Hydrofracking Information Meeting
Thursday, October 29th 4:30 – 6:30 PM
May Memorial Unitarian Universalist Society
3800 East Genesee Street, Syracuse
Featuring hydrofracking expert Ron Bishop, Professor of Chemistry at SUNY Oneonta
RSVP via email lspeer@mrss.com
If you were at the Peace Action Awards dinner on Sunday night, you heard the keynote speaker, Pulitzer-Prize recipient Chris Hedges, mention “Fracking” as a significant threat to Central New York. Joseph Heath, General Counsel for the Onondaga Nation, and Peace Award recipient, agrees: “This is the biggest local environmental issue of our time.”
Better known as “Hydrofracking” or “Slickwater Horizontal Hydraulic Fracturing” to be specific, this new method of gas drilling uses millions of gallons of water, mixed with a slurry of sand and toxic chemicals, to fracture layers of shale bedrock deep below ground to access the natural gas trapped there. This is not just a “Southern Tier” issue; the DEC has included Utica Shale, which underlies Syracuse and the Tug Hill, as a formation for drilling. Over 1000 leases have been signed in Onondaga County already. This method of drilling is creating a “gold rush” in Pennsylvania and New York State as landmen for the gas industry convince landowners to sign leases of their land for drilling, touting the financial benefits but not sharing the environmental consequences. It has been allowed in Pennsylvania and the result has been polluted rivers, exploding drinking wells, and a vast industrialization of the landscape. The NYS Department of Environmental conservation attempted to come up with more stringent rules, which are available for public comment until November 30.
Join us to learn what we can do to prevent hydrofracking from harming our environment like it has in Pennsylvania, Texas, and Wyoming.
Ron Bishop has a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Youngstown State University and a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the West Virginia University School of Medicine. He is a member of the National Registry of Certified Chemists. His full-time research experience of more than 17 years was related to cancer and biosafety testing. For the past 11 years, Dr. Bishop has taught general and organic chemistry, biochemistry, biology, genetics, and environmental sciences in high schools and colleges. He currently teaches in SUNY Oneonta’s Chemistry and Biochemistry Department. His background includes extensive construction experience and more than two years as an investigative journalist.
Sponsored by the Onondaga Nation, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Sierra Club – Iroquois Chapter, and Neighbors of the Onondaga Nation (NOON).