PSU Experts Cite Shale Gas Development Concerns
by
Frack Awareness Coalition
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posted on
Apr 30, 2012 06:27 PM
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last modified
Apr 30, 2012 06:27 PM
Yoxtheimer speaks at Pine Creek Preservation Association's meeting, "It's not the fracking that concerns me, it's the fragging."
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Responsible Drilling Alliance Newsletter
MCOR or MYCOR?
April 27 ,2012
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Dear RDA Members and Friends,
MCOR or MYCOR?
" It's not the
fracking that concerns me, it's the fragging. " stated David Yoxtheimer,
P.G., hydrogeologist with PSU's Marcellus Initiative for Outreach and
Research at Monday's Pine Creek Preservation Association's meeting at
the beautiful DCNR facility above Waterville. Lycoming native
Yoxtheimer, who's areas of expertise include water supply development
and integrated water resource management, was the featured speaker at
this month's meeting of an organization located in the heart of the
shale-gas assault on Pennsylvania's public lands ( www.pinecreekvalley.com ).
Throughout the evening . Included was a list of
the usual suspects of concern: water quality, methane migration,
erosion and sedimentation, excess truck traffic, air quality, inadequate
well plugging provisions, health impacts, and the elephant herd in the
woods: forest fragmentation.
RDA science advisor,
restoration ecologist Kevin Heatley has been "stumping" around PA and NY
on that very subject for well over two years now. Last he night he gave
a power point presentation, which will soon be available on the RDA
website, to the environmental club of Lock Haven University before a
small, but appreciative crowd. As audiences from the Montoursville
Rotary Club to the Interfaith Creation Care Symposium have discovered,
Kevin is beyond outspoken in his defense of the value of our core forest
resource in the deep woods of Pennsylvania. Holding a master's in
environmental science from PSU, Kevin is highly critical of his alma
mater's approach to shale-gas development. He insists the science is
already in on the impacts of forest fragmentation, that it is well
documented and states flat out that we are throwing away over 100 years
of equity built up since the destruction of the 19th C logging era.
Throwing away, without a cost benefit analysis having ever been done, an
extremely rare and valuable asset, as the pace of permitting continues
to run amok.
Posted recently
in Farm and Dairy News, under an "Onion" magazine like title: "Study
suggests shale-gas development causing rapid landscape change", is a
report of a study by PSU's Patrick Drohan, professor of pedology (soil
science). The article, with the byline "Other News", states:
"Our
results suggest," said Drohan, "that shale-gas development could
substantially alter Pennsylvania's landscape. The development of new roads to support drilling could affect forest ecosystem integrity via increased fragmentation."
The
fragmentation of forestland, especially northern core forest, places
headwater streams and larger downstream waterways at risk of pollution,
the study suggests.
Based
on the intensity of development in the Susquehanna River basin, future
expansion of shale-gas production in this basin could become a
significant land- and water-management challenge for Chesapeake Bay
water quality and ecosystem services.
The entire article is available at:
http://www.farmanddairy.com/news/study-suggests-shale-gas-development-causing-rapid-landscape-change/36642.htmlWhether your
community of organization would respond best to the Yoxtheimer, Heatley
or Drohan approach, the issue of forest fragmentation needs to come to
the forefront before the permitting philosophy of the DEP, the SRBC and
the Corbett administration is allowed to do much more damage to the
future of Pennsylvania, Maryland and the Chesapeake Bay. Bringing in one
of these concerned scientists to your community is highly recommended.
Contact RDA if you are interested in having Kevin speak to your group or
would like to show a DVD copy of his presentation.
Myopia: (American Heritage Dictionary) 2. Shortsightedness or lack of discernment in thinking or planning MCOR or MYCOR?
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