HISTORIC ISSUES
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Vol.17
No.2 - 7/15/1882 |
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Courtesy of the New York
State Historical Association Library, Cooperstown, N.Y (.PDF files)
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April 2009
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March 2009
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February 2009
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New York Canal Times -
Online newspaper
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Mercury Media Group
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Moratorium needed on drilling
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This week, the board of directors of the Advocates for Cherry Valley voted unanimously to call on the town of Cherry Valley and the Otsego County Board of Representatives to endorse, develop and support initiatives calling for a local and statewide moratorium on drilling for natural gas.
The Advocates for Cherry Valley accept the critical importance of natural gas as an energy resource. And we fully recognize the economic benefits that its proper extraction could bring to our region.
But, in the wake of the gas industry’s relentless onslaught, many troubling questions have arisen that clearly indicate insufficient preparation on the part of the Department of Environmental Conservation, the designated lead agency in all matters related to gas exploration and drilling.
A further issue is the agency’s historical bias in favor of the energy lobby. Indeed, too much so to allow local communities any real assurance that their interests will be adequately protected.
The DEC’s draft supplement to the existing Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS), now being prepared for public scrutiny, is likely to be inadequate to the danger. If history is a precedent, typical procedure will allow the DEC to control an agenda both ill advertised, perfunctory and dismissive of public concern.
The potential consequences of inadequate safeguards, particularly with respect to the water table, suggest the cost of error could be catastrophic and irreversible.
Perhaps it is time to reconsider how issues so fundamental to public well being receive a final resolution. Too often in the past we have seen how special interests trump collective wisdom. We need only look at the PSC’s recent reversal of its long-standing tradition of opposition to a monopoly control of utilities.
Last week, under pressure from U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer and the governor’s office, it allowed Iberdrola, a foreign conglomerate, to retain the means of both production and distribution of electricity in New York, thus laying the groundwork for further vertical integration of the energy industry in our state.
Caution dictates a moratorium of sufficient duration to allow for a full airing of the issues, both pro and con.
The writer is a member of the Advocates for Cherry Valley.
Andy Minnig Cherry Valley
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