ECO police academy commences, rangers to start this week
Published on:
March 9, 2026
Thirty-five ECO recruits of the 25th Basic School for Uniformed Officers began their adventure on February 15th, their first day at the DEC Division of Law Enforcement Training Academy in Pulaski. Depicted in this photo under the watchful eye of Drill Instructor, ECO Sean Dewey, are a past group of ECO academy recruits. Sadly, we lost ECO Dewey this past year. The recruits he helped shape into the fine officers they are today are testament to Sean's love for the job as well that for the officers he had the privilege to train.
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New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Amanda Lefton recently announced DEC is holding academies for its newest classes of Environmental Conservation Police Officers (ECOs) and Forest Rangers.
Recruits for each academy will spend at least six months in order to complete their vigorous training schedules. While the ECO and Ranger academies have some basic police and other training in common, that’s where the similarities end. They each intensely focus upon a number of training areas unique to their respective missions. Upon graduation, both ECO and Ranger recruits will continue extensive on-the-job training.
“DEC Forest Rangers and ECOs each have a rich history of conservation and public protection in New York, and that storied legacy will continue with the newest additions to our ranks,” Lefton said. “These specialized and rigorous training academies ensure graduates will have the skills needed to protect our resources and communities, and I am excited for all candidates having safe and educational starts to incredibly rewarding careers.”
ECOs were originally called game protectors. They were first appointed by Governor Alonzo B. Corning in 1880, largely in response to widespread poaching and market hunting of game like whitetail deer and songbirds which were nearly extirpated in New York at that time.
Forest Rangers, originally known as Fire Wardens, were put into service in 1885 when the New York State Legislature established the Forest Preserve of New York State.
Thirty-five ECO recruits of the 25th Basic School for Uniformed Officers began their journey on February 15 at the DEC Division of Law Enforcement Training Academy in Pulaski.
Its expected 20 Forest Ranger recruits will begin their training on March 15 at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY ESF) Huntington Wildlife Forest in Newcomb Campus.
DEC Division of Law Enforcement Director Karen Przyklek said, “ECOs enforce New York’s Environmental Conservation Law that is protective of public health, our air, water, fish, and wildlife. As our new recruits embark on this strenuous training journey, I encourage them to work hard, follow directions, remain focused, and truly embrace the immense responsibility required to safeguard our natural resources and hold lawbreakers accountable.”
ECO duties include enforcement of all chapters of New York State Environmental Conservation Law. They range from combatting fish and wildlife poaching and the black-market pet trade to enforcement of hazardous and solid waste regulations, dumping, illegal mining, air emissions, water and other pollution, plus much more. They even enforce and monitor the use of low-level radioactive material while protecting the homeland. They’ve come a long way from the days of Game Protectors arresting deer jackers and fish poachers, even though those pursuits remain core to mission of the ECOs of today. In their current expanded role, it’s difficult to name an area of natural resource or environmental protection ECOs do not enforce. They are charged with this broad mandate in every village, city, town, and county in NY from Montauk to Buffalo, including New York City.
DEC reports in 2025, ECOs and investigators across the state responded to more than 35,575 complaints and worked on cases that resulted in 15,673 tickets or arrests. Currently there are only 279 ECOs serving NY’s vast population and varied geography.
“I thank Commissioner Lefton for securing the ECO Academy now underway. The 35 new ECOs hired are an absolute step in the right direction.” In the past, the ECO union director has called for consecutive back-to-back academies so new hires can keep up with normal attrition in the ranks. I would like to see the legislature and Governor Hochul invest in our communities by funding a follow-up ECO Academy as soon as the current 25th Basic Academy concludes in September,” said Matt Krug, ECO Union Director for the PBA of NYS.
The union official asserted, “Even after the graduation of the 35 new ECOs, staffing levels of officers would remain below that of 2008. Environmental enforcement has suffered due to lack of adequate staffing, especially in designated Environmental Justice areas.”
Environmental Justice seeks to provide redress for primarily low-income, disadvantaged, and minority communities with environmental issues and concerns through focused environmental law enforcement and other means.
For the Division of Forest Protection, Forest Ranger duties focus on the public's use of DEC-administered State lands and easements and can span from patrolling State properties to conducting search and rescue operations and fighting wildland fires.
In 2025, DEC Forest Rangers conducted 362 search and rescue missions, extinguished 202 wildfires covering 840 acres, participated in 68 prescribed fires that served to rejuvenate 1,649 acres of land, and worked on cases that resulted in more than 1,100 tickets or arrests. Also in 2025, forty-one Forest Rangers were deployed to fire assignments in 10 different states. Currently there are 147 Forest Rangers serving statewide.
New York’s Forest Rangers are among the nation’s elite with respect to search and rescue, wildland fire and emergency management operations.
Recently appointed DEC Division of Forest Protection Director Melinda Seiden said, “We are looking forward to bolstering the ranks of our already impressive force of Forest Rangers to better protect the public and our natural resources. Rangers put their lives on the line when responding to search and rescue missions, wildland fires, and law enforcement. The Academy will prepare the recruits to join other Forest Rangers in the field.”
The appointment of Melinda Seiden as director for the Division of Forest Protection is a significant departure in the way the Ranger’s “top cop” position has been selected in the past. Formerly, all Forest Ranger Directors rose through the uniformed ranks.
The last posted position of Seiden was that of associate attorney with DEC in 2024, where she handled legal and policy issues for the Office if Public Protection (OPP) which consists of both the Division of Law Enforcement and Forest Protection. Prior to that, she served as Assistant Regional Attorney in DEC’s Region 5. Additionally, Seiden has been recently appointed to serve as acting deputy commissioner of OPP, in addition to being director for the Division of Forest Protection.
Executing the expansive duties with which she is now faced, Seiden is sure to be busy. I congratulate Seiden on the appointments and look forward to the future success of both divisions.
If you are intrigued by the exciting challenges and missions of our ECOs and Forest Rangers, go to DEC’s weblinks below for more information. To view job qualifications for ECOs, visit the Environmental Conservation Police Officer and for Forest Rangers, visit Forest Ranger 1.
A resident of Durham, Larry is a retired captain with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.
