 2018, the dam’s century-old drainage system failed, reducing the pond’s water level and exposing several severe defects. An inspection by the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation’s (NYSDEC) Division of Dam Safety identified an unrepairable drain valve, significant water seepage at the toe (the junction of the downstream face of a dam with the ground surface), and a critically deteriorating spillway, all of which could lead to impending failure of the dam.
Mohonk Preserve engaged a professional engineering team to develop a remediation plan. A multi-year study involving Preserve volunteer committee members, staff and board members was completed in 2022. Multiple scenarios were investigated and, after extensive review and assessment, the options of rehabilitating the dam to meet NYSDEC dam safety standards or removing all or part of the dam were further evaluated.
These options were thoroughly reviewed and vetted based on Mohonk Preserve’s conservation mission and current best practices regarding dam removal, which has many benefits for the environment, including restoring the natural flow of streams, improving water quality and reducing flood hazards. In an era of climate change, water needs space to flow and drain for streams to be as cool and healthy as possible. Ultimately, the Preserve determined that the optimal conservation action was to restore the Kleine Kill stream corridor with upland wet meadows and beaver analogs for ponding.
In October, the dam’s lower-level outlet drain ceased to flow, requiring the Preserve to request permission from NYSDEC to install an actively managed siphon system to control the water levels and reduce pressure on the dam.
The Preserve will continue to use the siphon system to maintain consistent water levels, reducing the hydrostatic pressure on the dam and providing habitat for wildlife. We will also support native revegetation through monitoring and invasive plant control.
Going forward, working with our engineering firm and in alignment with our conservation mission, the Preserve will complete designs to develop an upland wet meadow with ponds, beaver analogs and a reconnected stream, while maintaining carriage road access and identifying sites for volunteer and education programs.
Throughout this multi-year process, we will pursue our goals of making the lands in our care more resilient to climate change, ensuring that they flourish today and in the future.
To view related documents and additional information, visit: www.mohonkpreserve.org/land-stewardship/kleinekill.
Mohonk Preserve Welcomes 2024 Board Members
Mohonk Preserve has expanded the knowledge and experience of our Board of Directors with the addition of three exceptional members with backgrounds in media and entertainment, finance and conservation, and public service.
Carryl Pierre-Drews
Carryl is Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) where she is responsible for providing executive leadership and management of the IAB marketing and communications organization and activities to forward the IAB’s position as a digital, marketing, and media industry thought leader and agenda-setter. Previously, she served as Vice President of Marketing at Fullscreen, an AT&T Warner Media Company and Senior Vice President of Strategic Marketing at NBCUniversal.
Her nonprofit experience includes serving as Secretary of the Board of Directors for Pet Partners, where she has helped devise strategies to communicate and expand the role of therapy animals in peoples’ lives. She has also been an active member of She Runs It, an organization invested in women’s achievements, for over 20 years.
Carryl holds a bachelor’s degree in advertising and dance from The City College of New York. She was elected to the Preserve’s Board of Directors in June 2024 and serves on the Marketing & Communications Committee.
Michael J. Embler
Mike is the former Chief Investment Officer of the Mutual Series family of mutual funds and CEO of J.P. Morgan Asset Management of Franklin Templeton. Previously, he was Managing Director at Nomura Securities. He has extensive public company and nonprofit board experience.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from SUNY Albany and an MBA from George Washington University. Mike completed a certificate program in Conservation and Environmental Sustainability from the Earth Institute Center for Environmental Sustainability Program at Columbia University’s Earth Institute and created the website www.ecbookcollector.com.
Mike has been a part-time resident of New Paltz for over 25 years and his primary residence is in New York City with his wife, Maria Cilenti, and their two daughters. His interests include endurance sports, motorsports, backpacking and adventure travel. He previously served on the Preserve’s Board of Directors from 2014-2020, rejoined in September 2024 and serves on the Finance and Land Protection Committees.
Daniel Torres
Dan is a lifelong resident of Ulster County and a dedicated public servant who began his public service journey in high school when he was elected to the New Paltz Central School District Board of Education. He subsequently was elected to the New Paltz Town Council where he served as Deputy Supervisor and was on the board during the creation and acquisition of Millbrook Preserve.
He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Marist College and has contributed to numerous successful political campaigns. Dan served as the Director of Communications and public Information Officer in the Ulster County Executive’s Office during the COVID-19 pandemic and currently is Deputy Chief of Staff for Congressman Pat Ryan.
Dan joined the Preserve Board in September 2024 and serves on the Land Protection and Marketing & Communications Committees.
Mohonk Preserve’s 22 board members represent numerous sectors including academia, business, consulting, public relations, advertising and marketing, law, real estate, public service and environmental science, bringing varied skills and perspectives to the Preserve through their strategic involvement in projects, programs, fundraising and governance.
Special Thanks to Our Conservation Champions!
As part of our conservation mission, Mohonk Preserve continually seeks out opportunities to improve our facilities and advance our programs. The Preserve wishes to acknowledge and thank the many government agencies, private foundations and other organizations that have made grants in support of our work over the past year.
In 2025 Mohonk Preserve will rehabilitate the historic Brook Farmhouse to become our Center for Conservation Programs. Generous grant funding for this project totaling over $1.3 million is being provided by the New York State Energy Research & Development Authority (NYSERDA), the New York State Empire State Development Corporation (ESD), The Dormitory Authority of New York State (DASNY), the New York State Conservation Partnerships Program (NYSCPP) administered by the Land Trust Alliance, the Gerry Charitable Trust, and the M&T Charitable Foundation. Additional generous private donations are also helping Mohonk Preserve to cover the costs of this project.
Other funders are supporting Mohonk Preserve’s programmatic work in Conservation, Education, Visitor Experience and Stewardship. The federal Natural Resources Conservation Service Environmental Quality Improvement Program (EQIP), along with the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), NYSCPP, the Loewy Family Foundation, Bailey Charitable Foundation, Blake-Nutall Fund, and Ulster County AED Grant Program are all providing over $400,000 in combined support for silvicultural treatments, fire break expansion, invasive species control, and to monitor bird populations and other species within vulnerable forest habitats to promote biodiversity and resilience against negative impacts of climate change.
For the Preserve’s environmental efforts, we are pleased to acknowledge over $240,000 in support received from the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, the FairWays Foundation, Dorr Foundation, M&T Charitable Foundation, Henry E. Niles Foundation, and Stewart’s Shops. These grants are allowing the Preserve to host schoolchildren onsite for outdoor educational programming, to provide in-class outreach programs for other schools, and to carry out our robust public program series.
Our Visitor Experience and Stewardship work has also benefitted from over $140,000 in combined grant support from NYSCPP, Parks & Trails New York, Land Trust Alliance, Hudson River Valley Greenway, and Ulster Savings Charitable Foundation. These grants are making it possible to provide ranger rescue training and equipment upgrades, develop a visitor experience plan and a campground improvement plan, build the new Split Rock Trail Loop, and continue the popular Healthy Ulster temporary free pass program for Ulster County residents.
Thanks to all of these organizations for investing in Mohonk Preserve’s conservation mission!
Save the Date! Tuesday, December 3rd
Giving Tuesday – Get your donations matched!
December 3, 12:01am – 11:49pm
Celebrate all things Mohonk Preserve by joining in this global day of giving. Created as an antidote to the commercialism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, this is an easy way to support the Preserve and care for a place you love. All donations will be matched, dollar for dollar – up to $20,000. Give online, call the visitor center (845-255-0919) or stop by to make a donation in person.
Seasonal Photo Gallery
View seasonal photographs by our volunteer photographers below!
See more photos by the Mohonk Preserve Volunteer Photographers on their Facebook page.
Seasonal Updates
IN APPRECIATION. Go to our listing of Preserver and Premium Memberships, Donations, Business Memberships, Sponsorships and Funders, and Memorial and Honorary Gifts received July 1 through September 30, 2024, and a listing of current Legacy Society Members.
CHECK THIS OUT.
Giving Tuesday – Get your donations matched!
December 3, 12:01am – 11:49pm
Celebrate all things Mohonk Preserve by joining in this global day of giving. Created as an antidote to the commercialism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, this is an easy way to support the Preserve and care for a place you love. All donations will be matched, dollar for dollar – up to $20,000. Give online, call the visitor center (845-255-0919) or stop by to make a donation in person.
Get Into Nature: See a full list of upcoming programs here including a Eco-Art: Holiday Ornaments workshop and the annual Christmas Bird Count.
Get ready for Summer Camp 2025: Registration will open January 28th, 2025. Scholarships are currently open and are due January 15th, 2025! Click here to see our summer camp program offerings.
Mohonk Preserve 2025 Calendars make great gifts, get yours today at the Visitor Center or order a calendar online!
Gift Memberships: Give the gift of the great outdoors with a Mohonk Preserve membership! Gift Memberships are available at the Visitor Center or online here.
Online Holiday Auction: Join us for Mohonk Preserve’s Online Holiday Auction from December 6–13, 2024.
Art Shows at Mohonk Preserve: An art exhibit by Jack Fagan will be on display at the Mohonk Preserve Visitor Center for the month of December. Stop by and enjoy the view! Join us for a Meet the Artist reception on Saturday, December 7th from 3-5pm.
MOHONK PRESERVE BUSINESS MEMBERS. Thank you to all our Business Members. See the full list of Mohonk Preserve Business Members in our area guide.
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