Smyrna Supervisor appointed to hydraulic fracturing panel
SMYRNA – An advisory panel that met with New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Joe Martens in Albany last Thursday included Supervisor James B. Bays, D-Smyrna, via teleconference.
Bays is one of five new panel members added just days prior to the first of the DEC’s High-Volume Hydraulic Fracturing Advisory Panel’s seven planned meetings. The now 18-member panel is charged with making recommendations to ensure that the DEC, other agencies and local governments possess adequate resources to properly oversee and monitor all hydraulic fracturing activities as outlined in the preliminary revised draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement that was released in July.
A DEC spokesperson said the new members were added upon further reflection of the original panel’s make-up (formed with the release of the SGEIS) and after taking input from groups that questioned it. Bays, who has been designated to represent the New York State Association of Towns, said he couldn’t make the trip to Albany on such short notice.
According to the Smyrna supervisor, the DEC’s Division of Water, Minerals and Air dominated the panel’s discussion with a presentation of its resource needs, and the remaining time was consumed by people “talking in generalities” about air quality, the protection and safety of water resources, hauling and disposal of wastewater, road usage and drilling permits.
The DEC has been forced to cut more than 850 full-time positions since the recession took hold in the spring of 2008. Both Bays and NYS 51st District Senator Thomas Libous, R-Binghamton, an original member of the panel, reported yesterday that additional staffing was recommended not only for the DEC’s main offices, but also for satellite offices in the field. No specific numbers were determined, however.
Libous said he suspected that DEC Region 7, with its main office in Syracuse and sub-offices in Sherburne, Kirkwood and Cortland, may have to add workers in the field.
“Obviously, if you look at companies already targeting Chenango, Broome and Tioga, there’s a good possibility that could happen,” he said.
Towns in those counties and others in Central New York began dealing with sandstone and limestone drilling-related issues long before high water volume hydraulic fracturing in shale became an issue.
Bays said he asked the DEC for logs of visits made to wells and well pads in Smyrna. He said, “It shook them up a bit.”
“If they really want to talk about impact and staffing up, let’s at least get a benchmark of what we have now,” he said Monday. “Santulli (referring to new panel member, Chemung County Executive Thomas Santulli) and I are going to have to really emphasize the local side, because there’s very little comprehension at that level (at the DEC and in Albany) about what it’s like down here at our level.”
Bays described his role of balancing towns’ differing interests as “quite an awesome task,” particularly in light of new road use ordinances and even drilling bans passed in towns that won’t even be targeted for natural gas because the shales are too shallow.
Bays said he would lean on members of the Chenango County Natural Gas Advisory committee for recommendations.
“Thank goodness I have them – Pete (Flanagan, D-Preston, committee chairman), Bradd (Vickers, Chenango County Farm Bureau President), Steven (Palmatier, economic development consultant) and the others – and I give credit to our county for having the vision to create such a committee so early on. We are definitely ahead on these issues,” he said.
Libous said the panel talked about the mistakes made in Pennsylvania, where drilling has been ongoing, and that the permitting process in New York would be “at a much slower pace” and “more environmentally responsible.”
“It’s an industrial activity that has a chance of mishap like any other. But we didn’t stop buildings from being built ... even when a person unfortunately died in accident ... We are going to try to limit companies to hopefully a zero tolerance. We have inspectors here (in New York). They weren’t doing that monitoring in Pennsylvania when a couple of casings were blown and fracturing fluid came back through.”
Libous said he was “extremely optimistic overall” after the first panel meeting.
“The meeting was how we will all work with the DEC, and move forward with the permitting process if this (high water volume hydraulic fracturing into the Marcellus Shale) happens. But I hate to use the word ‘if’ because I believe it is ‘when,’” Libous said.
The now 18-member panel includes a mix of representatives from the natural gas industry, conservationists, public officials and lawmakers, including 126th District Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo, Robert Williams of the New York Joint Landowners Coalition, Jeff Williams of the New York Farm Bureau, and state Independent Oil & Gas Association Executive Director Brad Gill.
The original group included: Eric Goldstein and Kate Sindling, both senior attorneys with the Natural Resources Defense Counsel; Robert Kennedy, Jr., former senior attorney, NRDC; Robert Hallman, attorney and board chair, New York League of Conservation Voters; Mark Brownstein, chief counsel, Energy Program, Environmental Defense Fund; Robert Moore, executive director of Environmental Advocates; Kathleen McGinty, Columbia law graduate and former Pennsylvania DEP Secretary; Stan Lundine, former NYS Lt. Governor; Heather Briccetti, acting president & CEO, Business Council of New York State, Inc.; Robert B. Catell, chairman, Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center at SUNY Stony Brook; Mark K. Boling, executive vice president, general counsel and secretary, Southwestern Energy; Libous and Lupardo.
The next meeting is to be held during the first or second week of September.
Organizations debate SGEIS comment period
After more than three years in the making, the complete revised draft SGEIS for New York State is expected to be released for public comment and review in the late summer or early fall. Environmental groups, including Riverkeeper and Common/Cause New York, have called on Governor Andrew Cuomo and the DEC to hold no less than a 180-day comment period on the department's report on hydraulic fracturing. DEC chief Martens has said he wouldn’t “shut the door” on extending the 60-day comment period.
On the flip side, oil and gas industry representatives and leased landowners oppose any additional delays. They point to a recent Quinnipac University poll that said New York State voters like the economic benefits of drilling for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale more than they fear possible environmental concerns.
On Norse Energy’s sidelining of sandstone drilling
Bays said businesses and town folks have received “a lot of pink slips” following Norse Energy’s decision earlier this month to sideline its Herkimer Sandstone drilling operations in Smyrna. Norse representative Dennis Holbrook said the company will focus on producing natural gas from its holdings in the Marcellus and Utica shales once the DEC issues permits.
DEC Commissioner Martens said permits would be issued possibly as early as the first half of 2012.
“There were some folks making a lot of money. At the well pads, for example, and sales of seed, lime and feed, are back down,” Bays said.
Nonetheless, the supervisor said Norse’s business decision gives the town time to get its benchmark water testing done.”
Bays is one of five new panel members added just days prior to the first of the DEC’s High-Volume Hydraulic Fracturing Advisory Panel’s seven planned meetings. The now 18-member panel is charged with making recommendations to ensure that the DEC, other agencies and local governments possess adequate resources to properly oversee and monitor all hydraulic fracturing activities as outlined in the preliminary revised draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement that was released in July.
A DEC spokesperson said the new members were added upon further reflection of the original panel’s make-up (formed with the release of the SGEIS) and after taking input from groups that questioned it. Bays, who has been designated to represent the New York State Association of Towns, said he couldn’t make the trip to Albany on such short notice.
According to the Smyrna supervisor, the DEC’s Division of Water, Minerals and Air dominated the panel’s discussion with a presentation of its resource needs, and the remaining time was consumed by people “talking in generalities” about air quality, the protection and safety of water resources, hauling and disposal of wastewater, road usage and drilling permits.
The DEC has been forced to cut more than 850 full-time positions since the recession took hold in the spring of 2008. Both Bays and NYS 51st District Senator Thomas Libous, R-Binghamton, an original member of the panel, reported yesterday that additional staffing was recommended not only for the DEC’s main offices, but also for satellite offices in the field. No specific numbers were determined, however.
Libous said he suspected that DEC Region 7, with its main office in Syracuse and sub-offices in Sherburne, Kirkwood and Cortland, may have to add workers in the field.
“Obviously, if you look at companies already targeting Chenango, Broome and Tioga, there’s a good possibility that could happen,” he said.
Towns in those counties and others in Central New York began dealing with sandstone and limestone drilling-related issues long before high water volume hydraulic fracturing in shale became an issue.
Bays said he asked the DEC for logs of visits made to wells and well pads in Smyrna. He said, “It shook them up a bit.”
“If they really want to talk about impact and staffing up, let’s at least get a benchmark of what we have now,” he said Monday. “Santulli (referring to new panel member, Chemung County Executive Thomas Santulli) and I are going to have to really emphasize the local side, because there’s very little comprehension at that level (at the DEC and in Albany) about what it’s like down here at our level.”
Bays described his role of balancing towns’ differing interests as “quite an awesome task,” particularly in light of new road use ordinances and even drilling bans passed in towns that won’t even be targeted for natural gas because the shales are too shallow.
Bays said he would lean on members of the Chenango County Natural Gas Advisory committee for recommendations.
“Thank goodness I have them – Pete (Flanagan, D-Preston, committee chairman), Bradd (Vickers, Chenango County Farm Bureau President), Steven (Palmatier, economic development consultant) and the others – and I give credit to our county for having the vision to create such a committee so early on. We are definitely ahead on these issues,” he said.
Libous said the panel talked about the mistakes made in Pennsylvania, where drilling has been ongoing, and that the permitting process in New York would be “at a much slower pace” and “more environmentally responsible.”
“It’s an industrial activity that has a chance of mishap like any other. But we didn’t stop buildings from being built ... even when a person unfortunately died in accident ... We are going to try to limit companies to hopefully a zero tolerance. We have inspectors here (in New York). They weren’t doing that monitoring in Pennsylvania when a couple of casings were blown and fracturing fluid came back through.”
Libous said he was “extremely optimistic overall” after the first panel meeting.
“The meeting was how we will all work with the DEC, and move forward with the permitting process if this (high water volume hydraulic fracturing into the Marcellus Shale) happens. But I hate to use the word ‘if’ because I believe it is ‘when,’” Libous said.
The now 18-member panel includes a mix of representatives from the natural gas industry, conservationists, public officials and lawmakers, including 126th District Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo, Robert Williams of the New York Joint Landowners Coalition, Jeff Williams of the New York Farm Bureau, and state Independent Oil & Gas Association Executive Director Brad Gill.
The original group included: Eric Goldstein and Kate Sindling, both senior attorneys with the Natural Resources Defense Counsel; Robert Kennedy, Jr., former senior attorney, NRDC; Robert Hallman, attorney and board chair, New York League of Conservation Voters; Mark Brownstein, chief counsel, Energy Program, Environmental Defense Fund; Robert Moore, executive director of Environmental Advocates; Kathleen McGinty, Columbia law graduate and former Pennsylvania DEP Secretary; Stan Lundine, former NYS Lt. Governor; Heather Briccetti, acting president & CEO, Business Council of New York State, Inc.; Robert B. Catell, chairman, Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center at SUNY Stony Brook; Mark K. Boling, executive vice president, general counsel and secretary, Southwestern Energy; Libous and Lupardo.
The next meeting is to be held during the first or second week of September.
Organizations debate SGEIS comment period
After more than three years in the making, the complete revised draft SGEIS for New York State is expected to be released for public comment and review in the late summer or early fall. Environmental groups, including Riverkeeper and Common/Cause New York, have called on Governor Andrew Cuomo and the DEC to hold no less than a 180-day comment period on the department's report on hydraulic fracturing. DEC chief Martens has said he wouldn’t “shut the door” on extending the 60-day comment period.
On the flip side, oil and gas industry representatives and leased landowners oppose any additional delays. They point to a recent Quinnipac University poll that said New York State voters like the economic benefits of drilling for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale more than they fear possible environmental concerns.
On Norse Energy’s sidelining of sandstone drilling
Bays said businesses and town folks have received “a lot of pink slips” following Norse Energy’s decision earlier this month to sideline its Herkimer Sandstone drilling operations in Smyrna. Norse representative Dennis Holbrook said the company will focus on producing natural gas from its holdings in the Marcellus and Utica shales once the DEC issues permits.
DEC Commissioner Martens said permits would be issued possibly as early as the first half of 2012.
“There were some folks making a lot of money. At the well pads, for example, and sales of seed, lime and feed, are back down,” Bays said.
Nonetheless, the supervisor said Norse’s business decision gives the town time to get its benchmark water testing done.”
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