Don’t fall for the PR

To the editor:

The gas industry has been waging a highly effective PR campaign to sell gas drilling as a benign activity that is environmentally safe. Much of the media has picked up on their talking points. Government officials, even those responsible for regulating this industry, have become some of its biggest advocates (see the interview with Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Tom Rathbun in the October 23 issue of The River Reporter.)

Fortunately for us, the truth about gas drilling can be found in the parts of our country that have suffered from its impacts. The Oil and Gas Accountability Project has documented the many ways that gas production pollutes. The Natural Resources Defense Council’s book, “Drilling Down,” details the devastating health impacts of gas production. Various films such as “A Land Out of Time,” “Rural Impact,” “Dirty Ol’ Town” and “Rage of Nature” have interviewed people whose properties, way of life and health have been adversely affected, even destroyed, by drilling activities near their homes, farms and ranches.

A long list of toxic chemicals is introduced into the environment at various stages of the gas production process. Fracking fluids such as benzene (a known carcinogen), toluene (affects reproductive and central nervous systems), and ethylbenzene and xylenes (respiratory/neurological effects) can end up in underground aquifers as well as our rivers and streams. Radioactive materials such as radium and radon, as well as heavy metals, can be unearthed during the drilling process. According to “Drilling Down,” oil and gas production facilities can release more than 50 toxic air pollutants from venting, dehydration, leaks from equipment, open-pit waste ponds and land application of volatile wastes.

Two of our most valuable natural resources are clean air and clean water. These must be protected for our sake and the sake of generations to come. If you are seeking the truth about protecting these vital resources, you won’t hear it from the gas industry or their government advocates.

The ‘P’ is supposed to stand for ‘Protection’

To the editor:

Since when are the genuine concerns of citizens of Pennsylvania to be dismissed as myths? (See “DEP wants drilling ‘myths’ put to rest” in the October 23 issue of The River Reporter).

If these concerns are myths, I would ask if Mr. Rathbun of the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is aware that:

• New York City has insisted on a ban on gas drilling within one mile of its reservoirs. NYC Councilman James Gennaro ( a geologist) says that “this is an activity wholly incompatible with a drinking water supply.”

• Rifle, CO, where deep gas-well drilling with hydraulic fracturing is being done on a large scale, has refused to allow drilling in its watershed. “Water is our most precious resource. We take it very seriously,” said Rifle Mayor Keith Lambert.

• There has been a change in the DEP’s own description of the fracturing process from “...it’s only white sand and water” (Ron Gilius, Director, Bureau of Oil and Gas Management , PA DEP) on February 20 of this year to Mr. Rathbun’s insistence that the DEP knows all the chemicals that are used at a well site.

If these concerns are myths, why doesn’t the industry give up the exemptions it now enjoys to major parts of the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Community Right to Know Act, the Clean Streams Act and more? The EPA doesn’t act; it has been ordered not to interfere—and we who live here, who hold this place dear, should not be concerned?

Think again, Mr. Rathbun.

Keep in mind that the job of the DEP is to protect the environment not be an apologist for the gas and oil industry.

DRBC should declare a moratorium

To the editor:

The Energy Act of 2005 gave the oil and gas industries complete federal exemptions to all environmental regulations, including the Clean Water Act. Accordingly, the residents of the watershed, and indeed the river itself, depend largely on Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) to protect water resources from this significant change in use.

According to the DRBC Water Quality Regulations (18 CFI Part 410), Section 3.10.3(A)(2), waters within the Upper Delaware are Special Protection Waters (SPW) because they fall within the boundaries of “a national wild, scenic, and recreational rivers system” and are protected by a standing Act of Congress (1978). It is, therefore, within the DRBC’s mandate to protect these waters from adverse changes to existing water quality of the river itself, as well as tributary streams and groundwater.

In Section B, under Stream Quality Objectives, the manual clearly states, “The waters of the Basin shall not contain substances attributable to municipal, industrial, or other discharges in concentrations or amounts sufficient to preclude the specified water uses to be protected.”

Similarly, Section 3.40.4(B), under Ground Water Quality Objectives, states, “It is the policy of the Commission to prevent degradation of ground water quality,” and, “No quality change will be considered which, in the judgment of the Commission, may be injurious to any designated present or future ground or surface water use.”

Further, Section 4.40, Ground Water Quality Requirements, states: “No person, firm, partnership, corporation, association, or other entity, including any of the signatory parties, any political subdivision, agency, department, or instrumentality of any of them, shall cause or permit any pollution of ground waters or violate the ground water quality objectives or control requirements imposed by or determined pursuant to this Section or Section 3.40.”

Accordingly, the DRBC should declare a moratorium on drilling in the watershed while requiring a full Environmental Impact Study (EIS). This study must include baselines, full buildup model, public evaluation of the chemicals, materials and methods including “proprietary” information, and continuous monitoring.

Our water resources are too precious to risk depletion or contamination.

Solace for those hurting during the holidays

To the editor:

The days are shorter and darker and the weather has turned cold and raw, but the holiday season is approaching. For many, this is a season of joy and celebration, but not for all. Many are suffering illness, or loss of a loved one, or the pain of a broken relationship. Some are hungry or cold; others have lost jobs or homes or marriages. For these folk, sadness and confusion may make it difficult join in the celebratory spirit of the holidays.

The Presbyterian churches of Sullivan County want to walk softly with those who, for whatever reason, are in pain this season; to reach out to those for whom this season can be very blue. This year’s Service of Lament and Light will be held on Sunday, November 30, at 4:00 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall of the Jeffersonville Presbyterian Church, Main Street (Route 52 East) Jeffersonville. All are welcome to attend.

There will be a short service where we gather, no matter our church affiliation (or lack of affiliation) to express sympathy and concern for our neighbors and hear words of hope that speak to us in the midst of sorrow. Near the end of the service, each person will be invited to light a candle and share aloud, if they wish, something of the situation they are suffering or a sign of hope. Afterward, we will share fellowship, served up with homemade soup and bread. Come and be comforted.

For further information call Jane at 845/887-4346 or Lois at 482-4731.