COVENTRY – Tuesday night’s inclement weather didn’t deter members of the Chenango County Farm Bureau from meeting to discuss the past, current and future initiatives for the agricultural group.
Braving near blizzard conditions, the group gathered for its 53rd Annual Meeting and Dinner at the Silo Restaurant in Coventry.
The Farm Bureau’s president, Bradd Vickers, began the proceedings with a presentation on oil and gas leasing issues.
“CCFB is working with many communities on the role of local government and the gas drilling issues,” said Vickers, who is active on the county’s Natural Gas Advisory Committee.
His presentation provided information on the Marcellus Shale Formation and the drilling process. He touched upon controversial issues like the impact on water, land disturbances, industry oversight, seismic testing and hydro-fracking.
“These are some of the things county legislators are quite concerned with,” he explained.
The Farm Bureau is advocating the use of a closed-loop drilling system, which Vickers said this option offers “better containment” than the open pit system. Other benefits include a reduction in the volume of water required, less truck traffic and better cost efficiency.
Land leasing is still a hot topic for many county landowners, especially farmers. “There’s no such thing as a standard lease,” said Vickers as he fielded questions from CCFB members about the intricacies of the leasing process.
Of particular concern for Vickers is seismic testing. Earlier this year, he made local government leaders aware of his intentions to file a personal law suit against the county for permitting testing along county roadways. He described the process as trespassing, as it pulls data from private property. This information is salable, he said. “In many states, they pay for this data.”
Farm Bureau members solidified the group’s stance on oil and gas issues by approving a total of 15 resolutions pertaining to mineral rights. One stated specifically that the organization opposed “any government entity authorizing or negotiating the right to trespass on private property electronically or otherwise for any purpose including gathering of data for marketing to private gas companies.”
New York Regional Interconnect, the proposed 190-mile electric transmission line which threatens to bisect local communities along its route, was also a topic of concern for CCFB members.
“We no longer need NYRI,” said Vickers, who advocates for the development of cogeneration facilities to produce electricity from local natural gas as a solution to downstate energy needs. A resolution affirming this was adopted during the meeting.
The group also adopted resolutions encouraging the study and development of alternative energy and opposing “projects, such as power lines, gas lines, etc., where large portions of agricultural property will be degraded or lost to eminent domain.”
They also re-affirmed a resolution advocating that farmland be considered as “unique and irreplaceable as are wetlands,” during the “siting of roadways and utility rights of way.”
In elections held during the meeting, Bradd Vickers was unapposed as president of the county organization and was re-elected for a one-year term as president.
“I guess that makes you president again, Bradd,” joked board member Faith Sisk.
Also voted in were Marge Secrest as vice-president and Fred Baker, Sue Evans, Giff Foster and Marion Ireland for two-year terms on the CCFB board. Dale Goodrich was elected for a one-year term. They will join current directors Harvey Fletcher, Pete Lathrop and Faith Sisk on the group’s board.
The 2008 Ag Advocate Award was presented during the meeting to Rainy Collins-Vickers for her continued commitment to the local farm bureau and agriculture in Chenango County.
For information on programs and services offered by the Chenango County Farm Bureau, stop by their office at 6083 State Highway 12 N in Norwich, visit them online at www.ccfbny.org, or call 334-6061.