An Upper West Side state lawmaker wants a moratorium on the “hydrofracking” method of drilling for natural gas near the city’s water supply.

Assembly Member Daniel O’Donnell asked for the suspension on drilling in New York State in an Oct. 1 letter to Gov. David Paterson, and state and city environmental commissioners Pete Grannis and Cas Holloway.

O’Donnell wrote that possible cuts to the Department of Environmental Conservation would hamper oversight on a potentially harmful form of natural gas drilling.

“One cannot simultaneously expand a new, relatively untested form of drilling and cut funding for the regulatory agency and then expect people to rely on any assurances of safety,” O’Donnell wrote in his letter.

“Hydrofracking” is short for hydraulic fracturing, which involves injecting water mixed with chemicals and sand into a well to free trapped natural gas. New York City elected officials have called for a complete ban on drilling near the city’s water supply.

But the rules have sparked a backlash among environmental advocates, who claim that the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) missed an opportunity to ban drilling near the city’s water supply altogether.

There has been a push in recent years from oil and gas companies to drill in the Marcellus Shale using a technique called hydraulic fracturing, which involves injecting water mixed with chemicals and sand into a well to free trapped natural gas.

The proposal requires a separate environmental impact statement to accompany each individual permit application to drill in a specific site in the Marcellus Shale region, which spans parts of New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio.

Legislators and environmental advocates in the city have long opposed natural gas drilling near the city’s watershed for fear of contamination. Those in favor of a full ban had tepid reactions.

“We don’t see much of anything in this decision that would protect either the New York City or Syracuse watershed,” said Kate Sinding, senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council. “All the DEC is doing is putting off a decision that could be made now.”
State Sen. Tom Duane called the move a step forward, but still wants a ban on drilling near watersheds. The new rules only slow down natural gas drilling near watersheds for New York City and Syracuse.

“I fear it is a cynical move that will pit New Yorkers against each other,” Duane said in a statement. “Residents in Manhattan and Syracuse, for example, will benefit from this decision, while those living in Ithaca and Jamestown will not. This is unacceptable.”

Borough President Scott Stringer, who started a “Kill the Drill” campaign to fight for a ban, said special requirements become “bonanzas for commercial lobbyists.”

“A complete ban on watershed drilling was the right thing a year ago, it’s the right thing today, and it will remain the right thing for as long as we debate hydraulic fracturing in New York,” Stringer said in a statement. “The state should go the full distance and enact a ban.”

While natural gas has the potential to be a more environmentally friendly source of fuel, the hydraulic fracturing process—which pumps massive amounts of high-pressure water and chemicals deep into the earth to break shale and release natural gas—merits a lot more investigation. This type of drilling has contaminated drinking wells in other parts of the country, and could pollute the Catskill/Delaware watershed, where New York City gets its drinking water. Should our water supply, renowned as one of the cleanest in the country, become contaminated, the city would have to build an expensive
filtration plant. This is a risk we cannot afford to undertake.

To date, local elected officials like State Sen. Tom Duane and Borough President Scott Stringer have done an admirable job pushing for the city to have a voice in this critical debate. But the time for public comment will end Dec. 31. That is why the mayor must weigh in on this issue, and do it soon. Although the city does not have a role in determining drilling regulations, the state does, and we hope Bloomberg will encourage Gov. David Paterson and the Department of Environmental Conservation, which is currently drafting drilling rules, to take a hard look at this issue and err on the side of caution.

All New Yorkers can and should chime in on this issue, and we urge readers to cut out the letter below and mail it to City Hall. The sanctity of the city’s water supply is too important to gamble on.

“I said, ‘Drilling for gas, are you kidding me?’” DiPrima recalled.

But as an Upper West Sider, her concern also centered on potential damage to the city’s drinking water.

The Marcellus shale, a rock formation that stretches from Ohio into New York’s southern tier, has more than 100 trillion feet of natural gas, according to the state environmental department. The shale covers the city’s watershed in the Hudson Valley region, and opponents say the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s rules for drilling natural gas there are not strict enough. The rules, which are only a draft at this point, propose buffer zones around the watershed but do not ban drilling near the city’s drinking water supply.

Environmentalists are concerned about mining natural gas using a method called hydraulic fracturing, in which a mix of water, sand and chemicals is injected at a high pressure to crack the shale. Doing this near the city’s main water supply raises concerns about contamination.

“When you’re talking about the New York City watershed, you’re talking about a resource that a zero-risk approach needs to be adopted,” said Kate Sinding, a senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council’s New York Urban Program. “We have no faith that this is an activity that will be safely permitted and regulated in the state.”

DiPrima, who is commissioner of the West Side Soccer League, is working to organize Manhattan residents to speak out at public hearings on natural gas drilling and to write letters to the state environmental agency. She has teamed up with Borough President Scott Stringer, who launched a “kill the drill” campaign, and the Natural Resources Defense Council. The campaign has generated 1,454 letters and a Facebook group with nearly 1,000 supporters.

“Everyone who drinks the water or showers in the water should stand up and say their piece,” DiPrima said.

On Dec. 3, DiPrima corralled about 60 friends, family members and neighbors at the Culture Center on Columbus Avenue for an informational meeting on natural gas drilling. Stringer, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the group Catskill Mountainkeeper also attended.

State Sen. Tom Duane and other
environmental advocates have pushed for a meeting in New York City to discuss the potential impact of drilling on drinking water. Though the public meetings on natural gas drilling are over, the public comment period has been extended to Dec. 31. Drilling opponents are urging people to continue writing letters and emails in support of a ban.

“We have only a limited time to encourage New York State to be a leader in one of the most pressing environmental issues facing New York City,” Stringer said in a statement.

When the comment period ends, the state Department of Environmental Conservation will consider the public’s response to the draft rules and finalize drilling regulations. The department will also respond to specific concerns in a “responsiveness summary,” and then decide on possible changes to regulation.

A spokesperson for the department declined to give a statement addressing drilling concerns until the public
comment period has ended.

With only two weeks left until that deadline, DiPrima is trying to increase awareness that drilling near the city’s drinking water supply may be imminent.

“It’s not just up to Natural Resources Defense Council and not just up to environmental groups to solve this problem,” DiPrima said. “It’s up to everybody.”

That is because the drilling, believed to contaminate water, would be allowed near watersheds where city residents get their drinking water.

Borough President Scott Stringer, along with other city officials, called for the state to ban drilling near the city’s water source.

“Today, we start a campaign with one clear goal: to make certain that before this state’s draft plan become law, it includes a ban on drilling for natural gas in the city’s upstate watershed,” Stringer said in a statement.

The coalition of elected officials and environmental advocates also criticized the proposed buffer zones around watersheds as inadequate to protect water from contamination.

“The proposed mitigation measures do not go far enough,” said State Sen. Tom Duane, in a statement. “It is inconceivable and unacceptable that the measures do not include a ban on high-volume hydraulic fracturing in and around New York City’s watershed and, indeed, in all water supplies statewide.”

The Department of Environmental Conservation will hold a public information sessions later in the year.

The Marcellus Shale rock formation in upstate New York is a potential source of natural gas, which would only be accessible through a new method called “Hydraulic Fracturing.” However, the method requires toxic compounds, which could possibly seep into New York City’s watershed, according to Duane and Gennaro.

While hearings will take place in areas near the Marcellus Shale, none are currently scheduled for New York City.

“The fact is that nobody knows the environmental impact that this controversial drilling will bring to the Marcellus region,” Duane said in a letter to the State Department of Environmental Conservation. “We want to ensure that DEC thoroughly considers any and all threats to our precious natural resources and allow New York City residents, advocates and elected officials to testify at a scoping hearing. Anything less is unacceptable.”

According to Duane’s deputy chief of staff Colin Casey, if contamination occurred, as it has in New Mexico and Wyoming, the city would need to build an expensive water filtration plant.