A public presentation May 3, 2010 at the Women’s Community building in Ithaca featuring:
* Dr. Tony Ingraffea, Cornell University , Engineering Department
* Mr. William Kappel, U.S. Geological Survey, Water Resources Division
* Rachel Treichler, Esq., Attorney from Hammondsport
Of all the issues with horizontal hydraulic fracking of Marcellus shale, the question of how to dispose of flowback waste created by gas extraction presents the most problems for the industry and for those concerned about environmental protections.
Disposal wells are used in many other places, such as Texas and Ohio , but only one well in New York is currently approved for disposing of gas flowback waste. Two recent well candidates (in Pulteney and in Van Etten) led to public opposition and, at least for now, withdrawal of consideration. In the meantime, it is reported that flowback fluids from Pennsylvania ’s wells are already or will be trucked to Ohio and West Virginia , where they have 150 and 70 disposal wells respectively. Disposal wells in southern New York would be a much more convenient option for the gas industry. The public has many questions about the geology, the regulations, the risks, and the likelihood of disposal wells in our region.
Sponsored by Shaleshock Action Alliance , Community Environmental Defense Council, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County , Gas Drilling Awareness for Cortland County , Pulteney Pure Water Citizens Committee, Enfield Neighbors for Safe Air and Water, Social Action Committee of Temple Beth-El, NYSESS, and Concerned Citizens of Ulysses.
