Hancock Gas Lease

For some time now, New York City bureaucrats have been advocating an outright ban on drilling within the watershed. It seems that the DEC is punting on the question: rather than issuing an answer one way or the other, they are making the watershed area a separate class of regulations. Any application to drill in this area must be considered on a case-by-case basis. It seems likely that in practice this will amount to an insurmountable hurdle of red tape, becoming a de facto ban.

As reported by the AP:

New regulations announced Friday for natural gas drilling in the New York City and Syracuse watersheds will create a bureaucratic hurdle that effectively prevents drilling there, defusing concerns about possible drinking-water contamination.

Environmental Conservation Commissioner Pete Grannis said the watersheds will be removed from drilling regulations being developed for other parts of the Marcellus Shale region in southern New York. Instead, each gas well would require an individual environmental impact statement, which entails a long, costly and complicated process.

On the other hand, this sacrifice seems to be balanced by a more streamlined process for the remaining areas:

Under the broader regulations, companies applying for drilling permits would have to meet requirements spelled out in a “generic” environmental impact statement but wouldn’t have to do impact statements for each well.

The first question you’re probably asking yourself is: “am I in the watershed?”. Check out this link courtesy of NYC.

If New York City wants to prevent landowners from developing their property, they should buy the development rights to that land. Their refusal to do so just shows that they want to continue to be parasites on the rest of the state, getting their water at our expense.

It seems that State Senator Bonacic (R-C-Mount Hope) agrees with our philosophy. The Times Herald-Record quotes him as saying:

Let them buy the development rights. For those landowners who want to sell their gas rights, let the city pay the same market rate to keep the land undeveloped. We buy agricultural development rights for tracts of land we want to preserve. Let those who oppose the lawful exploration and extraction of gas in the Catskills (do the same). …

If New York City can stop development of energy sources in the Catskills, they can diminish the value of people’s land without compensation.

The article seems to say that the City is turning a deaf ear to these arguments:

While the city’s DEP points out that it has already invested $541 million to buy watershed land, it did not directly address Bonacic’s proposal, except to reiterate the “unacceptable threats” of drilling to drinking water.

“We look forward to continuing a dialogue with elected officials and all stakeholders to protect the watershed during this process,” said a statement by Environmental Protection Commissioner Cas Holloway.