New York officials backed a state health department review that says fracking is dangerous to the environment and human health Dec. 17, inching the state’s six-year moratorium on the process toward an outright ban.
“I asked myself, 'would I let my family live in a community with fracking?' The answer is no. I therefore cannot recommend anyone else's family to live in such a community either," acting Department of Health (DOH) commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker said, according to a release. The department’s findings were presented at a New York State cabinet meeting.
Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) commissioner Joe Martens stated at the meeting that he will issue a legally binding findings statement to prohibit high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) in New York State.
The DOH's report concludes that it will be years until science and research provide sufficient information to determine the level of risk that HVHF poses to public health and whether those risks can be adequately mitigated.
“Given the red flags raised by current studies, absent conclusive studies that disprove health concerns, the report states the activity should not proceed in New York State,” according to the release.
Environmental groups hailed the decision as a victory.
"The Sierra Club applauds Governor Cuomo for recognizing what the science has made consistently clear: Fracking is a hazard to human health that endangers communities wherever it is allowed," Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune said in a statement.
While the Twitter feed of New York’s governor, Andrew Cuomo, filled with praise from politicians, activists and celebrities, oil and gas industry groups berated what they called a politically motivated decision.
“This is an ill-advised decision that denies New Yorkers the opportunity to take advantage of the many environmental and economic benefits that natural gas offers,” said Paul Hartman, Northeast director for America’s Natural Gas Alliance, in a statement. “The decision to prohibit hydraulic fracturing is based on data that does not justify the Cuomo administration’s conclusions. Natural gas has been responsibly produced in communities across the country and we are proud of our industry’s safety record.”
API New York State Petroleum Council executive director Karen Moreau said the administration acted irresponsibly, and that federal and state regulations are already sufficient.
“Today’s action by Governor Cuomo shows that New York families, teachers, roads and good-paying jobs have lost out to political gamesmanship,” she said in a statement. “This is the wrong direction for New York.”
She added that in Pennsylvania, which shares a border--and part of the Marcellus formation--with New York, more than $630 million has been distributed to communities since 2012.
“These once economically challenged areas are now thriving,” she said.
Cuomo, a Democrat, said during the meeting that fracking was the most emotionally charged issue he had ever experienced.
“I get very few people who say to me, ‘I love the idea of hydraulic fracturing,” he said. “They say to me, ‘I have no alternative because there is no economy for me besides hydraulic fracturing.’ That’s where I think we should turn, is what economy, and what can we do in these areas to generate jobs, generate wealth for people who can’t pay their mortgage and can’t pay their taxes, as an alternative to fracking?”
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