NEW YORK—The state’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) on Wednesday called for a 90-day public comment period on horizontal drilling and high-volume hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, which is set to take place in the Marcellus Shale upstate, near to New York City’s source of water.
The public comment period comes with the release of the DEC’s revised draft of the Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (SGEIS).
The revised draft proposes new measures to decrease local community character, cumulative noise, visual, and traffic impacts. One of the measures includes limiting simultaneous construction of well pads that are close to each other.
Four public hearings will be conducted, and citizens will have 150 days to evaluate the draft statement. Public comment period will begin in early October and continue for 90 days. Hearings will be held in the Marcellus Shale region, as well as in New York City. Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer requested a hearing to be held in the city back in June, when the draft was first released.
Stringer issued a statement praising Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s decision to host a public hearing in New York City.
“The significance of Gov. Cuomo’s decision to hold a New York City hearing on the new hydraulic fracturing SGEIS cannot be understated,” stated Stringer. “It is a welcome recognition that hydrofracking is not an upstate or downstate issue, it is a process that should concern all New Yorkers, given the potential threat fracking poses to precious drinking water supplies everywhere.”
The DEC will not issue permits for high-volume fracking until public commentary is taken into consideration and the final SGEIS is released.
“Throughout this process, DEC’s number-one priority is to protect the state’s drinking water and environment in concert with exploring options to safely and efficiently extract the state’s natural gas,” said DEC Commissioner Joe Martens. “This will enable New York’s economy to benefit from this resource and the job opportunities that development is expected to bring.”
Environmental groups across the country are denouncing the SGEIS and continue to call for a complete ban on fracking.
“This so-called study is filled with lies to justify the devastation of our environment and economy,” said Harry Bubbins of the New York City-based environmental organization Friends of Brook Park (FoBP). “You can’t stop fracking fluids from seeping into the Catskills or into upstate wells.”
Another member of the FoBP, Jess Ramos, added, “Only a complete and total ban on this devastating practice and an immediate transition to renewable energies will allow life to continue.”
The proposed high-volume hydrofracking activities are expected to generate 6,198 to 24,795 full-time equivalent jobs that would bring an estimated $419.6 million to $1.7 billion in earnings for the workers.
