The Catskill Chronicle

FREMONT CENTER, NY (November 30, 2010) – Catskill Citizens for Safe Energy has announced:

“In an historic vote, the New York State Assembly enacted a temporary ban on hydraulic fracturing which will remain in effect until May 15, 2011.  The bill, A11443B/S08129B  was approved by the Senate last summer and is now on its way to Governor Paterson, who is expected to sign it into law.

The de facto moratorium that has been in effect for the past two years can be attributed to Governor Paterson because he ordered the NYS DEC to prepare a new environmental impact statement to set standards for issuing permits for high-volume hydraulic fracturing and the DEC has yet to finalize its work.  By signing this bill, Governor Paterson will cement his reputation as the first Governor in the country to protect his citizens from the precipitous onslaught of dangerous and poorly regulated shale gas extraction.

The vote in the Assembly caps an incredible two weeks for those of us who have been working hard to combat the corporations that intend to turn our communities into sacrificial energy zones.

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The day after Thanksgiving, Governor Paterson acknowledged the role ordinary citizens have played in defeating dangerous drilling saying "This is a very good example of public participation. Our DEC…originally ruled that hydrofracking would not affect the water quality in the area, but we’ve received additional information and have not been able to come to a conclusion as to whether or not this is a good idea… We’re not going to risk public safety or water quality…  At this point, I would say that the hydrofracking opponents have raised enough of an argument to thwart us going forward at this time."