Since area property owners have signed thousands of leases with natural gas drillers, we believe a moratorium on such drilling should be adopted by state or county government to allow time for environmental regulations to be updated.
There is plenty of time, for example, to examine more closely the impact of drilling on ground water and the safest methods of disposal of the toxic water that is a byproduct of the process.
The Northeast has trillions of dollars worth of natural gas embedded in the Marcellus Shale, and going after that gas has become a priority since oil prices have skyrocketed.
The vast majority of drilling has not begun, so we owe it to ourselves to know what we are getting into, so we can avoid potential environment nightmares down the road.
Even the state Department of Environmental Conservation was caught off-guard by the rush of lease signings and drilling plans over the past two years. The agency, charged with protecting our environment, is still in the process of updating rules to govern drilling proposals.
About two weeks ago, Gov. David Paterson signed a bill allowing more wells to be drilled, but also ordering the DEC to update its drilling regulations to safeguard the public.
In addition, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection has asked the DEC to set a one-mile buffer around the city's six major Catskills reservoirs, including the Pepacton and Cannonsville in Delaware County.
Drilling is overseen by the DEC's 1992 Generic Environmental Impact Statement applicable to natural gas and oil drilling. Following Paterson's directive, the DEC has started the process of supplementing the GEIS ``to address potential adverse impacts resulting primarily from the large volumes of water needed to hydraulically fracture the shale. These potential impacts relate to both the sources of water and any additives used to facilitate fracturing, and the recovery, handling and disposal of water during and after drilling concludes.''
At last week's Otsego County Board of Representatives meeting, several speakers asked the board to impose a moratorium on drilling until laws are enacted to protect water resources and other municipal interests, such as roads. Board members listened but took no action.
Mary Jo Long, a lawyer and Afton town councilwoman, told the board a moratorium on drilling would allow time for testing reservoirs and wells before gas drilling becomes widespread. If chemicals used in drilling contaminate drinking water, baseline studies could help residents and municipalities in litigation.
She's right. If the state does not act on a moratorium, the counties should proceed with one.
The DEC says it will hold public hearings across the Southern Tier and the Catskills, anticipated to begin in September, to help in defining the factors to be addressed in the GEIS update. A final draft isn't expected until spring.
We see no reason to allow drilling to commence until the DEC's work is done.
