NY & PA Release Plan to Improve Delaware River Flows

The "white paper" has been released defining a new and improved release schedule from NYC owned reservoirs. This cooperative effort of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Division of Fish, Wildlife and Marine Resources and the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is a definite step in the right direction to improving the flows of the cold water fisheries of the Upper Delaware River. The paper can be read in its entirety at: http://fishandboat.com/water/rivers/delaware/dela_flex_flow.pdf

EPA News Release (Region 3): EPA Announces “Eyes on Drilling” Tipline href="http://service.govdelivery.com/service/w3c/p3p.xml" rel="P3Pv1">

EPA Announces “Eyes on Drilling” Tipline

 

PHILADELPHIA (January 26, 2010) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced the creation of the “Eyes on Drilling” tipline for citizens to report non-emergency suspicious activity related to oil and natural gas development.

 

The agency is asking citizens to call 1-877-919-4EPA (toll free) if they observe what appears to be illegal disposal of wastes or other suspicious activity. Anyone may also send reports by email to eyesondrilling@epa.gov. Citizens may provide tips anonymously if they don’t want to identify themselves.

 

In the event of an emergency, such as a spill or release of hazardous material, including oil, to the environment, citizens are advised to call the National Response Center at 1-800-424-8802.

 

Public concern about the environmental impacts of oil and natural gas drilling has increased in recent months, particularly regarding development of the Marcellus Shale formation where a significant amount of activity is occurring. While EPA doesn’t grant permits for oil and gas drilling operations, there are EPA regulations which may apply to the storage of petroleum products and drilling fluids. The agency is also very concerned about the proper disposal of waste products, and protecting air and water resources.

 

EPA wants to get a better understanding of what people are experiencing and observing as a result of these drilling activities. The information collected may also be useful in investigating industry practices. 

 

The agency works closely with state and local officials, as well as industry and public interest groups, to ensure that oil and natural gas drilling occurs in a manner which is protective of human health and the environment and complies with applicable laws.  The agency is also counting on concerned citizens to report unusual or suspicious activity related to drilling operations.

 

EPA is asking citizens to report the location, time and date of such activity, as well as the materials, equipment and vehicles involved and any observable environmental impacts.

 

The Marcellus Shale geologic formation contains one of the largest mostly untapped reserves of natural gas in the United States. It underlies significant portions of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, and New York, and smaller portions of Tennessee, Virginia, Maryland, and Kentucky.

Interest in developing Marcellus Shale has increased because recent improvements in natural gas extraction technology and higher energy prices now make recovering the gas more profitable.

 

Operators produce this gas through a process called hydraulic fracturing (fracking).  Fracking requires drilling a well thousands of feet below the land’s surface and pumping down the well under pressure millions of gallons of water, sand, and chemicals to fracture the shale.

 

The process allows the gas trapped in the formation to flow to the well bore. Approximately 20 to 30 percent of the fluid flows back to the surface. This “flowback” fluid consists of fracking fluid and brines which contain dissolved minerals from the formation.

 

Operators are urged to recycle their flowback water for reuse in the fracking process, but some of the flowback is taken offsite for disposal.  Chemicals used in the process are often stored on-site. Spills can occur when utilizing these chemicals or when transporting or storing wastewater, which can result in the contamination of surface water or ground water, which is used for many purposes including drinking water.

 

Instructions for the tipline can be found at:

http://www.epa.gov/region03/marcellus_shale/tipline.html

EPA Comments on NY Marcellus Shale Gas Drilling Environmental Impact Statement

EPA Submits Comments on New York State Marcellus Shale Natural Gas Drilling Environmental Impact Statement

Release date: 12/30/2009
Contact Information: (News Media Only) Bonnie Bellow (212) 637-3660, bellow.bonnie@epa.gov

 (New York, N.Y. ) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today submitted its comments to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation on its September 2009 draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (dSGEIS) on horizontal drilling and high-volume hydraulic fracturing in New York State. The draft environmental impact statement is required by the State Environmental Quality Review Act in order for the state to review and process permit applications for the horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing of natural gas bearing shales, including the Marcellus Shale. EPA’s comments were submitted during the public comment period on the dSGEIS, which closes on December 31, 2009.

EPA’s comments can be found at http://www.epa.gov/region2/spmm/r2nepa.htm#r2letters.

A MAJOR DEVELOPMENT STRENGTHENS CAUSE TO PREVENT GAS DRILLING

A MAJOR DEVELOPMENT STRENGTHENS OUR CAUSE TO PREVENT GAS DRILLING USING HYDRAULIC FRACTURING UNDER THE CONDITIONS OF THE CURRENT DSGEIS – YOU IMMEDIATE ACTION CAN HELP US GET THIS DONE!

Today New York City “called on the DEC to rescind the draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (dSGEIS) that was released on September 30, 2009 because it does not adequately address the risks of drilling in the New York City watershed, which supplies drinking water for nine million New Yorkers." For the full press release issued by New York City, please click here: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/html/press_releases/09-15pr.shtml

Catskill Mountainkeeper, The Natural Resource Defense Council, Toxic Targeting and a myriad of other like minded organizations have been saying that not only does the dSGEIS not address the risks to the nine million people living in New York City, it does not address the risks for all New Yorkers. The dSGEIS is fatally flawed and must be withdrawn.

With New York City’s weight being thrown behind our cause now is the moment for all of us to act and achieve our immediate goal of preventing the DEC from authorizing gas drilling in New York State based on the dSGEIS.

There is one person who has the power withdraw the dSGEIS to prevent the catastrophic risks it represents. That person is Governor David A. Paterson. It is critical that as many of you as possible tell the Governor that “Drilling Isn’t Safe”, the dSGEIS Draft report must abandoned and the DEC needs to start over.

Please email Governor David A. Paterson at: governor@chamber.state.ny.us and bcc: info@catskillmountainkeeper.org so we can maintain a list of all contacts. Or you can fax Governor Paterson at 518-474-1513. To have maximum impact, send the Governor a copy of your email by snail mail. Envelopes arriving at his office have the greatest effect.

The address is:

Governor David A. Paterson
State Capitol
Albany, NY 12224


In addition please click here http://www.catskillmountainkeeper.org/node/1069 to send this alert to as many other people as possible so we can send the strongest message.

We know we are asking you to take action right in the middle of the busy holiday season. But sharing your concerns with the Governor right now will be the most powerful action any of us can take since this fight began.

We wish you and your family and friends very happy holidays and a hopefully healthier New Year if we can get this done.

Ramsay Adams, Executive Director of Catskill Mountainkeeper


Here are some important points to help you write to Governor Paterson:

Dear Governor Paterson:

* It is critically important to protect the State’s drinking water supplies and other irreplaceable resources that are essential to public health protection and the state’s long-term economic prosperity.
* The use of hydraulic fracturing has led to known or suspected contamination in water supplies across the country, including right next door in Pennsylvania.
* The DEC is woefully understaffed to cope with existing natural gas drilling problems. Only 17 staff are available to regulate nearly 7,000 existing natural gas wells. New gas drilling permits must not be issued until the SGEIS solves this problem.
* Please direct DEC to set aside its current draft document and commit to a twelve month moratorium on the issuance of any new permits for hydraulic fracturing in New York State.
* Please request that U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region II convene a panel of experts on water quality to analyze proposals for hydraulic fracturing in New York State and assess the potential impacts of such activities on water resources in New York, utilizing the precautionary principle as the foundation for its analysis.
* Please direct DEC to develop a new draft environmental impact statement that contains all appropriate and legally-required analyses and to propose a comprehensive rule-making package that would accompany the new draft and that would be designed to fully insure the protection of the state’s most valuable water and other natural resources.
* We firmly believe that it would be an error of historic proportions if the DEC were to push through an industrial hydraulic fracturing gas drilling plan in anything like its present form.

DRBC Releases Results of Flood Analysis Model

The Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) reported that its review of the 2004, 2005, and 2006 storm events utilizing the new Delaware River Basin Flood Analysis Model demonstrate that widespread river flooding would have occurred in each instance regardless of the pre-event storage condition in the upper basin reservoirs. The findings were announced today by DRBC staff at a public meeting of the Delaware River Basin Interstate Flood Mitigation Task Force held in Flemington, N.J.

The whole news release is available to raed at:

NYC urges ban on shale gas drilling in watershed | Reuters

NYC urges ban on shale gas drilling in watershed | Reuters

New Stream Restoration Project

The first stage in a massive stream restoration project, a FUDR funded study recently completed by LandStudies Inc., lays out plans for the total rehabilitation of Sands and Cadosia Creeks in the Town of Hancock. This project will benefit habitat for the fishery, mitigate flooding for inhabitants of the watershed, and serve as a pilot program for streams throughout the region.

::click here to Watch a Video:: video