Don't Frack With NY!

Will New York Base Its Fracking Decision on Science or Politics?

Chambers — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 22:49:39 +0000

New York officials say the state’s decision on fracking will not be made until after they hear from the three outside experts they’ve hired to help them review fracking’s impact on public health.

Do you trust them?

Before you answer, consider these facts:

Dr. Lynn Goldman, one of the three health experts hired to review the Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (SGEIS), has told a reporter that the deadline to complete her review is today, despite being under contract through mid-February. Dr. Goldman also stated that as of Thanksgiving, she hadn’t even received the documents she was charged with reviewing. The New York State Department of Health has not yet responded to Riverkeeper’s request for a clarification of the review procedure or timeline.
Of the three experts, one is working pro bono and the other two will be compensated for only 25 and 50 hours of work respectively.
Rather than wait until they’d received and considered the experts’ analysis of the health issue, the state officials went ahead and released a new draft set of fracking regulations last Friday.

Christopher Portier, director of the National Center for Environmental Health at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, recently warned that we don’t understand fracking’s impact on human health and called for studies that “include all the ways people can be exposed, such as through air, water, soil, plants and animals.”

Governor Cuomo has acknowledged that the state has not earned the people’s trust on the fracking issue. DEC Commissioner Martens admits that the state wants to use the outside health review to strengthen his hand in the litigation that will follow the state’s decision on fracking.

It’s hard to imagine that the experts’ behind the scenes, truncated review of health issues, which involves neither public input nor even disclosure of what’s being reviewed, is going to earn much trust.

One thing’s for sure – the state needs to make the health review process transparent by releasing the experts’ reports and giving the public an opportunity to comment before finalizing the fracking SGEIS or regulations. Otherwise, the idea that we should trust them at all will be ludicrous.

Hudson Riverkeeper Paul Gallay to Debate the Dangers of Fracking at Syracuse University on Friday, November 30 at 7:00 p.m.

Bell — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 18:05:34 +0000

Watch the debate live online here.

Riverkeeper’s President Paul Gallay will advocate that fracking causes more harm than good at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, November 30, as part of Syracuse University’s Campbell Debates series. He will be joined by Robert Howarth, Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Cornell University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Mr. Howarth is the author of last year’s first peer-reviewed scientific study to find that natural gas may do more to aggravate global warming than coal, undermining industry’s oft-touted assertion that shale gas is a “clean fuel.”

Arguing in opposition will be Tim Whitesell, Supervisor of the Town of Binghamton and President of the New York Association of Towns, and Ed Hinchey, Professional Geologist and Principal Partner at ERM Group, an environmental consulting firm. Mr. Whitesell has urged Governor Cuomo to allow fracking in New York, claiming job growth and economic development as potential benefits to Southern Tier communities, including Binghamton. Mr. Hinchey is a member of the Marcellus Shale Coalition, an industry lobbying group advocating for shale gas extraction in the state.

The debate is open to the public, who will be able to comment or ask questions. At the end of the debate, the audience will “vote” on the winner by walking out of one of two doors.

We encourage you to attend the debate and decide for yourself whether fracking causes more harm than good.

A Victory for Academic Honesty in Fracking Research

Bell — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 17:18:06 +0000

On Monday, University at Buffalo President Satish Tripathi announced the immediate close of the University’s Shale Resources and Society Institute (SRSI), citing the lack of faculty with expertise in fields associated with energy production from shale and its lack of credibility due to its financing sources. Students, professors, University trustees, and over 10,000 members of the public had petitioned the University to close SRSI after it published a widely criticized study in April 2012, which was heavily biased in favor of the oil and gas industry. The authors of the April study disingenuously manipulated their data in an attempt to show that fracking can be done safely, falsely claimed their research had been peer reviewed, and broke University rules by failing to disclose funding sources.

Timothy Considine, the lead author of the April 2012 report, has received similar criticism for his past work, which has presented fracking research in misleading ways and has failed to disclose his funding sources. He has previously received funds from the Marcellus Shale Coalition, the Wyoming Mining Association, the American Iron and Steel Institute, and the American Petroleum Institute.

The University of Texas at Austin is conducting a similar review of a fracking study released earlier this year, as one of the authors failed to disclose his position on the board of a gas company.

Riverkeeper applauds Dr. Tripathi’s commitment to “rigorous standards of academic integrity, intellectual honesty, transparency and the highest ethical conduct,” and we hope he will continue to exercise strong leadership to take the appropriate actions necessary to ensure an objective and broad study of fracking in the future.

For more information, check out Mireya Navarro’s New York Times article.

Health Experts Appointed by State but DOH Remains Silent on What is being Reviewed and Whether there will be Opportunity for Public Input

Bell — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 00:24:44 +0000

Riverkeeper applauds Department of Health (DOH) Commissioner Nirav Shah for appointing three highly-regarded public health experts to review the Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) analysis of health issues in its Revised Draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (RDSGEIS) on fracking. The experts—Lynn Goldman, Dean of George Washington University’s School of Public Health and Health Services; John Adgate, Chair of the Environmental and Occupational Health Department at the Colorado School of Public Health; and Richard Jackson, Chair of the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health—have significant experience in the field of health impact assessment (HIA).

However, in spite of calls from more than 90 members of the medical community for a transparent and inclusive study, DOH and DEC have yet to make public the DEC health analysis that will be reviewed and have failed to provide for an opportunity for input from the public and key stakeholders, including potentially impacted communities. In order to ensure the assessment of health impacts is robust and credible, Governor Cuomo must allow the public an opportunity to communicate information to these experts and review their findings. We also encourage the Governor to give these experts unfettered access to information, data, and public health professionals from local communities across the state to help complete this work in a comprehensive and independent manner.

While we are encouraged by the choice of personnel to review the analysis DEC has already conducted, this review will not fulfill the public’s request for a comprehensive HIA, which would identify specific risks to the health of New York’s communities—particularly those most vulnerable, such as the young and the elderly—and develop a plan to mitigate them if possible. We continue to encourage Joe Martens to honor the commitment he made in his September 20, 2012 announcement: “if there was a public health concern that could not be addressed [DEC] would not proceed.” The only way to answer the question of whether fracking will present such public health concerns is for the state to do a truly comprehensive health study with all relevant stakeholders at the table. Anything less will be unlikely to provide the basis for public trust in NY’s fracking review process.

Over 500 Elected Officials Call for Further Study on Science and Socioeconomics of Fracking

Chambers — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:21:56 +0000

Elected Officials to Protect New York (EOPNY), a group of over 500 county and local representatives representing millions of New Yorkers throughout sixty-one counties in the state, held a press conference yesterday calling on Governor Andrew Cuomo to adequately study the negative socioeconomic impacts of fracking. EOPNY’s previous letter to the Governor also requested that he address concerns about the safety of fracking for our health and our environment. The group includes twenty representatives from the five proposed sacrifice counties in the Southern Tier, where Governor Cuomo has proposed to roll out fracking in municipalities that “want it.”

Riverkeeper supports these elected representatives in calling on Governor Cuomo to base his decision on the facts and science of fracking, not the politics. As EOPNY points out, even if fracking is limited to certain regions, its impacts will be felt statewide. Without adequate information about potential health, economic, and cumulative environmental impacts on local communities, elected officials cannot fulfill their duties to prevent or mitigate potential harms to New Yorkers.

Tell the Governor New Yorkers Don’t Want Fracking Rubber Stamped

Chambers — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 19:00:33 +0000

Photo courtesy Jessica Riehl

Today, pro-fracking organizations are gathering in Albany under the banner “Real People for Real Jobs” to urge the state to put a rubber stamp on its fracking plan, claiming it will bring jobs and revenue to upstate New York. We want all New Yorkers to have a bright economic future, and that future does not lie with fracking. The facts show fracking will hurt rather than help upstate New York’s economy.

Please Call Gov. Cuomo today to tell him you are a New Yorker and you want a real plan for economic growth and you don’t want fracking rubber stamped.

Gov. Cuomo’s Office: 866-584-6799, or 518-474-8390
Instructions:
1. First dial the number. Please be respectful toward the person who answers. Riverkeeper’s suggested message is:
My name is _______ and I live in ______. I am calling to urge Governor Cuomo not to put the economic livelihood and water of millions of New Yorkers at risk by opening up New York to fracking. I fear fracking will harm New York’s economy, as it could have potentially devastating impacts on the farming and tourism industries, our roads, and our community services, not to mention our environment and our health. I urge the Governor to instead concentrate on creating long term, sustainable jobs in other sectors.
2. Close the call with a thank you for their time.
3. Tips: Be friendly and nice!
If it’s busy, that is a good thing because it means a lot of us are calling! Please try again later.

Some Facts on Fracking’s Economic Impacts:
Jobs

Most of the high-paying jobs created by fracking will go to trained engineers and other professionals who will move to New York State temporarily from other locations, not to New Yorkers.
Claims about the number of jobs which have been created in Pennsylvania from Marcellus Shale development are highly questionable. In 2010, a Penn State, industry funded study reported that Marcellus Shale drilling created about 44,000 new jobs in 2009; the very next year, Penn State said only about 23,500 jobs were created in 2009, including ancillary jobs such as service industry positions. Another estimate by independent Keystone Research Center found that only about 10,000 new jobs were created in 2009.

Safety

It is a myth that thousands of natural gas wells have been drilled in NY without any instances of contamination – several accidents have been documented as shown on this map. Moreover, DEC estimates there are about 40,000 abandoned wells in the state, the locations of many of which are unknown. They pose a significant danger now as many are closed improperly and could be leaking, and will be an even greater threat if repressurized by new fracking operations.
Recent findings from the federal Environmental Protection Agency, verified by independent experts, confirm that fracking has led to groundwater contamination.

Taxes

New York’s Department of Transportation estimates fracking could cost $375 million per year in additional road repair and maintenance – a cost that will be borne by New York taxpayers.
Fracking will increase the need and costs to local taxpayers for community services, such as first responders, hospitals and schools, as it is expected to bring an influx of temporary workers to the region. A 2011 survey of eight Pennsylvania counties found that 911 calls increased in seven fracking counties, with the number of calls increasing in one county by 49 percent over three years.

Broader Economic Impacts

Fracking can affect home value. A 2010 study in Texas concluded that houses valued at more than $250,000 within 1,000 feet of a well site saw their values decrease by 3 to 14 percent.
Fracking can impact farms. In Pennsylvania,the five counties with the heaviest Marcellus Shale drilling activity saw an 18.5 percent reduction in milk production between 2007 and 2010.
Fracking can impact tourism. Can you picture touring New York’s beautiful wine region with gas fields dotting the landscape?

Call Gov. Cuomo’s Office today: 866-584-6799, 518-474-8390

Riverkeeper Urges Comprehensive, Objective & Inclusive Study, in Response to State Commitment to Delay Fracking Decision until Announced DOH Health Review is Complete

Chambers — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 18:43:09 +0000

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Tina Posterli, 516-526-9371, tposterli@riverkeeper.org

White Plains, NY — September 21, 2012 — Riverkeeper is encouraged that the state will not make a decision on fracking until NYS Health Commissioner Nirav Shah completes his newly-announced review of the health analysis in DEC’s environmental impact statement on fracking.

We are confident that Commissioner Shah’s review, if done comprehensively, objectively and with the help of truly qualified outside experts, will reveal significant omissions in DEC’s analysis and show why fracking cannot be allowed to move forward in New York.

Riverkeeper urges the state to fearlessly pursue the best science, not just the best way to prepare for litigation, and to include the public, and in particular communities at risk, in its review and decision-making process when it comes to fracking and health. Most importantly, we call on the state to honor the commitment Commissioner Martens made in his statement yesterday that the state will not proceed with fracking in New York if there is a public health concern that cannot be addressed.

Tell Governor Cuomo Don’t Frack with NY Water

Bell — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 16:59:28 +0000

Governor Cuomo may release his plan to open parts of New York to fracking before Labor Day. Cuomo’s deeply-flawed plan reportedly won’t initially include any new DEC inspection staff, taxes or levies on the drilling industry to pay for the community costs of fracking, or a strategy to dispose of the millions of gallons of hazardous fracking wastewater that would be generated. Adding insult to injury, Cuomo has not taken a hard look at the detrimental health and economic impacts of fracking before permitting this practice, making his plan an absolute non-starter, especially for the communities who will be first up to be fracked.

There’s still time to make Cuomo rethink this misguided plan – but we need to make our voices heard in a big way right now.

Make a call today!

Gov. Cuomo’s Office: 866-584-6799

Instructions:

1. First dial the number. Please be respectful toward the person who answers (Ranting won’t help the cause). Riverkeeper’s suggested message is:

I am calling to urge Governor Cuomo not to put the economic livelihood and water of millions of New Yorkers at risk with a flawed plan to open up areas of New York to fracking. The Governor has still not addressed the potentially detrimental economic impacts to communities from fracking, taken a hard look at health impacts, or come up with a plan to deal with the potentially millions of gallons of toxic, radioactive wastewater that will be generated. Thus, it is completely improper for the Governor to proceed with permitting fracking at this time.

2. Close the call with a thank you for their time.

3. Tips:

Be friendly and nice!

If it’s busy, that is a good thing because it means a lot of us are calling! Please try again later.

Times Union reports that DEC will release the final fracking EIS before Labor Day

Bell — Tue, 07 Aug 2012 19:18:48 +0000

The Times Union commentator, Fred LeBrun, reports that DEC is prepared to move forward with fracking permits on a limited scale with no new DEC inspection staff, no taxes or levies on the drilling industry to cover the costs of fracking to the state or local communities, and no plan for regulating the disposal of fracking wastewater. LeBrun also states, “the administration has concluded it cannot rely on the strength of existing laws and current DEC funding in this area to adequately protect the state, its citizens and resources.” If this is so, DEC should issue NO permits until truly protective laws and sufficient DEC funding have been put in place. Otherwise, LeBrun has it right. The Governor will be allowing the drilling industry, once again, to privatize the profits and socialize the costs, which New York taxpayers will have to bear. Riverkeeper is prepared to sue if DEC moves forward with permitting without remedying the significant deficiencies in its 2011 draft Environmental Impact Statement and without putting essential environmental, fiscal and legal protections in place.

Despite EPA’s Findings, Dimock Residents Need Clean Water

Chambers — Fri, 27 Jul 2012 17:17:53 +0000

This week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it will conduct no further testing in Dimock, Pennsylvania, on the basis of its findings that the water in Dimock is largely safe to drink.

The EPA results, however, do not refute the fact that Cabot Oil & Gas’s irresponsible drilling practices contaminated the Dimock families’ drinking water with dangerous levels of explosive methane, as the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP) has already concluded. This finding alone has a significant detrimental impact on the Dimock residents’ health and well-being, their property values, and is a reasonable basis for Dimock families not to drink water from the tap.

It has been nearly eight months since Cabot was allowed, with PA DEP’s permission, to stop delivering water to Dimock. Riverkeeper has kept a clock on its website tracking the time since Cabot’s water deliveries ceased as a reminder that Dimock is still in desperate need of a clean water solution. EPA’s findings do not change this fact, nor do they alleviate the mounting concerns nationwide that fracking can contaminate drinking water supplies.