From the March 2006 issue

DEC Website Breaks Visitation Record

In 2005, more than 1500 web pages and 500 downloadable documents were added to DEC's website. Concurrently, nearly 7 million people visited the site, representing an increase of more than 2 million from 2004.

DEC is proud of having improved our website's accessibility-designing and coding it so that people with disabilities or alternate technologies are able to access the same information as do most other users. In addition, new or improved applications enable visitors to perform searches and display results, explore "what if" scenarios and use special functions.

The campground page is one of the most popular on DEC's website

Popular Pages

After viewing DEC's homepage, users usually visit the subject index next. This page, which is updated regularly, helps visitors find what they need without having to do a search beforehand.

Pages that provide hunting and fishing information are among the most popular, followed by pages with information about DEC campgrounds and job opportunities. DEC applications, such as the environmental navigator and the environmental remediation databases are popular as well.

Environment DEC Listserve

Last year, DEC also created a mailing list for automatically notifying subscribers whenever a new Environment DEC, our online monthly newsletter, becomes available. Everyone is encouraged to take advantage of this free service by signing up now. New subscribers will be asked via e-mail to confirm that they have, in fact, subscribed to this notification service.

Subscribers receive notifications only from DEC, and they may change their password and/or their subscription information, request a password reminder or unsubscribe at any time. Best of all, because subscribers are notified when a new Environment DEC has been published, they can get the information as soon as it is available.

Communications Tool

Hunters can obtain general information
about chronic wasting disease, as
well as check the status of test results

DEC's website has become a powerful communications tool. For example, those people seeking the most current information about chronic wasting disease (CWD) have been able to find it here.

The general CWD page received more than 850 visits in March 2005 when CWD was first discovered in a deer in New York state. As interest in this issue grew, the number of visitors to that page more than tripled the following month. During this same period, the page covering CWD specifically in New York State received more than 3,500 visits.

Ongoing Improvements

Last year we developed much new content, including a web page for grants administered through DEC and another page for forms available via DEC's website. In December, a revised web page for the Conservationist was launched, providing new features, enhancing navigation and showcasing articles and images. In addition, a new page containing guidance and policy documents was added to DEC's website.

DEC's web team has been working hard on the public's behalf to improve the content and accessibility of information about New York State's natural resources, environmental quality and recreational opportunities. To ensure that everyone is able to understand our website information, DEC is seeking assistance from the general public to help us improve it. Interested parties should send an e-mail with "redesign volunteer" in the subject line. Together we can make DEC's website everyone's first and best source of environmentally related information.