Round Table Discussion Opens Debate over Gas Drilling in NY Legislature
A natural gas drilling site near Syracuse, NY. (image: blog.syracuse.com)
As the Legislative Gazette reported on Monday, the New York State Senate is considering the expanding of drilling allowances in upstate New York for natural gas. Instead of a public hearing, the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee is currently conducting a roundtable discussion with both environmentalists and drilling proponents to sort through the issue. As HeatingOil.com’s Steven Zweig reported last week, the proposal is fraught with environmental and safety concerns, so it’s crucial to hear all sides of this particular argument.
The natural gas is located along the Marcellus Shale bed in New York’s Southern Tier, but there is concern over the possible contamination of nearby drinking water and other environmental impacts. Companies interested in exploiting the vast resources were at the roundtable, ready with arguments about the safety of the chemicals used, and the economic benefits of the proposed drilling. Environmentalists, however, are not convinced.
“The benefits have been greatly exaggerated,” said Al Appleton, the former New York City commissioner of environmental protection.
Appleton and other environmentalists are deeply concerned about the chemicals used in hydrofracking, a process used to break up the rock and release the gas, as well as the possible contamination of drinking water, and the anticipated impact on the state’s forests. The natural gas companies are arguing that water can be treated and made potable again, a claim Appleton does not believe.
The next step for the Environmental Committee is to determine which drilling issues would be better addressed by the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s regulatory review process, and which through legislation. Senator Antoine Thompson, Chairman of the Environmental Conservation Committee, would like to see an extension to the public comment period, allowing 90 days instead of 60 for well-researched comments and arguments.
With so many potential health and environmental risks, here’s hoping the Senate will take all appropriate action to research the matter fully before making any decisions. Even though the area could use the economic boost, and natural gas is a bit cleaner than oil, if the anticipated effects are accurate, it might be best to leave the gas in the ground.
[...] the way in which natural gas is extracted from the Marcellus Shale gas wells. The process is called hydrofracking, an extraction method in which a cocktail of chemicals are used to break up the rocks and release [...]