New Yorkers to Rally in Albany, Call on Gov Paterson & State Leaders to Delay Natural Gas Drilling Rush

ALBANY, NY (01/14/2010)(readMedia)-- On January 25th, hundreds of concerned New Yorkers will join representatives from environmental and conservation groups including Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Environmental Advocates of New York, Sierra Club – Atlantic Chapter and Catskills Mountainkeeper, among others, at a rally in West Capitol Park on the west side of the State Capitol to call attention to what is arguably the most pressing threat to the health of the state's environment--particularly our drinking water--the rush to drill for natural gas in the Southern Tier and Catskills regions.

The natural gas industry is eager to drill in New York. Drilling companies propose to use a dangerous technique, called hydraulic fracturing or "fracking," to extract natural gas buried beneath the rock of the Marcellus and Utica Shale formations. In other parts of the country, fracking has poisoned wells and spilled toxic chemicals across landscapes.

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is currently reviewing comments submitted on its draft natural gas drilling guidelines. The DEC's draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement has been called inadequate by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, New York City Council, New York Department of Environmental Protection, and members of Congress including Representatives Hinchey, Arcuri, Massa, Nadler, and many others.