New York affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation
July 28, 2008
Welcome to Environmental Advocates of New York’s online newsletter from the State Capital, your source for environmental news. We update you every other week with tidbits and observations carefully gleaned from the halls of the Capitol.
Risky Business: Hydrofracking Comes to New York State
Like a lot of green groups, Environmental Advocates of New York is concerned about potential threats to the state's water quality associated with drilling for natural gas, particularly in the Marcellus Shale formation. And as those folks more interested in making a buck than protecting our drinking water descend on the Southern Tier, it’s critical that these concerns get addressed and pronto.
We are especially concerned about the practice of "hydrofracking," a drilling process whereby millions of gallons of slurry are pumped into a well at high pressure to fracture the rock and release the gas for easier extraction.
Hydrofracking uses millions of gallons of water and chemicals per well—some of which are known toxins. As drilling in the Marcellus Shale play increases, and hydrofracking becomes more prevalent, we need to ensure that any water used is obtained sustainably and that all wastewater is treated and disposed of responsibly.
To that end, we are urging New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to update the state's “Generic Environmental Impact Statement on the Oil, Gas and Solution Mining Regulatory Program” to update drilling regulations. The DEC should not issue any permits for wells that involve hydrofracking until these updates are complete and safeguards are in place to protect our ground and drinking water resources.
Why are we focused on the drilling regulations? New York’s Generic Environmental Impact Statement is nearly 20 years old and spells out the DEC’s siting, drilling, production, and plugging program for wells in the state. The out-of-date document fails to address changes in drilling technology and the amount of water and chemicals that hydrofracking requires.
New York's water resources are too precious to contamination resulting from a lack of state oversight due to an outdated environmental impact statement. As New York's state government watchdog, Environmental Advocates will continue to investigate DEC policy related to oil and natural gas drilling and work with organizations across the state to protect New York’s natural resources.
Click here for the WNYC story on natural gas drilling in New York State.
Tell Us What
You Think
Help us make a difference. Take our online survey. Visit www.surveymonkey.com/eany_member_survey and tell us how we’re doing. As a member of Environmental Advocates, your thoughts and opinions are important to us. We need your input to better serve your interests and keep you up-to-date on the important environmental issues impacting New York State.
Please take a moment to let us know what you think. Visit www.surveymonkey.com/eany_member_survey.
Thank you for being a member of Environmental Advocates of New York. Click here to learn about the benefits of membership.
Something in the Air
Report Finds Toxic Mercury Pollution Almost Twice Prior EPA
Projections
Last week, Earthjustice and the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) released a new study documenting the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) failure to reduce toxic mercury pollution from cement kilns, even though Congress called on the agency to cut mercury pollution. The report found that cement kilns nationwide emit mercury pollution at more than twice the levels estimated in 2006 by the EPA.
New York State’s own Lafarge North America, Inc., shows up on the Top 10 Polluting Cement Kiln list twice, at spot four and five with its plants in New York and Michigan. According to Lafarge, its Ravena, New York kiln emits 400 pounds of mercury annually.
Mercury has polluted waterways throughout the New York and the nation, making some fish unsafe to eat. And according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, almost 10 percent of women of childbearing age have mercury in their bodies at levels high enough to put their babies at risk of birth defects, loss of IQ, learning disabilities and developmental problems.
The report, Cementing a Toxic Legacy? How EPA Has Failed to Control Mercury Pollution From Cement Kilns, found that mercury emissions from cement kilns now top 23,000 pounds each year, almost twice as high as the agency previously estimated in 2006.
The report also found
that a small number of cement plants are among the worst mercury
polluters in their states and, in some cases, in the country. And a
few cement kilns release as much or more mercury as nearby
coal-fired power plants.
Recommendations include swift action by the EPA to adopt a mercury
standard for polluting cement kilns, regular testing of cement kiln
emissions by state agencies such as New York’s Department of
Environmental Conservation, and the installation of mercury
monitoring systems at cement kilns across the country.
To read the complete report, visit www.earthjustice.org/cementreport.
The New York State Department of Health report on chemicals in sportfish and game includes a comprehensive list of state waterways where mercury is a "chemical of concern," as well as recommendations not to eat some fish species. Click here for the complete 2008-2009 report and health advisories.
Click here to read the Times-Union story on mercury emissions.
Coming Soon to a Polluted Site near You: Brownfield Cleanup Fix
Last week Governor Paterson signed landmark legislation to reform New York State’s Brownfield Cleanup Program. The fix will better target cleanup incentives for the redevelopment of contaminated sites.
Introduced in 2003, the Brownfield Cleanup Program has been the subject of criticism regarding the overly generous tax credits doled out to developers in communities that do not need an added incentive to attract development. And according to a report released by the State Comptroller’s Office earlier this year, if the state does not fix the program, New York will need to pay out more than $3 billion for the cleanup of the 200 sites in the program.
The new law limits redevelopment tax credits for non-manufacturing projects to $35 million or three times the cost of site cleanup, whichever is less; tax credits for manufacturing projects will be capped at $45 million, or six times the cost of site cleanup, whichever is less.
However, the new law fails to amend the definition of a brownfield site to clarify that historic fill sites would be eligible for the program. Sites contaminated by off-site sources or containing historic fill have been improperly excluded from the current program. The reforms should stimulate cleanup and redevelopment of polluted sites across the state without providing windfalls for developers in certain communities.
Click here to read the Governor’s press release: http://www.state.ny.us/governor/press/press_0723085.html
Click here to read Environmental Advocates’ press release on the bill’s passage.
Online Atlas to Monitor New York State’s Air, Land & Water
DEC Commissioner Pete Grannis and Secretary of State Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez announced the launch of the New York Ocean and Great Lakes Atlas. The atlas is an online mapping program that will download data into Google Earth Geographic Information System (GIS) software. The atlas is home to more than 200 data sets that contain information on such resources as storm drains, wetland boundaries, underwater vegetation, park locations, and fisheries. Eventually, more than 900 datasets will go online.
To check out the atlas, visit www.nyoglatlas.org.