November 11, 2009

VAN ETTEN -- Amid persisting concerns about the environmental impacts and possible water contamination from natural gas drilling, a new report suggests the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation may not have the resources to properly enforce its own regulations.

The latest report, compiled by Toxics Targeting, takes aim at the DEC and what it says are ineffective regulations and a lack of inspectors to enforce them.

It specifically pinpoints at least 270 gas and oil incidents over the past 30 years, only about 20% of which were actually discovered by DEC inspectors.  Toxics Targeting says the report proves that the DEC's claims of adequate regulatory practices are false.

Autumn Stoscheck agrees.  She's a local farmer with a gas well sitting on her property only a few hundred yards behind her house.

She doesn't think the DEC is doing enough to make sure gas companies are following regulations designed to protect the environment and water supplies.

"For me the Department of Mineral Resources at the DEC is just trying to promote (drilling), and the protections they claim are a veil.  They're not really real," she said.

Christopher Denton, a land owner attorney with over 30 years experience with environmental and energy cases, is equally skeptical.

"From my perspective, based on what I think is going to happen, the number of wells to be drilled, it's not really enough.

"The sheer volume... makes it imposible for DEC staff to get around. It's just too much."

WENY-TV News contacted the DEC but have not yet received any communication back from them regarding this story.