In September 1962, the Consolidated Edison Company announced plans to build a pumped storage facility, the largest of its kind in the world, at Storm King Mountain near Cornwall, New York. The initial application for license to construct the plant was filed with the Federal Power Commission in January 1963. Some three years later the Hudson River Valley Commission was formed by Governor Rockefeller and his staff to regulate development along the Hudson River. Widespread public concern over the social and economic impact of urban sprawl, the deterioration of scenic beauty and natural resources along the Hudson and the economic stagnation of many riverfront communities led to the creation of HRVC. The Commission was directed by law to review proposed projects within its jurisdiction “which would destroy or substantially impair significant historic or recreational resources or bring about a major change in the appearance or use of the water in the Hudson River or the surrounding land.” As part of this directive the HRVC conducted surveys of the Hudson River between the years of 1965 and 1970.

The Hudson River Environmental Society took possession of the collection soon after the Hudson River Valley Commission was dissolved and added additional materials. The Hudson River Environmental Society preserved the collection until 1983, when they transferred it to the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Library in Hyde Park, NY.

The Hudson River Environmental Society (HRES), a nonprofit membership organization, was founded in 1970 to foster research on the Hudson River environment and related coastal areas, provide a forum for communication and cooperation among researchers, and make the results of environmental research available and accessible to concerned citizens and public officials.

HRES works to facilitate and coordinate research in the physical, biological and social sciences; environmental engineering; resource management; urban and regional planning; and other disciplines in the Hudson River region. Equally important, HRES serves as a channel of communication between the research community and researchers. HRES strives to ensure that the best possible information is available to those who potentially affect the environment. The Society's membership includes corporate members, individuals from major academic and research institutions, consulting firms, government agencies industries and conservation organizations concerned with environmental matters in the Hudson Valley region and interested citizens. The best known activities of HRES are its conferences and workshops on subjects of current environmental interest. HRES has organized topical meetings on such subjects as: PCBS, acid rain, dredging and soil disposal, the Hudson River fisheries, State Environmental Quality Review Act, freshwater and tidal wetlands, toxic and hazardous waste management, coal conversions, scenic and historic area preservation, energy and the future, and coastal revitalization and preservation.