As Gov. David Paterson is considering whether to sign a bill that would allow for additional natural gas exploration in New York, environmental organizations -- including NYLCV -- are raising concerns about the impact of additional drilling.

One concern is the potential impact of additional drilling on the sprawling system of reservoirs that supply New York City and other municipalities.

The Marcellus Shale formation holds enormous energy and economic potential for New York State. However, the horizontal drilling that it requires may have harmful environmental repercussions.

The extraction process begins with a vertical well that is then drilled out horizontally. To sustain yields, a technique called hydraulic fracturing is used to free additional natural gas from the formation. Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” consists of pumping hundreds of thousands of gallons of water, sand and chemicals into a well to fracture the shale and release gas from its
pores.

Many of the substances in fracturing solutions, such as diesel fuel, are harmful or deadly to human beings; however, only one of these is regulated by the Safe Drinking Water Act (the rest were exempted in the Energy Act of 2005). Fracking chemicals could migrate into adjacent groundwater aquifers and soil.

NYLCV opposes the bill now on Gov. Paterson's desk, until such time that the impacts on our drinking water supplies can be ascertained.