Senator Thompson Files Comments On The DEC’S Environmental Impact Statement On Drilling For Natural Gas In New York’s Shale Layers

For Immediate Release: January 5, 2010
Contact: Heather Zeisz | zeisz@senate.state.ny.us | 716.854.8705

Buffalo, NY- New York State Senator Antoine M. Thompson (D-Parts of Erie & Niagara Counties), Chair of the NY State Senate Environmental Conservation Committee, has filed comments on the study intended to lay the groundwork for drilling for natural gas in shale deposits that lie deep below much of New York State.  The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) had set a December 31st deadline for comments on the Draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (DSGEIS).

Thompson filed his comments after he personally visited both model drilling sites and impacted communities in neighboring Pennsylvania, and after hosting an Albany Roundtable where drillers, environmentalists, environmental advocates and elected officials had a chance to sit together and discuss the myriad issues and interests involved.  Thompson also read dozens of articles and studies related to this process.

Thompson’s detailed 65 page document includes the following major recommendations for the DEC:

• A second comment period should be conducted after public comments on the DSGEIS have been integrated and before the final draft of the SGEIS is released.
•  The DEC needs to educate the diverse geographic areas of New York State on their relation to the process. 
• Cumulative impacts must be explored.
• Full cost data should be part of the analysis. 

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"Please click on the file entitled DSGEIS.pdf to view report."