Birdbard posts this today.
Birdbard:
Gas drilling is coming to NY and PA big time. Not traditional drilling, hydro-fracking. It's a newish technology that allows companies to finally get at the estimated one trillion dollars of gar trapped in the Marsalis shale formation. New technology brought to us by Halliburton and company! So what is hyrdo-fracking? It's a drilling process whereby millions of gallons of slurry are pumped into a well at high pressure to fracture the rock and release the gas for easier extraction. Hydrofracking uses millions of gallons of water and chemicals per well, some of which are known toxins. People living near these wells out west are getting sick, losing their wells, etc.
We went to a meeting where people from PA, where their area is already being trashed, came to talk about it. The chemicals that they have discovered so far are ridiculous, that they would inject these things into the ground with the risk of contaminating the water supply. NYC has a group all over this issue due to the threat to their water supply from the Catskills. One spill up there would screw over 8 million people.
Dick Cheney pushed through provisions in the 2005 Energy Bill making it possible for gas companies to do this drilling with no Environmental Impact Study (EIS), little oversight from the DEC (who are making money off this), and exemptions from the Clean Water and Clean Air acts.
This is unbelievable. Each time I set down my arms, I see there is a place to raise them again. I think we need our president at home dealing with these issues now. There is no excuse for this. None. I am very upset.
The good news is that it is raining here. Rain is filling the air and the soil is reaching to embrace and all the plants are radiantly green. I am delighted with the rain.