2023 New York Laws › ENV - Environmental Conservation › Article 9 - Lands and Forests › Title 1 - General Provisions › 9-0105 - General Powers and Duties.

§ 9-0105. General powers and duties.
For  the  purpose  of carrying out the provisions of this article, the
  department shall have the power, duty and authority to:
1. Exercise care, custody and control of the several preserves,  parks
  and other state lands described in this article.
2.  Consistent  with the provisions of section 9-0109 of this chapter,
  establish, acquire, control and manage state parks, historic  sites  and
  parkways in the forest preserve counties within the sixth park region as
  defined  in  section 41-0101 and to acquire lands for such purposes when
  moneys have been appropriated therefor.
3. Make necessary rules and regulations to secure  proper  enforcement
  of  the  provisions  hereof.  In  particular,  the department shall have
  authority to make  rules  and  regulations  prohibiting  any  person  or
  persons  from  entering  upon  any state-owned lands, or restricting the
  activities of the public on such lands, whenever it  determines  that  a
  serious fire hazard exists thereon, and with the consent of the owner to
  extend  the  applicability of such rules and regulations, in whole or in
  part, to privately-owned forest lands.
4. Establish, operate and maintain nurseries  for  the  production  of
  trees  to  be  used in reforestation. Such trees may be used to reforest
  any land owned by the state, supplied to owners of  private  land  at  a
  price  not  exceeding cost of production, or used for planting on public
  lands under such terms as may be deemed to be for the public benefit.
5. Prepare, print, post  or  distribute  printed  matter  relating  to
  forestry  and make investigations or experiments with regard to forestry
  practices.
6. Receive and accept, in the name of the  people  of  the  state,  by
  gift,  devise, or otherwise, the fee or other interest or estate therein
  of lands or timber or both, for general conservation purposes, including
  but not limited to water-shed protection, forest management,  production
  of  timber  or  other  forest products, silviculture, forest and outdoor
  recreation and kindred purposes.
7. Acquire,  when  moneys  therefor  have  been  appropriated  by  the
  legislature or are otherwise available, real property or any interest in
  any timber thereon, situated within the Adirondack or the Catskill parks
  or  contiguous,  connected  with  or  adjacent  to  either  park, deemed
  necessary for  the  enlargement  of  the  forest  preserve  or  for  the
  conservation of the lands, forests and waters within the state, and real
  property  deemed  necessary  for  the  purpose of protecting the forests
  within the state from fire.
7-a. Acquire, with the approval of the  director  of  the  budget  and
  within  such  appropriations  as  may  be made available therefor by the
  legislature,  such  abandoned  railroad  rights-of-way  and  other  real
  property  pursuant  to  subdivision  seven  of  this  section  as may be
  necessary to develop a system of trails in the Adirondack  and  Catskill
  parks which shall mesh, where possible, with the comprehensive statewide
  trails  system  promulgated by the commissioner of parks and recreation;
  and promulgate, develop and improve  such  trails  systems  within  said
  parks  in  order to make such trails suitable and available for use. For
  the purposes of  this  subdivision  "trails"  shall  include  footpaths,
  bikeways,  snowmobile  trails,  horse  trails, cross country ski trails,
  roads and other rights-of-way suitable for hiking,  strolling,  cycling,
  horseback  riding, skiing and other means of motorized and non-motorized
  travel for recreational purposes  and  shall  include  combinations  and
  systems  of  trails,  including  connecting  and side trails, and trails
  leading to scenic and recreational areas.
8. Examine the forest lands under the  charge  of  the  several  state
  institutions, boards or other management for the purpose of advising and
  cooperating in securing proper forest management of such lands.
9. Bring any action or proceeding for the following purposes:
a.  to  enforce the state's rights or interests in real property which
  an owner of land would be authorized to bring in like cases;
b. to insure the enforcement of the provisions of this article;
c. to determine in trespass, ejectment or other suitable actions,  the
  title to any land claimed adversely to the state;
d. to cancel tax sales or to set aside cancellations of tax sales.
10.  Compromise  or  adjust  any  judgment  or  claims  arising out of
  violations of any provisions of this article, except where title to land
  is involved.
11. Have custody of all  abstracts  of  title,  papers,  contracts  or
  memoranda  relating thereto, except original deeds to the state, for any
  lands purchased or conveyed to the state for forest preserve purposes.
12. Enter into cooperative agreement with the United States Department
  of Agriculture, the United States Department of Labor, the United States
  Office of  Economic  Opportunity,  municipalities  or  persons  for  the
  purpose  of  better  protecting  the  forests of the state from fire and
  pests and promoting the practice of forestry. Moneys received  from  the
  United  States  government, municipalities or persons in accordance with
  such agreements shall be deposited with the Division of Finance  in  the
  Department of Taxation and Finance, and may be withdrawn by the Division
  of   Finance   upon   the  warrant  or  order  of  the  Commissioner  of
  Environmental Conservation. The provisions of section 121 of  the  State
  Finance  Law  shall  not  apply  to  any moneys received pursuant to the
  provisions of this subdivision if used for the purposes indicated.
13. When an honest dispute arises as to the location of  the  boundary
  line  between  land  owned  by  the state, over which the department has
  control and supervision, and land privately owned,  execute  a  boundary
  line  agreement  between the owners of such private lands and the state,
  subject to the approval of the Commissioner of General Services.
14. Designate or approve, whenever the Commissioner of  Correction  or
  the  director of the division for Youth so requests, sites on land under
  its control for  the  establishment  of  work  camps  to  which  persons
  transferred to the correctional camps for youth, or to youth opportunity
  or  youth rehabilitation centers may be sent; designate and approve work
  for such persons in conservation projects on  publicly  owned  lands  or
  lands  over  which  the State has a permanent easement for fishing right
  purposes, and provide technical supervision for such work; and designate
  and approve work for such persons  in  conservation  projects  on  lands
  owned  by Cornell University for the use of the State University College
  of Agriculture, and by Syracuse University for  the  use  of  the  State
  University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry.
15. Make rules and regulations and issue permits for the temporary use
  of the forest preserve.
16.  Nothing  in  this  chapter  shall  be  construed as extending the
  jurisdiction of the department over the real or personal property now or
  hereafter under the control or in the custody  of  Palisades  Interstate
  Park  Commission,  but  the  department,  subject  to  the powers of the
  commissioner, is authorized to cooperate with Palisades Interstate  Park
  Commission by the joint employment of wardens, foresters and keepers for
  the  mutual  protection of the lands under their respective jurisdiction
  and other commissions and the preservation of the forests thereon and of
  the fish and game therein.
17. Refund, to the persons  entitled  thereto,  moneys  heretofore  or
  hereafter received by the department pursuant to any law or to an order,

  rule  or  regulation  made and prescribed by the commissioner regulating
  the discharge of the functions, powers and duties of the department  and
  deposited  to  the general fund, upon satisfactory proof of entitlement.
  Such refunds shall, upon approval of the commissioner and after audit by
  the  Comptroller, be paid from any moneys available to the department in
  the general fund.
18. Establish, operate and maintain a search  and  rescue  program  in
  fire  towns  and  fire  districts of the state. For the purposes of this
  section fire towns shall mean such towns provided for in section  9-1107
  of  this  chapter  and  fire  districts  shall  be deemed to be the fire
  protection areas provided for in section  9-1109  of  this  chapter  and
  regulations  promulgated  pursuant  to  the  authority of such sections.
  Pursuant to such program the forest ranger force of the department shall
  have the authority to organize, direct and execute search operations for
  lost persons or civilian aircraft  and  conduct  rescue  operations  for
  persons  injured  or in serious danger of injury in the wild, remote and
  forested areas of fire towns and fire districts of the  state;  provided
  that, where criminal conduct is suspected or fugitive search is involved
  such   search   or  rescue  operations  shall  be  conducted  under  the
  jurisdiction of the appropriate law  enforcement  agency.    Search  and
  rescue  operations  outside  of  fire  towns  and  fire districts may be
  conducted by  the  forest  ranger  force  upon  request  of  the  agency
  conducting such operation.
19.  Identify,  manage  and conserve plants and ecological communities
  that are rare in New York state, located on state-owned lands under  the
  jurisdiction  of the department, and participate in the New York natural
  heritage program, created pursuant to section 11-0539 of  this  chapter,
  to identify rare plants, animals and ecological communities.
20. Exercise such other powers and duties as are provided by law.