2025 - The Year of the Forest

Taghkanic Talks is a program developed by the Taghkanic Climate Smart and Conservation Advisory Committees to host public presentations on a variety of topics of interest to the Taghkanic community. Past presentations have spotlighted community solar programs, heat-pump technology, and programs to assist with home weatherization. Another series focused on pollinators and native plant species, highlighting small but meaningful actions individuals can take to restore and preserve the ecology of our beautiful county.

In the upcoming months Taghkanic Talks will host a series of presentations we're calling The Forest in Your Backyard. Taghkanic and Columbia County reside within a vast stretch of contiguous forest stretching from Dutchess County to Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont. This forest provides essential habitat for a wide variety of plant, bird, insect, amphibian, aquatic, and mammalian species - and plays a critical role in providing clean drinking water for all of us.

If you own property in Taghkanic, chances are you own a portion of that forest. We hope you will join us for these presentations - and conversations - about what we can do to preserve and restore our forest resources. - STAY TUNED - the first talk is scheduled for February 8th.

In June 2022, four Mitsubishi air-source heat pumps were installed at Town Hall to replace the existing oil-based heating and window air conditioning units. In the summer of 2023, the lighting system at Town Hall was converted from a combination of incandescent & fluorescent fixtures to all LED fixtures. A recent analysis by the Climate Smart Committee shows how these changes affected energy use and energy costs at Town Hall. The results indicate an annual cost saving of around $1076 and an annual reduction in energy use equivalent to 5.8 metric tons of CO2. This corresponds to the CO2 emitted by 1.3 average gasoline powered cars over a 1-year period.

But how much CO2 is that? It's not easy to visualize, right? Well, imagine a block of Dry Ice measuring one meter high X one meter deep X 3.72 meters wide, weighing over 12,000 pounds - that would be 5.8 metric tons of CO2 in its solid form. See full article.

If you are interested in helping Taghkanic's seniors and caregivers, please contact TSN co-chairs Celine Kagan and Susan Silverman at taghkanic60plus@gmail.com.

STRs & ADUs in Taghkanic

In 2024 the Town Board passed two local laws updating the town oning Code. Local Law #3 2024 permits and sets forth the regulations for Short Term Rentals in Taghkanic. Local Law #2 2024 defines and allows for Accessory Dwelling Units. The permitting of ADUs was enacted so that Taghkanic residents would be eligible for NY State grant funding to help residents with the costs of building or restoring these structures. The county has applied for the grant and will be notified of the outcome in 2025.

The community fridge is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can't miss it - the cheery yellow building sits alongside the back door of Town Hall. The fridge and pantry are stocked with all manner of foods, including meals prepared by Columbia County Recovery Kitchen.

We welcome food donations - click on image to download full-size PDF of Guidelines. If you'd like to join our brigade of fridge volunteers and help manage, clean and stock the fridge, please contact Betsy (betsyalbertfortaghkanic@gmail.com).

Here are three ways to donate directly to the Fridge: Venmo (@taghkanicfridge); PayPal (@TaghkanicFridge); or drop a donation in the box at Town Hall. Donations are NOT tax deductible. However, if you'd like your donation to be tax deductible, OR if you have a matching donation program through your employer and would like to double your impact, you can make a donation to the Purpose Cooperative. The Purpose Cooperative is a 501c3 through which we receive our Shared Plate stipend. You can send a check to Purpose Cooperative, 95 Main Street #546, Philmont, NY 12565 and ask that it be earmarked for the Taghkanic Fridge.