Should Fallsburg BAN Fracking?

We Already Have Unsafe Water in Fallsburg

At the next Town of Fallsburg executive session FRACKING is going to be on the table for discussion...more specifically, a BAN ON FRACKING, which this blog and this write supports.  Why is this item on the agenda you might ask?  Because I have asked the "Town of Fallsburg" to amend our zoning regulations to ban not just the act of fracking, but all of its sundry processes including disposal of fracking fluids in our community.

Now the conventional wisdom on the board is "We do not need such a ban, it is highly unlikely the industry would want to frack in our community anyway."  OK, but what if they do?  Surely the board is familiar with the old saying, "A ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."?  If the industry has no real interest in doing any fracking in our community, what is the harm in having a ban ALREADY IN EFFECT?  

The Town of Fallsburg covers a pretty big area when you start looking at the sum parts of the whole...IE, it includes our little hamlet of Mountaindale, all of our beautiful streams, water falls and SAFE DRINKING WATER SUPPLIES.  Wouldn't it make more sense to put a ban in effect...just in case the (un)Natural Gas industry and their biased experts are LYING TO US?  

If you support a ban on fracking, you are strongly encouraged to contact our Town Supervisor Steve Vegliante ( svegliante@fallsburgny.com) or call the board secretary (Linda Ingber) at (845) 434-8810 ext. 5 to express your support of a town zoning regulation amendment to ban fracking.  You can also show your support for such a ban by leaving a comment in our comments section.

Letter Seeking Ban

Dear Town of Fallsburg Board:

The Town of Fallsburg Zoning Code as adopted in Article 1, Section 310-1.2 specifically instructs the town in sections A-E, charges the towns elected officials and employees with the following duties and responsibilities:

To preserve the character and rural scenic beauty of the landscape and protect this gateway to the Catskill Forests from inharmonious and destructive uses of land; (emphasis added)

Create an orderly pattern of growth by encouraging concentration of new residential development (emphasis added) in areas that can conveniently be serviced with public facilities and discouraging intensive residential development in areas of difficult accessibility that would involve excessive costs for road improvements, road maintenance, school bus transportation and utility installation;

Regulate population density to reflect the desired character of the Town;

Prevent intrusion of incompatible uses into residential areas, by establishing proper standards for improvements in new residential developments and preserving, protecting and enhancing natural beauty wherever possible; (emphasis added)

Provide for open spaces and to preserve the natural and scenic qualities of lands; (emphasis added)

Furthermore, the town of Fallsburg Zoning Code in Chapter 141 Fresh Water Wetlands in Section 141-1 specifically instructs the town, charges the town’s elected officials and employees with the following duties and responsibilities: 

The purpose of this chapter is to provide for the protection, preservation and conservation of the freshwater wetlands within the boundaries of the “Town of Fallsburg”, pursuant to and in accordance with all of the proceedings, concepts and definitions set forth in Article 24 of the Environmental Conservation Law and Title 23 of Article 71 of such law relating to the enforcement of Article 24, as such law may from time to time be amended.

It is the belief of the majority of citizens who reside, recreate and travel through the geographical footprint of the “Town of Fallsburg” that allowing the industrial practice of Hydraulic Fracturing (fracking) for exploration of, and drilling for Natural Gas runs contrary to these and other sections of the “Town of Fallsburg” Zoning Rules and Regulations.  It is further believed that any elected official of the “Town of Fallsburg”, any employee of the Town of Fallsburg who would support the industrial practice of Hydraulic within the scope of their OFFICIAL DUTIES (emphasis added) would be violating their “Oath of Office and/or Terms of Employment”.

Recent court cases here in the state of New York related to local ordinances seeking to ban the industrial process of Hydraulic Fracturing (fracking) have seen local ordinances upheld, with the judges in two recent cases ruling that such bans are legal, a natural extension of a community's local government right and responsibility  to control land use.   A amendment to the “Town of Fallsburg” Zoning Rules and Regulations, banning the industry practice of Hydraulic Fracturing (fracking), based upon these recent court decisions,  would not be a frivolous waste of the town board’s time, but in fact would serve to preserve our safe drinking water supplies, our communities, and preserve the character and rural scenic beauty of the landscape and protect this gateway to the Catskill Forests from inharmonious and destructive uses of land (emphasis added).

As a citizen of the hamlet of Mountaindale which lays within the geographical and governmental control of the Town of Fallsburg, I am respectfully requesting that the town board take all necessary steps to enact changes as more fully outlined in the below proposed amendment into the “Town of Fallsburg Zoning Ordinance”.

Respectfully Submitted,

Sherwood Martinelli

62 Main Street Apt 2A Mountaindale NY 12763  (845) 693-4513

Proposed Amendments to Town of Fallsburg Zoning Ordinance

The Town of Fallsburg Zoning Ordinance is herby amended as follows:

1.       Section (insert proper section) Definitions is amended by adding new definitions to read as follows:

“Natural Gas” shall mean any gaseous substance, either combustible or noncombustible, which is produced in a natural state from the earth and which maintains a gaseous or rarified state at standard temperature and pressure condition, and/or gaseous components or vapors occurring in or derived from petroleum or other hydrocarbons.

“Natural Gas and/or Petroleum Exploration” shall mean geologic or geophysical activities related to the search for natural gas, petroleum or other subsurface hydrocarbons including prospecting, geophysical and geologic seismic surveying and sampling techniques, which include but are not limited to core or rotary drilling or making an excavation in the search and evaluation or natural gas, petroleum, or other subsurface hydrocarbon deposits.

“Natural Gas and/or Petroleum Exploration and Production Materials” shall mean any solid, semi-solid, liquid, semi-liquid or gaseous material used in the exploration or extraction of natural gas.

“Natural Gas Exploration and/or Petroleum Production Wastes” shall mean any garbage, refuse, cuttings, sludge, flow-back fluids, produced waters or other discarded materials, including solid, liquid, semi-solid, or contained gaseous material that results from or is associated with the exploration, drilling or extraction of natural gas and/or petroleum.

“Natural Gas and/or Petroleum Extraction” shall mean the digging or drilling of a well for the purposes of exploring for, developing or producing natural gas, petroleum or other subsurface hydrocarbons.

“Natural Gas and/or Petroleum Support Activities” shall mean the construction, use, or maintenance of a storage or staging yard, a water or fluid injection station, a water or fluid gathering station, a natural gas or petroleum gathering line, venting station, or compressor with the exploration or extraction of natural gas or petroleum.

2.       Section (insert proper section) is amended by adding a new section (insert proper section) to read as follows:

            Section (insert new section code here) Prohibited Uses

A)      Prohibition against the Exploration for or Extraction of Natural Gas and/or Petroleum. No land in the Town of Fallsburg (and it geographical/governmental outlaying footprint) shall be used: to conduct any exploration for natural gas and/or petroleum; to drill any well for natural gas; to transfer, store, process or treat natural gas; or to dispose of natural gas exploration or production wastes; or to erect any derrick, building or other structure; or to place any machinery or equipment for any such purposes.

B)     Prohibition against the Storage, Treatment and Disposal of Natural Gas and/or Petroleum Exploration and Production Materials.  No land in the Town (and it geographical/governmental outlaying footprint) shall be used for:  the storage, transfer, treatment and/or disposal of natural gas and/or petroleum exploration and production materials.

C)     Prohibition against the Storage, Treatment and Disposal of Natural Gas and/or Petroleum Exploration and Production Wastes. No land in the Town shall be used for: the storage transfer, treatment and/or disposal of natural gas and/or petroleum exploration and production wastes.

D)      Prohibition against Natural Gas and/or Support Activities. No land in the Town shall be used for natural gas and/or petroleum support activities.

E)      Invalidity of Permits.  No permit issued by any local, state, or federal agency, commission or board for a use which would violate the prohibitions of this section or of this ordinance shall be deemed valid within the town (and it geographical/governmental outlaying footprint).

3.      These amendments shall take effect upon adoption and publication as provided by law.