Giant Straw to Suck up East Branch

[eelweir]

Guys,
原帖地�: North Eastern Fly Fishing Forums http://www.njflyfishing.com/vBulletin/showthread.php?p=126496

Check out the below story. Potentially really bad news for you East Branch fishers. Our good friends at Chesapeake Energy want to suck up 1 million gallons/per day of water at Peas Eddy on the lower East for their gas drilling scheme. Note: "Peace Island," as its mistakenly called in the story, is really Pea's Island, which is part of Pea's Eddy, for those who know it. There are so many reasons why this is a bad idea. Here are two that immediately come to mind:

1.) The lower East Branch is thermally challenged to begin with. Why make it worse by de-watering it even more?

2.) How can they assure us they will not be sucking up trout fry, shad fry, smallmouth fry, walleye fry, aquatic insects, etc.

There will be public hearings on this beginning on Dec. 4th (details are below). All Catskill fishers who give a damn about the river(s) should come and tell these guys: NOT ONE DROP FROM OUR RIVERS...

Here's the article:

DRBC gets 1st gas well application

By Peter Becker
Wayne Independent
Mon Nov 10, 2008, 05:18 PM EST

NARROWSBURG, NY -

Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) has received the first application for a permit docket, from a natural gas company hoping to drill into the Marcellus Shale in the Upper Delaware region.
Chesapeake Energy Corporation’s request is for water withdrawal from the East Branch of the Delaware River, said Carol Collier, Executive Director of the DRBC, reporting to the Upper Delaware Council (UDC) in Narrowsburg, Thursday night. She said specific well sites were not mentioned in the application and it is not clear if the wells will be in Wayne County, Pennsylvania or on the New York side.
The request is to take as much as 999,999 gallons a day from the East Branch near Peace Island. DRBC received the application in late October; and is studying the best way to handle this.
原帖地�: North Eastern Fly Fishing Forums http://www.njflyfishing.com/vBulletin/showthread.php?p=126496
Fred Peckham, who is the Alternate Delegate to the UDC for the Town of Hancock, said that Chesapeake has been in touch with Hancock Town government, about Chesapeake’s intentions to drill four wells near the Millennium Pipeline. This natural gas pipeline is being built through the Town of Hancock. Peckham speculated this application may have to do with this.
Meanwhile, no application has been received from Stone Energy Corporation for their test well that was dug last May in Clinton Township, Wayne County. Collier said that DRBC is moving ahead “positively” in enforcing Stone Energy to comply and hopes to have a report at the December UDC meeting.
Meetings in NY on gas issue
The New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has scheduled six public “scoping” meetings to record comment on the environmental impact of natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale region in New York State. DEC is taking comment through December 15 in preparation for a final “Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS).”
The closest meeting to the Upper Delaware is scheduled Thursday, December 4, at Sullivan County Community College, Fieldhouse, 112 College Road, Loch Sheldrake, NY. Doors will open at 4:30 p.m., with brief remarks by DEC staff starting at 5;15 p.m. Public comments will be taken beginning at 6 p.m.
DEC’s draft statement looked at water withdrawal for hydraulic fracturing, transport of water to the site, use of additives to the fracturing fluid, space and facilities at the well site to ensure proper handling of water and additives, removal of spent additives and its disposal, noise, visual and air quality concerns and potential community impacts.
Willie Janeway was introduced as the Regional Director for DEC Region 3, which includes Sullivan and Orange counties in the Upper Delaware Corridor. He urged citizens to come and give input at the scoping meetings. He said they are glad for the cleaner fuel source natural gas drilling promises, and lessening dependency on foreign oil, but DEC remains “absolutely committed” to a thorough review of environmental impact.
DEC is under a state-ordered hiring freeze, and they are looking to cut expenses, said Janeway. In response, George Fluhr, the UDC delegate for Shohola Township, asked in that case, does DEC have a good working relationship with their Pennsylvania counterpart, Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)?
Janeway said that they do but DEP has different standards, and suggested that New York’s oversight was more “aggressive”. “There is communication with [Pa.-DEP] but not so much coordination,” he added. Fluhr suggested avoiding duplication.
Janeway said that if DEC’s staffing becomes a concern, DEC will adjust how many gas well permits are authorized, so that DEC will still be able to regulate them.
See the DEC web site for more information at New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.