Not mentioned in the article is that Walter Hang is aiming for at least
5000 signatures; they can be obtained from out of state; and he is
looking for notables so anyone who personally knows a public official,
a college/university president or trustees member, organization head
etc is strongly encouraged to seek their signature. Here again is the
link.
http://www.toxicstargeting.com/MarcellusShale/coalition_letter
ITHACA JOURNAL
http://www.theithacajournal.com/article/20091123/NEWS01/911230369
November 23, 2009
Ithaca firm petitions to extend moratorium
By Liz Lawyer
[email protected]
Walter Hang of Toxics Targeting in Ithaca was scrounging Monday for
celebrities to enlist in his fight against gas drilling in the
Marcellus Shale.
"Anybody know the Dalai Lama?" he said to a group gathered in the
Women's Community Building Monday evening. "Anybody know Richard Gere?"
Hang and the group of about 100 area residents were forming a battle
plan against the state Department of Environmental Conservation's
proposed Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement, which, if
adopted by the state, would allow a de facto moratorium on horizontal
hydraulic fracturing to end in New York.
The draft document suggests new requirements to add to state
regulations established in 1992 to govern gas drilling. However, Hang
said, neither the added regulations or the original regulations are
adequate to protect New York residents from pollution due to gas
drilling.
The draft statement was released at the end of September, and Hang is
organizing a grassroots opposition movement to kill the proposal within
40 days, when the comment period is set to end.
"There are 15,000 existing wells (in New York state)," he said. "We
have had these wells for decades and decades. There only about seven
wells that go into the Marcellus formation. The state of New York has
said literally for years that they have never even had a problem, but
that turns out not to be true."
He went on to cite examples of drinking water polluted beyond
acceptable drinking standards, though the private and public wells it
came from were placed farther than the required distance from natural
gas wells.
"The bottom line is the government is not safeguarding your health and
your safe environment, and this is the proof," he said.
Hang, whose company maintains databases of pollution sites, is
circulating a petition to have the governor withdraw the proposal,
thereby allowing the moratorium on drilling permits to continue, and
allowing more time to push for stronger environmental cleanup
protections. He urged the group to help gather more signatures for the
petition, which has drawn nearly 2,000 supporters in the past 10 days,
he said.
The petition calls for a ban on discharging hydraulic fracturing
wastewater to publicly owned treatment works and a review of deep-well
injection of wastewater, a revision of state-required reporting of
uncontrolled oil and gas releases, a dedicated state oil and gas
drilling remediation fund to take care of "orphan sites" left by
drilling companies, increased staffing of the state Department of
Environmental Conservation, and protection for citizens' private right
of action against drilling companies.
Linda Lavine of Ellis Hollow, who signed the petition Monday, said most
of her neighbors have signed leases with oil and gas companies to drill
for natural gas on their land.
"Even those who signed leases should be happy with what you're doing,"
she said, "because even if they want this to eventually go forward,
they should want these protections in place."
Town of Ithaca board member Rich DePaolo, who also has signed the
petition, said: "I agree with (Hang's) proposal, and I intend to do
something at the town level. From what I'm hearing, I think the process
is being railroaded. I think the moratorium should be extended" to
allow the adoption of stronger regulations.
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