NEW YORK—Health concerns were abundant as New Yorkers submitted their questions about hydraulic fracturing, or hydrofracking, as part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s second online town hall to address the issue.

New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Joe Martens answered 22 questions during the session on Saturday, taking the opportunity to ease common concerns related to the hydrofracking process. How and if drinking water would be affected and other environmental concerns made up the majority of the question-and-answer forum.

The online town halls followed a recent federal ruling that hydrofracking should be regulated by the state. The DEC released a revised draft of the Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (SGEIS) on hydrofracking on Sept. 7, after receiving over 13,000 public comments on the previous version. Public hearings on the issue will be held through November, and the public can submit comments via mail or the DEC’s online comment form until Dec. 12.

One constituent attending the session on Saturday went so far as to say, “If they go ahead with it [hyrdofracking], I may move to another part of the country,” and asked Martens if he had seen documentaries on hydrofracking like 2010’s “Gasland.”

“That is why we have established the most stringent protections for drinking water in the nation,” responded the commissioner, adding that these protections include multiple engineering barriers, such as “well casings and secondary containments.”

Another participant brought up the fact that, despite the “stringent” standards, New York has no facilities to treat the wastewater from hydrofracking.

Martens acknowledged that the state has no facilities permitted to accept and treat the wastewater but clarified, “There are, however, facilities permitted in other states that can accept this waste, and eventually I expect that facilities will be modified to safely accept this waste in New York.”

While there is no estimate on when in-state waste treatment facilities would be available, drilling companies must have an approved disposal facility listed in order to receive work permits.

Some of forum attendees felt that there wasn’t enough information circulating to educate New Yorkers about the “true scientific facts.”

The commissioner noted that after this second commenting period is over in December, the draft SGEIS will have been in the public realm for over 150 days. The DEC’s “number-one priority through this entire process is to protect drinking water,” he said, adding that the “rigorous requirements” listed in the draft should do just that. The draft, along with a variety of fact sheets Martens says should make the information “easy to understand,” is posted on the DEC website.

Not all questions came from constituents against hydrofracking. Louise from Windsor asked: “Is there still a chance that the drilling will happen here? We are sitting on the future for many people in this area [who] have lost so much in the flooding. … The state needs this so bad, and we hope that the governor lifts the moratorium.”

Researchers are still evaluating the prospect of high-volume hydrofracking in the state to ensure that it would be done “right and safely,” if allowed to proceed. According to Martens, the process should be “completed sometime in 2012.”

The DEC is using information provided by the New York Department of Health, as well as examining spills and other problems caused by drilling in other states, in considering how to prevent exposure to chemicals used in hydrofracking, reported the commissioner.

“New York has taken a cautious and deliberate approach to move through this three-year process to develop the strictest standards in the nation,” Martens stated.

“We have put our proposed requirements and are now looking for the public’s feedback on those requirements,” he said.

Safeguarding Drinking Water Top Concern in Fracking Forum