Addabbo Participates in Earth Day Forum on Hydrofracking in Albany

This form of drilling, also known as “fracking,” is now under consideration in New York State, Addabbo noted, and the forum offered an opportunity for those concerned about hydraulic fracturing to present general information about the practice, as well as discuss its impact on the environment in other states where it is already occurring.  “This kind of input is invaluable to legislators who are trying to make determinations regarding the pros and cons of fracking,” said Addabbo.      

At the forum, Addabbo said that hydrofracking “represents uncharted territory for residents of our state, but one thing is certain: we simply can’t take chances with our water quality.” The senator, who has written to the State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to express his grave concerns about the safety of the process and its impact on the state’s environment, added, “Frankly, I don’t want to find ammonia persulfate magnesium nitrate, cristobalite polyethoxylated alkanol, ethane-diol potassium hydroxide, formaldehyde sodium hydroxide, or any of the many other foreign substances that are byproducts of hydrofracking in the soil or in my water.  If you can’t even begin to pronounce a chemical, why would you want to take the chance of drinking it?”

Addabbo is a co-sponsor of bipartisan legislation (S.6261) that would suspend the issuance of new permits for this form of natural gas drilling in New York State until June 2013.   If approved, Addabbo expects that the suspension of permits for hydraulic fracturing until next year will enable the Legislature to evaluate the true environmental impacts of the drilling, and will also provide adequate time for review of the Draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (DSGEIS) on hydrofracking to be produced by the State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). 

“Yes, we need to reduce our reliance on foreign oil, but at what cost to current and future generations? We need to know everything there is to know about hydraulic fracturing before we make any irreversible decisions on whether to go forward with this kind of suspect gas extraction,” Addabbo said. “We must have credible and accurate testing as to the dangers and overall issues presented by fracking. There must be no doubt as to the safety of our drinking water and the overall public health.”

The senator added that he looks forward to continuing to work with his legislative colleagues, the governor’s office, and the DEC on this very important environmental issue. “We shouldn’t ‘frack’ without the facts,” he concluded.

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Judy Close, Press Secretary
NYS Senator Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr.
15th Senate District - Satellite Office
66-85  73rd Place
Middle Village, NY   11379
Ph:  718-497-1630