American Oil and Gas Reporter - January 2015 - 219

New York Bans Hydraulic Fracturing
ALBANY, N.Y.-New York's five-year
de facto ban on high-volume hydraulic
fracturing became permanent on Dec. 17
as Governor Andrew Cuomo announced
the state would ban the stimulation technique based on fears it could contaminate
water supplies and endanger the public
health.
The governor said his decision was
based on the findings of A Public Health
Review of High Volume Hydraulic Fracturing for Shale Gas Development, a
study conducted by acting Health Commissioner Howard Zucker.
According to state sources, Department
of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Joseph Martens will publish a final
supplemental generic environmental impact statement covering high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) early this year
and follow that within 10 days by issuing
a legally binding statement prohibiting
fracturing operations in New York.
Bradley Gill, executive director of the
Independent Oil & Gas Association of
New York, says the governor's decision
was unexpected. He reports that going
into the press conference, he believed
the state was close to announcing a pilot
drilling program for Southern Tier counties.
"IOGA NY is disappointed, but not
entirely surprised, to hear of the governor's
decision to further prohibit much-needed
exploration for natural gas in New York,"
Gill says. "After six years of delay and
much debate, many companies that left
New York for greener pastures in Pennsylvania, Ohio or elsewhere know they
made the right decision. While industry
will find opportunity elsewhere, our
hearts go out to the farmers and landowners in the Southern Tier, whose livelihoods
in New York now are in jeopardy. For
the time-honored natural gas industry,
'the new New York' is not open for business."
New York State Petroleum Council
Executive Director Karen Moreau calls
the statewide fracturing ban an irresponsible action by Governor Cuomo. She
says the move shows New York's families,
teachers, roads and good-paying jobs
have lost to political gamesmanship.
"Robust regulations exist at the federal
and state levels," Moreau says. "A politically motivated and equally misinformed
ban on a proven technology used for
more than 60 years throughout the country
to great success is short-sighted and reckless, particularly when New York depends
on natural gas produced safely just over

the border in Pennsylvania."
State Arguments
According to the Health Department
study, the science surrounding HVHF "is
limited, only just beginning to emerge,
and largely suggests only hypotheses
about potential public health impacts that
need further evaluation." It asserts that
many studies on the environmental impacts
of fracturing are preliminary or exploratory
in nature, and also raise substantial questions about whether the risks are sufficiently understood so that they can be
managed adequately.
"Furthermore, the public health impacts
from HVHF activities could be significantly broader than just those geographic
locations where the activity actually
occurs, thus expanding the potential risk
to a large population of New Yorkers,"
the study argues.
In addition to the state action, a number
of New York towns and cities have imposed moratoria or bans on fracturing. In
a legal decision handed down in June,
the state Court of Appeals ruled that
towns could use zoning ordinances to restrict fracturing operations (AOGR, July
2014, pg. 19).
During the conference with the governor, Gill reports, Martens said that only
37 percent of New York acreage could
be drilled because of town bans, statemandated setbacks, and other regulations.
His conclusion was that because of those
restrictions, the economics of drilling in
the state would be far less than originally
anticipated and the prospects for successful
operations were highly tenuous. Gill
points out this is a self-fulfilling prophecy
because the state of New York is the
entity creating that situation.
In his economic arguments, Martens
also failed to mention the Utica Shale,
which could be drilled across a much
broader area, and certainly would affect
drilling economics, Gill says, adding,
"We don't appreciate a state regulator
determining whether the economics of a
drilling program make sense. That is not
his role, but rather should be decided by
operators."
The health arguments against HVHF
raised by Zucker highlighted studies from
several sources, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Duke
University, but Gill asserts it was evident
he relied only on those studies that had
conclusions aligned with his desired outcome-that HVHF is too risky. Most of
those studies have been debunked re-

peatedly, but Zucker failed to mention
the counterarguments, Gill says.
Fracturing Review
The governor's action comes after the
Health Department reported completing
a public health review of fracturing, with
Zucker recommending a ban on the stimulation technique.
"I have considered all the data and
find significant questions and risks to
public health that, as of yet, are unanswered," Zucker says. "I think it would
be reckless to proceed in New York until
more authoritative research is done. I
asked myself, 'Would I let my family
live in a community with fracturing?'
The answer is no. I therefore cannot recommend anyone else's family live in
such a community, either."
The New York Daily News reports
Zucker's family comments seemed to
make an impact on the governor during
the conference, but it adds that Zucker is
not married and has no children.
The Health Department began the hydraulic fracturing study in 2012, following
a request by DEC, which was reviewing
the draft supplemental generic environmental impact statement the state was
preparing in preparation for permitting
high-volume fractured wells.
"For the past six years, DEC has examined the significant environmental impacts that could result from high-volume
hydraulic fracturing," Martens says.
"DEC's own review identified dozens of
potential, significant adverse impacts of
HVHF. Further, with the exclusion of
sensitive natural, cultural and historical
resources, and the increasing number of
towns that have enacted bans and moratoria, the risks substantially outweigh
any potential economic impacts of HVHF.
Considering the research, public comments, relevant studies, Zucker's report
and the enormous record DEC has amassed
on this issue, I have directed my staff to
complete the final SGEIS. Once that is
complete, I will prohibit high-volume
hydraulic fracturing in New York State
at this time."
The Health Department review predicts
it will take years until science and research
provide enough information to determine
the levels of risk HVHF poses to the
public and whether those risks can be
mitigated adequately.
The Review's Conclusion
Absolute scientific certainty regarding
the positive and negative impacts of highJANUARY 2015 219
American Oil and Gas Reporter - January 2015

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