Times Fracking Expose Buoys Local Opponents

By JIM KEVLIN


Local folks concerned about hydrofracking for natural gas were elated after the New York Times launched a three-part series Sunday, Feb. 27, with “Regulation Lax as Gas Wells’ Tainted Water Hits Rivers.”
Citing “internal documents” from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, reporter Ian Urbina writes that waste water from fracking “contains radioactivity at levels higher than previously known.”
That water is “sometimes” hauled to plants not designed to treat it, then discharged into rivers that provide drinking water for cities as large as Pittsburgh.
The second part, “Gas Drillers Recycle Wastewater, but Risks Remain,” was printed Tuesday, March 1.
Sunday’s front-page report, continued on two full pages inside, creates “great public exposure” on a issue that had been reported on, but never with such vitality, said Robert H. Boyle, East Springfield, the Sports Illustrated senior editor and environmental writer active in the local anti-fracking coalition.
“The Times is the flagship of the press,” said Boyle.  “That brought it home with great vitality.”
Sustainable Otsego’s Adrian Kuzminski, Fly Creek, the former Hartwick College professor, called the impact “enormous.  Everything the critics have been saying has now been condensed and brought to broad public attention by the Times.
“I’m sure this will initiate a statewide and national debate,” he continued.  “The only conclusion that reasonable people can reach is hydrofracking should be prohibited in New York State.”
Said Nicole Dillingham, Otsego 2000 president, “We’re grateful to this reporter who put this together.  If ever there was a time for our county to stand up for a moratorium, it is now.”
She pointed out many of the issues explored -- radioactivity, the lack of waste-water treatment facilities (the Ross #1 well on Crumhorn Mountain waste is being processed in Watertown, 200 miles away) and inability of the state to enforce -- are the very concerns the local anti-fracking coalition has been raising with the county’s Gas Advisory Committee.
Urbina reports on L.A.-level ozone pollution in Wyoming, and youthful asthma rates in Texas running triple the state average near wells, but spends the most time in the first segment on “Pennsylvania, Ground Zero.”
What EPA officials called “one of the largest failures in U.S. history to supply clean drinking water to the public” occurred in late 2008, when a drought prevented drilling and coal-mine waste from being sufficiently diluted in the Monogahela River, prompting  an advisory that Pittsburgh residents drink only bottled water.
“Of more than 179 wells producing wastewater with high levels of radiation, at least 116 reported levels of radium or other radioactive materials 100 times as high as the levels set by federal drinking water regulations,” he writes at another point.  In 15 wells, it was 1,000 times higher.
Urbina also reported lax regulation in Pennsylvania, with only 31 inspectors overseeing 125,000 oil and gas wells and state agencies afraid to aggressively enforce the rules.
“We simply can’t keep up.  There’s just too much of the waste,” said one inspector, adding, “If we’re too hard on them, the companies might just stop reporting their mistakes.”
The state’s new governor, Tom Corbett, who received more political contributions from gas companies than all his competitors put together, has been even more friendly to drilling interests, opening state land to new drilling.
“I will direct the (state) Department of Environmental Protection to serve as partner with Pennsylvania businesses, communities and local governments,” Corbett is quoted as saying.
As Urbina reports it, drilling can ruin the neighborhood, too:
“Drilling derricks tower over barns, lining rural roads like feed silos.  Drilling sites bustle around the clock with workers, some in yellow hazardous materials suits, and 18 wheelers haul equipment, water and waste along back roads.
“The rigs announce their presence with the occasional boom and quiver of underground explosions.  Smelling like raw sewage mixed with gasoline, drilling-waste pits, some as large as a football field, sit close to homes.”

Glimmerglass Seeks Young Voices For ‘Carmen’

COOPERSTOWN

The Glimmerglass Festival will hold auditions on March 10 and 11 for the children’s chorus in the company’s 2011 production of “Carmen.”
Twelve young voices will be cast in “Carmen.” Auditions will take place each day from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. by appointment at Richfield Springs Central School.
Singers should be at least 10 years old. Those auditioning will be asked to sing a folk song or a selection from chorus or music class. No pop selections, please. An accompanist will be provided if needed.
“Carmen” will be sung in French at 15 performances between July 2 and Aug. 23.



Those interested in scheduling an audition should contact Tracy Allen at
tallen@richfieldcsd.org. For more information on the 2011 Glimmerglass
Festival, visit www.glimmerglass.org.

COOPERSTOWN AND AROUND: League Sets Debate For Candidates

COOPERSTOWN

The eight candidates for four village trustee seats will debate at 7 p.m. Monday, March 7, at the county courthouse.
The event is sponsored by the League of Women Voters.  Public welcome.

HANNA ON MEND: U.S. Rep. Richard Hanna, formerly of Cooperstown, is recovering at his Barneveld home from a Feb. 21 mitral valve surgery, his office reported Monday, Feb. 28.

DUKE BELOVED: “Duke Snider was beloved by a nation of Dodgers fans, from Brooklyn to Los Angeles,” Hall of Fame Chairman  Jane Forbes Clark said after the Sunday, Feb. 27, passing of the Hall of Famer.

TIGHT FINANCES:  Facing state aid cuts, the Cooperstown Central school board will get its first look at the tentative budget at 7 p.m., Wednesday, March 2, in the cafeteria.

Paul Donnelly
for The Freeman’s Journal
With the heavy rains Monday, Feb. 28, it was hard to believe that just three days before 10-12 inches of snow snarled Otsego County.  The orange scarf suggests a CCS fan.

CURTISES MARK 50TH

Niles and Nancy Curtis of Hartwick Seminary marked their 50th wedding anniversary Friday, Feb. 18.  The couple has three children, Scott of Cooperstown, and Jim and Gretchen, who both live in Andover, Mass.  Niles Curtis owned and managed the former Cooperstown Agway on Railroad Avenue for many years.

Seward Assistant Majority Leader In Senate

State Sen. Jim Seward, R-Milford, has been named assistant majority leader on conference operations, a post that puts him in the top leadership of the state senate.
“The new position allows me to work closely with senate leadership in establishing priorities and directing  legislation to the senate floor,” said Seward.
He has also been named to three budget review subcommittees – Education, General Government/Local Assistance, and Higher Education & Arts – that are analyzing the governor’s budget proposal and recommending revisions.
Previously, the Oneonta native was named chairman of the senate Insurance Committee.

Sams Summa Cum Laude Grad

COOPERSTOWN

Chelsea R. Sams of Cooperstown has graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor of science from Philadelphia University. 
She is currently attending a graduate program to complete her Physicians Assistant Certification. 
Chelsea is the daughter of Dina Sams and Willis Monie, Jr., of Cooperstown and Mark and Ellen Sams of Washington, Pa.

Smith Barney Promotes Sohns To Vice President

COOPERSTOWN
Matthew Sohns has been promoted to first vice president/financial adviser at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney’s Wealth Management office in Cooperstown.
Sohns, who has been with Smith Barney since 1998, is a native of Delhi.  He holds a bachelor’s from American International College. 
Matt currently lives in Cooperstown with his family.