When his hometown of Buffalo, N.Y. became only the second city in the nation to ban hydrofracking, councilman Richard Fontana seems pleased — but not satisfied. Since the Buffalo City Council unanimously passed the resolution in February, Fontana has been lobbying other Great Lakes cities to follow suit.
The resolution was passed after Frack Action of Buffalo, an anti-fracking organization, submitted 1,600 signatures in support of the ban. The council also passed a citywide ban on the storage and disposal of fracking waste. Though hydraulic fracturing is not occurring in the Buffalo area, some states send fracking waste to other states for a fee, such between Pennsylvania and Ohio. Marcellus Shale drillers in Pennsylvania felt pressure from state officials to keep the waste out of surface waters, so it is now being injected underground in Ohio. It’s this slippery situation of unwanted waste and leaking chemicals that motivated Fontana to alert cities near Buffalo of the potential dangers of fracking.
“Many of these waters are not treated property when they go through the sewer treatment plants,” Fontana told WNED-News. “It then is dumped in Lake Erie where we have to drink our water from. We’re looking [for other cities to pass similar legislation] because if we protect the water, it’s important that they also protect the water.”
Fontana visited Cleveland, Ohio in April to speak to the city council about banning fracking and the treatment of wastewater. He has also sent letters to other Great Lakes cities, including Detroit, offering to draft legislation to aid in curbing fracking activities.
It appears progress toward these resolutions is slow. At the end of June, Ohio governor John Kasich signed a law that will allow gas and oil drilling in state parks. This would include parts of the state that are over the coveted Marcellus Shale, which is rich in natural gas. The shale’s deposit runs under nearly all of West Virginia, most of Pennsylvania, and parts of Ohio and New York. Most hydraulic fracturing is occurring in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Interestingly enough, the first city in the nation to ban fracking was Pittsburgh in November of last year. Morgantown, W. Va. was the third and most recent city to ban fracking.
Buffalo’s fracking laws could be model for Cleveland, others [WNED Buffalo Toronto]
Pennsylvania fracking water being disposed in Ohio [Pittsburgh Tribune-Review]
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