A coalition of groups opposed to hydrofracking are out with a new television advertisement in the Southern Tier today, attempting to cast doubt on the economic benefits of natural-gas drilling.
The 60-second spot will begin airing today in the Binghamton and Elmira television markets, according to New Yorkers Against Fracking. It’s being funded by Washington D.C.-based Food and Water Watch, one of the members of the coalition.
The ad features interviews with unnamed subjects who are said to be Pennsylvania residents. They criticize the natural-gas industry for everything from water issues to dropping home values before the narrator urges viewers to call Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
High-volume hydrofracking has been on hold in New York, but has been very active in Pennsylvania largely since 2007. Last month, New York officials announced that the Department of Health would review the Department of Environmental Conservation’s recommended regulations and guidelines for hydrofracking before any large-scale permits are issued.
Both Binghamton and Elmira sit above what is believed to be the most gas-rich portion of the Marcellus Shale in New York.
Here’s the spot:
11 Comments
The long-term destruction that will be wrought is not worth the short-term economic boost to the individuals who will leave and the oil and gas companies who do not care about the places they plunder. If New York fracks, we will deal with destroyed roads, noise pollution, toxic water, polluted soil, destroyed agricultural land, and a place that will become one in which no one will want to live or have a business. Fracking is not worth the risks.
New Yorkers, do your homework. Its time for you to wake up. If you think fracking is going to bring an abundance of natural gas and an economic boon to the state, guess again. Do your own research.
Growing health problems, permanently poisoned water supply and taxpayers left with huge tax bills to pay for the massive infrastructure damage caused by the gas companies are just the tip of this huge iceberg.
New York has an abundance of sustainable energy and the technology to being creating jobs that will support and grow our economy for generations. This is what the vast majority of New Yorkers want, yet our Governor continues to ignore the wishes of New Yorkers and real scientific evidence that fracking is deadly.
If you do not get involved locally and on the state level, you will have no one to blame once your property values plummet.
There are plenty of reasons to make significant study of the effects of horizontal hydrofracking before it is summarily allowed all over New York State.
Hydrofracking will bring large amounts of radioactive wastewater to the surface, besides all the poisonous chemicals contained in the fracking fluid. Shale in the Marcellus is up to 70 times more radioactive than previous sources from Texas and Canada. Once the radioactivity and dangerous chemicals seep into groundwater they can’t be removed.
Processing the wastewater in treatment plants will further spread the poison into large bodies of water. Landfills will also be contaminated.
Hydrofracking wells have a record of producing much lower amounts of natural gas than touted by the big gas corporations. Landowners who buy into this craze will be left with destroyed land and no income from the wells, along with reduced land value.
Please think before you believe Big Gas.
Great ad! Finally some pushback. Anyone who has taken the time to drive down to Pa knows these folks are telling the truth and the gas industry will visit these troubles on us, no question about it: frack, spill, ruin and run, that’s the way the industry does business all over the world. New York is no different.
Governor, what happens when we , in the Hudson Valley or ANYWHERE in NY, have a flood again from massive rains dropped by a storm, and the floods carry the toxic chemicals out of their storage areas? What will be your answer to that? There is no answer because no one has one. Ban Fracking in New York NOW. This was a great video of regular people, like all of us New Yorkers, who are living in the hell wrought by the industrialization of their lands. It’s UnAmerican what is happening to US. Life,liberty and the pursuit of happiness is only for the few in Pennsylvania, is that what you will give to New York with all new wells?
The bias of this author seems to mingle into his articles on the topic of high volume hydraulic fracturing, HVHF. There are well documented cases and statements of all kinds concerning the affects seen in HVHF regions.
New Yorkers Against Fracking is a large coalition of many organizations to work together for maximum impact. The membership is well into the thousands and brings everyday citizens and professionals from all walks of life together. To even slightly suggest that this organization would put out information from unreal or reliable sources is a slam.
Probably one of the most poignant remarks to date is from Dr. Anthony Ingraffea, Cornell University, in that the affects from HVHF are cumulative. We have no idea what the cumulative impact will be 10 yrs down the road! Four years may seem like a rush to some, but the affects of all the HVHF taking place now will be felt for a lifetime!
Food & Water Watch has my forever support for their work on this topic as does NYAF! Without the strong grassroots organizations work to date, we might already be experiencing affects that will last my grandchildrens’ lifetime!
If you allow your land to be fracked, check with whatever bank holds the mortgage as you may be in violation of the terms. And if you own land near well sites, be aware that a prospective purchaser of your property may not be able to get a mortgage. This in addition to fracking itself, will lower the value of your property. Many banks are refusing to loan in drilling areas.
GREAT AD. EVEN BETTER COMMENTS. BAN FRACKING NOW AND PRESERVE THE PRISTINE BEAUTY OF NEW YORK STATE.
The NatGas Industry wants colonies to exploit to supply the world. “Energy Independence” is a cover for making billions selling to over seas markets.
NEW YORK STATE SHALL NOT BECOME A COLONY.
Sorry to burst your bubble, but YES I do live in PA!
As John Bijarney says, “Energy Independence” is a cover for making billions selling to over seas markets. This is the truth. They are pushing for the public to believe The gas that is being taken by Hydraulic Fracturing is being used to build the United State as an Energy Independent nation, when in reality they are now fighting the US Federal government to allow them to build and reopen ports designed to get the Natural Gas out of the country even faster. Countries like China, India, and the EU are paying top dollar at this time because of a shortage due to the embargo on Iran who has the 2nd largest deposit of NG in the world.
What they are trying to do is beat China in their development, because China will not have the regulations to deal with and be that means become a lager Fracking country.
Mr. Campbell, you could have chosen to do some actual reporting about this, instead of insinuating that these might not be actual, affected Pennsylvanians. You could have looked into cases in PA where people have not been able to sell their home because no one wants to live so close to a well, effectively negating a family’s largest asset. You could have looked into how many banks will not lend to buy an already leased property, or even an unleased property adjacent to leased property. You could have looked into how ridiculously small the setbacks are from a home in PA, and how they are even smaller in NY, only 100 feet from a well to a home. You could have looked at the number of Pennsylvanians who have had to leave their homes due to health effects or noise. You could even have looked at the county statistics on employment, taxes, poverty, homelessness, crime, etc. in PA to discover both positive and negative impacts from drilling. While we are on the topic of TV ads, you could have expressed skepticism about the continual barrage of oil and gas industry ads to which Southern Tier residents have been subjected for months, while (industry-funded) EID whines about the poor landowner coalitions battling against the “well-funded environmental groups”. The comparative ad buys tell you where the vast majority of the “outside money” is coming from.