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General News: Public Opposes Hydro-Fracking
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| Matt Levenson said the gas companies couldn't be trusted to put the environmental ahead of the push for production. |
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| A map of the Marcellus shale. |
October 13, 2010
The Marcellus Shale, site of a rich deposit of natural gas, may lie 100 miles from Cornwall, NY, but that didn’t stop local residents from speaking out about their opposition to a controversial drilling practice at a public hearing in front of the Cornwall town council.
About 25 people showed up at the hearing that was called to determine whether the town council should send a letter to New York State authorities in support of hydro-fracking, a drilling method that shoots water, sand and chemicals underground into the shale layer at extremely high pressure. A number of the chemicals qualify as hazardous materials and carcinogens, although gas companies report that they have replaced some of the chemicals with others less harmful to the environment.
At Issue Is the Safety of Chemicals Used in the Process
Opponents of the practice warn that these could seep into the water supply, especially the huge reservoir that feeds the Catskill Aqueduct, a source of drinking water for New York City and portions of Orange County as well. Landowners in the Marcellus Shale area who support the drilling say its safety has been enhanced by recent measures. The entire issue of granting a permit to the gas companies is currently under review by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.
The issue came before the town council when the supervisor of Barker, a small town in Broome County, wrote asking the town to send a letter endorsing the drilling on the Marcellus Shale. Cornwall’s deputy supervisor Mary Beth Green Krafft thought it would be best to hear what local residents have to say about the issue before sending off any letter of support.
Three Residents Speak Against the Drilling
On Tuesday, the meeting room filled with people who apparently agreed with three people who did speak out against the hydro-fracking process. Matt Levenson, a village resident who specializes in environmental remediation, spoke at length about the problems caused in rural Pennsylvania communities by hydro-fracking and about the difficulties the under-staffed Department of Environmental Conservation would have trying to monitor the work. Levenson noted that the drilling procedure has been exempted from the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts and said he supports the efforts of Congressman Maurice Hinchey to require compliance with those acts.
Peter Osinski, another village resident, agreed with Levenson, noting the potential threat to local water taken from the Catskill Aqueduct. A third and final speaker, Ginger Marshall, of Cornwall stated similar opposition to the drilling.
As the public hearing ended twenty minutes after it had begun, deputy supervisor Greene Krafft said she had one letter in support of drilling but did not read it out loud. No further mention was made of the drilling, or of the proposal to write a letter to the state in support of it, for the rest of the meeting.
Comments:
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the public opposes???? No one asked me. I say go for it.
posted by Walter Dorritie on 10/14/10 at 12:54 PM
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As long as it's someone else's well water that catches on fire or gives them cancer, right?
posted by Ted Warren on 10/14/10 at 1:02 PM
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"... replaced some of the chemicals with others >>>less harmful<<< to the environment." Less harmful. HARMFUL, but, less so...Now THAT"S a comfort, eh?
The corporations, if given free rein, will rape the landscape until there is nothing left to exploit. They are driven by immediate profit, there is no sense of copnservation for the future generations.
posted by Kate Benson on 10/14/10 at 2:03 PM
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Anyone who has any doubts about how dangerous fracking is should watch "Gasland". It's a powerful film made up of short visits to and interviews with people who allowed fracking on their own lands.It also explains why our regulating agencies are powerless in so many ways to stop these companies. Should be required viewing for anyone who thinks fracking might be oaky.
posted by chris lee on 10/14/10 at 2:27 PM
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supposedly if we put wind turbines from the canadian border to the mexican border it could provide enough electricity for the entire Country. imagine that?
posted by j h on 10/14/10 at 9:35 PM
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We only get to destroy our water table once. After that, we will live with the carcinogens that places like West Virginia are plagued with for generations to come. Cancer, anyone?
posted by Rick Gioia on 10/14/10 at 10:56 PM
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Walter- I hope you will take Chris Lee's suggestion and watch "Gasland" and rethink your opinion after viewing it- very informative and well done piece about the reality of the situation so far. I think this type of natural gas mining should be outlawed ASAP.
posted by Diane Parodi on 10/17/10 at 2:00 PM
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