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SHERRY HALBROOKThe stewards of PEF Division 169 at the state Department of Environmental Conservation are so concerned about the potential risks associated with a controversial new way of obtaining natural gas from deposits in shale that they wrote to the DEC and the governor.
They asked DEC to allow more time for public comments on the 800-page draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (dSGEIS) and to hold off on expanding the drilling for at least another year.
The dSGEIS outlines safety measures, protection standards and mitigation strategies companies would be required to follow to obtain permits for drilling and high-volume hydraulic fracturing in the Marcellus Shale region of New York’s Southern Tier and Catskill Mountains.
The letter raises 14 specific issues to be addressed before permitting more of the drilling, which is called hydro-fracturing or hydro-fracking.
The concerns the PEF members raise are up against strong pressure from energy companies waging a multi-media ad campaign touting the hydro-fracturing as a clean and safe way to meet energy needs and reduce dependence on foreign oil.
According to PEF Executive Board Member Wayne Bayer, a Division 169 steward, the letter they sent was one of approximately 10,000 comments submitted to DEC, many of them raising similar concerns.
Division 169 said DEC lacks enough staff to issue permits and oversee the drilling, a concern addressed in the state budget.
Hydro-fracturing uses a mix of water with sand and other chemicals in a high-pressure stream to drill out horizontally from a vertical shaft and force pockets of gas to the surface. The process can use too much water and contaminate the water source.
New York City is part of a coalition of municipalities and organizations expressing alarm over the danger to the water supply. Most of the city’s water comes from the Catskills, and filtering out pollution from hydro-fracturing could cost $9 billion.
Meanwhile, the Delaware County Board of Supervisors has joined a group of business organizations from central New York lobbying for hydro-fracturing and touting it as a “tremendous opportunity” to boost the state’s economy by $1.4 billion.
“The potential benefits to the state are significant,” Bayer said, “but the state should take the time to be certain the safety of the public, our environment and resources are protected. History is full of examples where better analysis and fact-gathering early on could have avoided damage to the public and resources.”
At least, he said, the state should wait for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to complete its re-evaluation (mandated by Congress) of the use of hydro-fracturing to extract natural gas.