64 Search Results for scajaquada creek

Jul 30

2014

Cheektowaga pledges action on Scajaquada

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There is progress to report on Scajaquada Creek. The creek has been badly polluted by the dumping of more than 500 million gallons a year of sewage and untreated stormwater runoff by Buffalo and Cheektowaga. As a result, the Scajaquada is plagued by high bacteria levels , botulism that kills birds and sludge up to five feet deep in parts of the creek bed. Town of Cheektowaga officials, who to this point have dodged questions since our initial report two weeks ago, acknowledged to Dan Telvock of Investigative Post that the dumping is a serious problem that they need to address.[...]

Posted 10 years ago

Jul 28

2014

Cheektowaga pols won’t discuss Scajaquada

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Cheektowaga is responsible for dumping more than 300 million gallons of untreated sewage and stormwater runoff in the Scajaquada Creek every year. The state Department of Environmental Conservation ordered town officials to develop a plan to address the problem six years ago, but Cheektowaga has yet to devise an acceptable plan. Against that backdrop, Dan Telvock went to Town Supervisor Mary Holtz seeking an explanation. She has failed to respond to a dozen phone calls and emails and town Council members are no more eager to talk. Here is his complete report, which aired Friday on WGRZ.  

Posted 10 years ago

Aug 14

2023

City authority hires Mayor Brown’s son

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The Buffalo Sewer Authority hired a new press information officer in April, but neither the agency nor the mayor’s office will talk to reporters about who he is or how much he’s paid. But payroll records and authority meeting minutes tell the story: It’s Mayor Byron Brown’s son. The minutes of the May meeting of authority’s board directors indicate Byron Brown II was hired in April at an annual salary of $62,665. His home address is listed as 14 Blaine, which is the mayor’s house. The authority’s payroll records show Brown II earning $2,161 as his biweekly base pay when[...]

Posted 9 months ago

Feb 21

2022

Celebrating a decade of muckraking

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A billionaire is pouring money — $15 million the first year of operation alone — to launch a nonprofit news organization in Baltimore.  Five foundations are putting up $20 million to start a similar venture in Houston. Me? I started Investigative Post with my credit card and an understanding wife. It was the fall of 2011. I had just taken a buyout from The Buffalo News, where I had worked for 25 years. I’d had enough. The paper was in the early stages of a downward spiral that continues to this day. I figured I had 10 years left in[...]

Posted 2 years ago

Aug 2

2021

Popular waterways contaminated by bacteria 

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E. coli is a nasty waterborne bacteria that can cause vomiting and diarrhea. Authorities close beaches when levels exceed safety limits. But they’re doing next to nothing about unsafe readings in other local waterways. There’s a particular problem with the Black Rock Canal, popular with fishermen, the occasional swimmer and, most notably, the West Side Rowing Club and high school and college crew teams. E. coli readings consistently exceed safe limits — by up to 14 times — established by the federal government. “There are people coming in contact with water with E. coli from human feces every single day,”[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Jan 1

2019

Probe into cop drowning voted top story of ’18

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An investigation by Daniela Porat that documented how Buffalo police put diver Craig Lehner in harm’s way was voted by readers as Investigative Post’s best story of 2018. Porat’s deeply researched story reported that Lehner, who drowned during a training exercise in October 2017, was not sufficiently trained and equipped to handle the swift currents of the Niagara River. Wrote Porat: “Trainees for swift water diving elsewhere typically start out in water moving somewhere between 1 and 4 knots, or under 5 miles per hour. But the Niagara River on the day Lehner trained – and drowned – was moving[...]

Posted 5 years ago

Mar 26

2018

Telvock leaves Investigative Post

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Award-winning environmental reporter Dan Telvock has left Investigative Post. Telvock, perhaps best known for his reporting on the polluted Scajaquada Creek and lead-poisoning among inner-city children, is joining WIVB, Channel 4, as investigative producer. “Dan was the first reporter I hired after I started Investigative Post and he’s been a big reason for our success,” said Investigative Post Editor Jim Heaney. “He’s won more than his share of journalism awards, but more importantly, his reporting had a huge impact in the community.” Said Telvock: “My six years at Investigative Post are among the most memorable and rewarding of my 18-year career.[...]

Posted 6 years ago

Jan 6

2018

Police misconduct voted top story of ’17

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Readers have voted Daniela Porat’s story about misconduct by Buffalo police as Investigative Post’s best story of 2017. Buffalo police who cross the line, published and broadcast Sept. 20, documented how the department’s Strike Force and Housing Unit conduct illegal searches and sometimes submit dubious testimony. Defense attorneys described some officers as “vigilantes” with a “cowboy mentality.” Reported Porat: “I think they have a complete disregard for the Constitution of the United States, and most importantly, the Fourth Amendment,” said Michael Stachowski, a Buffalo defense attorney. “They just seem to roust kids in the street, chase people, and hope they[...]

Posted 6 years ago